Archives News

Featured image for “Highlights with Heidi: Children’s Aid Society of Ogden”
September 13, 2022

Highlights with Heidi: Children’s Aid Society of Ogden

A few months ago, Heidi received a patron request for an adoption record. Within this adoption was a clue leading her to the records of the Children’s Aid Society. Let’s see what she found! In 1909, the Utah Legislature passed a law to protect “Dependent, Neglected, and Ill-treated Children” (Laws of Utah 1909.) By creating the Children’s Aid Society (Society),
Featured image for “Mountain Meadows Massacre in the Records”
September 9, 2022

Mountain Meadows Massacre in the Records

What Happened The Mountain Meadows Massacre occurred in September 1857 in a highland valley roughly 35 miles southwest of Cedar City. The Baker-Fancher emigrant party, traveling through Utah on their way from Arkansas to California, was attacked by members of the local Iron County Militia and purportedly some local Paiute Indians. The emigrants fought back and a five day siege ensued. On the
Featured image for “The People versus Frank Smiley: Investigating an 1894 Sodomy Crime in Territorial Utah”
September 6, 2022

The People versus Frank Smiley: Investigating an 1894 Sodomy Crime in Territorial Utah

This blog post was written by Randell Hoffman, a 2022 summer intern at the Utah State Archives and Records Service. They are working on their Master of Archives and Records Administration degree at the San José State University School of Information. They focus particularly on community archives and community involvement in archival processes, as well as Utah’s LGBTQIA+ history.  Who
Featured image for “Tracking the Forced Displacement and Relocation of Persons of Japanese Descent during WWII”
August 17, 2022

Tracking the Forced Displacement and Relocation of Persons of Japanese Descent during WWII

This blog post was written by Nery Alcivar-Estrella, a 2022 summer intern at the Utah State Archives and Records Service. She is working on her Master of Library and Information Science degree at the San José State University School of Information and is particularly interested in the intersection of librarianship and archival work. In this blog post, I examine records
Featured image for “Provo Seal: A 153-Year-Old Tradition”
June 29, 2022

Provo Seal: A 153-Year-Old Tradition

There is a particular sense of connection to our history when we see a practice from the past that has lived on into the present, continuing to fulfill a function, but carrying with it a sense of continuity and a memory of where we have come from. When Archive staff members Heidi Steed and Alan Barnett recently visited Provo City
Featured image for “Highlights with Heidi: Coffin Nails”
June 7, 2022

Highlights with Heidi: Coffin Nails

While searching through Governor Spry’s correspondence records, Heidi found this colorful cartoon depicting a funny-dressed man with a cigarette in his mouth. “To the Cigarette Pimp” is handwritten below the man, who, presumably, is Governor Spry. On the back of the cartoon is an impassioned letter to the Governor begging him to take a harder stance against selling tobacco to anyone under the
Featured image for “Preserving Utah’s Historic Buildings, Then and Now”
May 24, 2022

Preserving Utah’s Historic Buildings, Then and Now

We typically think of black and white or warm sepia-toned prints when we think of historical photographs. But color photography has been around long enough for color images to be considered historical as well. The Utah State Archives recently received a collection of over 30,000 35mm color slides from the Utah State Historic Preservation Office, a state agency that assists
Featured image for “Utah History Day 2022: History in Government Winners”
April 26, 2022

Utah History Day 2022: History in Government Winners

Every year in April, students across the state, from grades 4-12, embark on a research project for Utah History Day, part of the larger National History Day contest. Students choose a historical topic related to the annual theme, and then conduct primary and secondary research in libraries, archives, and museums. The final projects are presented in one of five ways: an exhibit,
Featured image for “New Discoveries in the Archives: A Question of Self-Defense”
April 11, 2022

New Discoveries in the Archives: A Question of Self-Defense

This blog post was written by McKenzie Wood, a 2022 AS-L Outreach Intern at the Utah State Archives and Records Service. She is in her master’s program for Library and Information Science at St. John’s University in Queens, New York and is particularly interested in criminal justice. On September 9, 1891, Adolf F. Kohler was shot and killed by local
Featured image for “Caroline Pace: The First Women Elected in Spanish Fork City”
March 21, 2022

Caroline Pace: The First Women Elected in Spanish Fork City

I first encountered Caroline Pace while sorting through a box of records labeled ‘old stuff.’ Spanish Fork City had transferred the box to the State Archives with many other historical records. However, unlike the other meticulously identified records, this particular box was unruly. The box was full of hundreds of tightly rolled and folded pieces of paper that were difficult