When exploring Provo I’ve come across a series of historic plaques Provo City put up around town that say “One in a Series of Events from Provo’s History” across the top and then describe some of Provo’s history and are numbered. I’d like to eventually locate them all and have them listed here so I’ll create this and add to it as I find them.
- 001 – The City of Provo was founded in 1849 by Mormon pioneers.
- 002 – Provo’s North Park Was Once an Adobe Yard for Its Early Settlers.
- 003 – Memorial Park at 800 East Center Street Was an Unsightly Swamp.
- 004 – Fish in Utah Lake and the Provo River Saved Utah’s Early Settlers.
- 005 – Provo’s First Cooperative Opened in 1869
- 006 – Provoans Built First Railroad in 1873.
- 007 – How Provo’s Squaw Peak Got Its Name.
- 008 – Provo’s First Department Store Began in 1866 at 250 West Center St.
- 009 – Utah’s Largest Indian Battle, Called the “Battle of Provo River.”
- 010 – Utah County’s Early Courthouses.
- 011 – Provo’s Early Carding Mill and Machine Shop Were Vital to the City.
- 012 – The Excelsior Flour Mill Was Crucial to Provo’s Early Settlers.
- 013 – Provo’s First Bank was Late in Coming but Didn’t Last Long.
- 014 – Choosing the Site of Provo’s First Tabernacle Caused Controversy.
- 015 – Provo’s First Tithing Office was South of Provo’s Town Square…
- 016 – Provo’s Early Colonists Were Caught Between Warring Indian Bands.
- 017 – Provo’s First Colonizers Moved from the River to Higher Ground.
- 018 – Brigham Young Used Surplus Labor to Build a New Tithing Office.
- 019 –
- 020 – A Captured German Howitzer Stood in Front of the Utah County Courthouse.
- 021 – Spanish Fathers Visit Utah Valley in 1776.
- 022 – Brigham Young University Opened in 1875 in Lewis Hall.
- 023 – Creating the “Y” on the Mountain.
- 024 – Carp Not Native to Utah Lake; Introduced in 1882.
- 025 – Deseret Telegraph Line Connected Provo to the Rest of Utah.
- 026 – Several Brick Manufacturing Companies Once Operated in Provo.
- 027 – A Tragedy at the Site of the Provo Lime Kiln.
- 028 – Fire Destroys Brigham Young Academy Building.
- 029 – Provo’s First Volunteer Fire Department.
- 030 – First Utah County Fair Held in Provo.
- 031 –
- 032 – Provo Hosted Utah’s Largest Trading Fair Between the Utes and Pioneers.
- 033 – The Forerunner of FrontRunner: Provo-to-SLC Trains Began in 1912.
- 034 – Pioneers Made Their Initial Boat Trip on Utah Lake in 1847.
- 035 – Provo Once Thought it Should Be Utah’s Capital City.
- 036 – Provo’s First Fire Station was Opened Downtown in 1893.
- 037 – Provo’s Two Oldest Existing Homes Are Neighbors in Pioneer Village.
- 038 – One of Provo’s Oldest Businesses is the Startup Candy Company.
- 039 – Sewage Disposal in Early Provo Was the Same as in Other Frontier Towns.
- 040 –
- 041 – Two Railroads Moved Coal to Provo in the 1880s.
- 042 –
- 043 – A Firebug Bit Provo in 1878
- 044 – Provo’s First Jail Was Built in 1871.
- 045 – Provo’s First Radio Station Came in 1939.
- 046 – A Provo Accident Hastened the Death of President Heber C. Kimball.
- 047 – Provo’s North Park had a Community Ice Skating Rink in the 1930s.
- 048 – Utah Territorial Insane Asylum Came to Provo in 1885.
- 049 – Early Residents of Provo lacked Land Titles.
- 050 – Provo Had a “Pest House” for Those with Communicable Diseases.
- 051 – Provo Police Chief Killed in 1873.
- 052 – Proctor Academy Helped Educate Provo’s Youth.
- 053 – Army Troops Caused the “Provo Riot” in 1870.
- 054 – Provo’s Name Has an Interesting History.
- 055 – Large Showboat Once Sailed on Utah Lake.
- 056 – Provo Once Had a Silk Industry.
- 057 – A Curious Craft Once Skimmed the Ice on Utah Lake.
- 058 – A Wheelbarrow Parade in 1888 Helped Bring Political Parties to Provo.
- 059 – A Woolen Mill Was Once Provo’s Largest Business.
- 060 – Early Provo Bridges Across the Provo River Kept Washing Out.