Provo High School Seminary Building

Until statehood, most secondary education in Utah was sponsored by religions, most notably the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. With the development of public high schools, the LDS church closed most of its academies or gave them to the state of Utah. But there was concern that students missed out on religious education, so the LDS Church started a seminary program. The first seminary was in the Granite Stake in Salt Lake City. The LDS Church worked with school districts to allow released-time for religious training. The Provo Seminary was started in 1920 and the classes were held in the Provo Sixth Ward meeting house at first (on the corner of 300 South and 200 West where the 7-11 sits today). When Jensen was writing his history of Provo in 1924, this building was under construction. It remained the home of the seminary until Provo High School moved to its current location.

The seminary building was designed originally to exist in harmony with the old Provo High School, which stood across the street where the Fire Department portion of the Provo City Center now stands. Specifically, the Provo High School was built using a similar dark brick, and made use of a contrasting concrete foundation base, stringcourses, and parapet caps that can be seen on the Seminary. The design for the Seminary borrows elements from neoclassical and temple front styles of American public buildings constructed in the first three decades of the 20th century. Neoclassical features that can be seen include the symmetrical façade, raised basement story, the uninterrupted cornice, the projecting temple front with Doric columns, the concrete stringcourse, entry arch, and cap on the pediment. Note how the curving arcs at the top of the steps repeat the form of the arch above the door.