Discovery Road – Winner of Best In State 2022 – Best Documentary

Since its debut in 2012, Discovery Road has produced over 60 episodes, taking viewers on immersive journeys down U.S. Highway 89 through six historic counties in central and southern Utah.

 

Each 30-minute episode blends history, mystery, heritage, and natural beauty into family-friendly storytelling that educates as much as it entertains.

 

Broadcast locally on KUED-TV and across the country through the National Educational Television Association, or NETA, the series has become a public media touchstone for anyone seeking a deeper connection to the region’s past. It is also used in classrooms across the state as part of Utah’s history curriculum.

Mormon Pioneers traveling to the west Covered Wagons Courtesy of Shaun Messick

The Mormon Pioneer National Heritage Area is the only National Heritage Area designated and named for a specific people, the Mormon Pioneers – as they forged to the west. Their remarkable story of dedication, fortitude, and extraordinary efforts offers one of the best features of the Mormon colonization experience in the United States. The Mormon Pioneer National Heritage Area has been identified by Congress as a factor in the expansion of the United States and contributing to the United States.

Districts

travel planner for the Mormon Pioneer National Heritage Area

Cowboys, Outlaws, and the Movies 

The unique landscape features a geological wonderland that has been the backdrop for feature films including; “Butch Cassidy And The Sundance Kid,” and “Jeremiah Johnson.” While traveling through the picturesque scenery, you might recognize a scene or two. Included in the heritage area is the birthplace of Utah outlaws, Butch Cassidy and Matt Warner. Matt was a lifelong friend and a gang member alongside of Butch.  Many movies were filmed in the scenic Under the Rim District of the Mormon Pioneer National Heritage Area.

Mormon Colonization 

In the later part of the 1800s the Mormon pioneers began their great relocation to the west. They trekked 1,400 miles from Illinois to the Great Salt Lake. This mass-Exodus brought about colonization in Utah, Nevada, the southwest corner of Wyoming, the southeast corner of Idaho, southeast Oregon, and a large portion of southern and eastern California.

log cabin with Mormon Pioneer Family Echo City Utah
Family Portrait of Mormon Pioneers in Echo City, Utah

National Forest Service

  • MPNHA Photo Contest – $25 Prize

    MPNHA Photo Contest. MPNHA Photo Contest. Camera facing mountains.

    We know that you have some amazing photos, and now it’s time to share them! The Mormon Pioneer National Heritage Area is hosting a photo contest. It’s time to dust…

  • Discovery Road Celebrates National Park Service Centennial

    One hundred years. That’s a birthday to remember for the National Park Service and one Discovery Road hosts Maryda Nicole Gallo and James Nelson celebrate in “Precious Jewels in any…

  • Discovery Road Celebrates National Park Service Centennial

    One hundred years. That’s a birthday to remember for the National Park Service and one Discovery Road hosts Maryda Nicole Gallo and James Nelson celebrate in “Precious Jewels in any…

  • Railroad Resorts Bring Sevier County’s Railroad Past to Life

    The Denver & Rio Grande Railroad is being resurrected in an unusual way in the Mormon Pioneer National Heritage Area. Partners David Grow and George Jones of Environetics have built…

  • ANNOUNCING EVERY KID IN A PARK

    Thumbnail for the post titled: ANNOUNCING EVERY KID IN A PARK

    The Federal Land Management agencies, National Parks, National Park Service, Forest Service, Army Corps of Engineers, Bureau of Land Management, Fish and Wildlife Service, Bureau of Reclamation, and National Oceanic…

  • Little Hollywood Shootout Quick

    Little Hollywood and Under the Rim District of the Mormon PIoneer National Heritage Area

    Kelly Stowell <stowell@kanab.net> of the Utah Film Commission Date: Thu, Feb 25, 2016 at 3:55 PM Subject: Little Hollywood Shootout Quick Turn Around Film Competition Kicks Off March 16, 2016…

  • 5 Areas In The Mormon Pioneer National Heritage Make The List

    Thumbnail for the post titled: 5 Areas In The Mormon Pioneer National Heritage Make The List

    On November 07, 2015 Posted in  Only in Your State by Catherine Rees   Utah  5 places in the Mormon Pioneer National Heritage Area make Catherine Rees 15 Places in…

  • PRESIDENT ABRAHAM LINCOLN AND THE MORMONS SHARE A RICH HISTORY

    Thumbnail for the post titled: PRESIDENT ABRAHAM LINCOLN AND THE MORMONS SHARE A RICH HISTORY

    Bryon C. Andreason author of Looking For Lincoln in Illinois series has a new addition to his collection with his newly published book, Looking For Lincoln In Illinois; Lincoln And…

  • First Annual Amazing Earthfest

    DATE 05/09/2007 7:15 AM FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE This is part of an occasional series by the Sanpete Country Travel and Utah Heritage Highway 89 Alliance on the people and places…

  • Fairview, Ephraim Gearing up for Snowmobile ‘State Ride’

    DATE 02/21/2006 7:15 AM FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE This is part of an occasional series by the Sanpete Country Travel and Utah Heritage Highway 89 Alliance on the people and places…

This program receives Federal financial assistance for identification and protection of historic properties. Under Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, and the Age Discrimination Act of 1975, as amended, the U.S. Department of the Interior prohibits discrimination on the basis of race, color, national origin, disability or age in its federally assisted programs. If you believe you have been discriminated against in any program, activity, or facility as described above, or if you desire further information, please write to: Office for Equal Opportunity, National Park Service, 849 C Street NW, Washington, D.C. 20240.

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