Utah, one of the largest and most beautiful states, has extraordinarily diverse features and a dramatic founding story.
Admitted as a state 125 years ago in 1896, Utah was created after a 40-year struggle for statehood.
It is the only state organized by a religious group, and a homegrown one at that, who pioneered the wild land of deserts, canyons and snowy mountains.
The Mormons set out for Utah in 1845 after attacks in Nauvoo, Ill. made their settlement unsustainable. In 1847, church leader Brigham Young and others reached the Salt Lake Valley. They were the first of 70,000 pioneers who crossed the plains during the next 22 years.
While many of the Mormon wagon trains were well equipped, thousands of settlers traveled across the vast plain using handcarts, a torturous and deadly trek, but one that revealed their determination for freedom from religious persecution.
More than half of the citizens of Utah are Mormons — members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints.
