Salty Souvenir from Saltair

Here's another card that might not make it through the mail if it were sent today. It has a little cloth bag of salt attached as a souvenir from the Great Salt Lake.

There's some very faded printing on the bag that says Great Salt Lake. The postcard photo shows people disembarking from open-air curtained train cars, with the first Saltair Pavilion in the background. The pavilion was built in 1893 and burned down in 1925. A replacement was built, but it also suffered from fire damage in 1931 and then burned down completely in 1970. Although a third pavilion was built, it was plagued by various problems, including unpredictable water levels. In a good year you might be on the edge of the water, but the next year might be a different story.

You can see by the back of the card that moisture has wicked out some of the salt.

Here's a close up of the text on the back.

The Salt Lake is also a valuable habitat for birds. Here's an earlier post on bathing at Saltair.

Newhouse Hotel - Salt Lake City, Utah

What...you're tired of Utah posts!  I hope not. Anyway, this is the last one. Here is the Newhouse Hotel. I find varying reports that the hotel was built in 1912 or in 1915, but that seems unlikely since this card was clearly sent in 1911 - unless it was entirely an artist's rendition. The people are certainly drawn in. The flag doesn't seem real.  The hotel may also have been partially finished at this time. The Utah Historical Society told me that the hotel was built between 1909 and 1915. Hmm, oh well.

In the early boom days, this was the place important people met and deals were made.  Samuel Newhouse, a mining magnate, was trying to create a business area akin to Wall Street in Salt Lake City. Unfortunately, his money started running right about the time he was building this hotel. Although it was elegant, it never quite met his expectations.

The card was sent to Miss L. Kleikbrink (Kleinbrink?)  on August 7, 1911
It reads:

Milford, Utah  Aug. 7 -11

Dear Friend

received your letter a few days ago and I was sure glad to hear from you and to know that you wear well and that you had a nice time when you wear on the farm. Well I will let go this time hopbing to hear from you again your friend G. Welsh (?)

The Newhouse Hotel remained for many decades until it was declared unsafe and too costly to rehabilitate in the 1980s. It was demolished with explosives in 1983 and was replaced by a surface parking lot.

Troy Snow was there and took this amazing photo, which he graciously allowed me to use.

You can see more of his photos on Flickr.

Soaking in the Salt Lake

At the turn of the century and for decades to follow, Saltair was the place to go for good wholesome recreation near Salt Lake City. It was a great place to escape from the city heat, and the high salt content of the water allowed swimmers to float effortlessly. There was also a lot of oversight by the Mormon church, so young singles could go there without endangering their reputations. In addition to  swimming, there was a huge dance floor and live music.

The Saltair Pavilion shown on this postcard is the second one. The first one was built in 1893 and burned down in 1925. A second pavilion was built, but it also suffered fire damage in 1931. That was just the beginning of more troubles to come. In 1933, the waters receded, leaving Saltair on dry ground. This postcard was printed in 1933, but seems to show a photo from earlier times.

Saltair also had new competition, including movie theaters, automobiles, and then television, which presented people with additional entertainment and travel options. The Great Depression and World War II also drew people away. The Saltair Pavilion finally closed during World War II. In the meantime it was used as a set for the horror flick, A Carnival of Souls. The second Saltair shown above burned to the ground from an arson fire in 1970.

Hope springs eternal, and a third Saltair Pavilion was built in 1981. This one was also plagued by problems including flooding and then receding waters. Today, Saltair Pavilion III is used as a venue for rock concerts.

Here's an earlier postcard from Salt Lake, during the era of Saltair I.

And here are the backs of the postcards in the same order:

Zion and Bryce

This is a continuation of the exotic Utah post from yesterday.  Utah truly has some of the most breathtaking landscapes I have ever seen.  I have a few linen postcards that show Bryce Canyon. Generally, linen postcards add color and make the scenes more appealing. In the case of Bryce Canyon, the opposite is true. Here's a postcard view:

In reality, the colors are much more brilliant. Here's a photo of Bryce Canyon from last week:

Bryce, Zion, and the other parks in Utah are all amazing in their own ways. There are some incredible views and amazing hiking opportunities for all levels. Here's a picture of me with my mother during a hike in Cedar Breaks last week:

And here's a view of a trail that the architect who steals my covers went on without us. My mother and I stayed in because it was raining heavily. I would have been terrified if I had known what this trail looked like, especially considering the slippery conditions. There was a sign at the beginning of the trail that urged caution and stated that people had died from falling off the edge. Arghhh! I feel sick just looking at this, especially knowing that it is a two-way trail and people coming from the opposite direction may need to pass by you somehow.

Exotic Utah

Utah may not be exotic for people who live in the Southwest, but if you live in Portland, Oregon, it doesn't get much more exotic.  We just returned from a week in Utah, visiting Zion National Park, Bryce Canyon, Escalante, Capitol Reef, and Salt Lake City. The flight from Portland, Oregon to Salt Lake City is only an hour and twenty minutes, but the differences are striking.

Portland is wet and rainy. Moss grows on everything.  Utah is arid and very hot in the summer.  Oregonians are of many different religions, and a high percentage are not affiliated with any church at all. Utah is predominantly Mormon - approximately 60% of residents statewide, with a much higher percentage in rural areas. We have children here in Oregon, but at a rate below the national average. Utah has the highest birthrate by far in the United States.

We were attracted to Utah by visions of this dry landscape and bright blue skies. The Mormon presence is very strong and you get the sense that the focus is on families and children. Although I have a certain appreciation for the grungy, tattooed and pierced Portland youth, I have to admit that I really enjoyed seeing so many clean-cut young men and women in Salt Lake City.

We did have a bit of culture shock, as we are accustomed to having at least one coffee establishment on every block in Portland. You never know when you might be overcome by caffeine deprivation. Here in Oregon, we also have a strong appreciation for beer and wine. In Utah, you may have difficulty finding a cup of coffee or a glass of wine, because the Mormon church forbids its followers from consuming alcohol, coffee or tea. In fact, you have to go to a special State liquor store to buy a bottle of wine. That may not sound like a big deal, but there are 243 incorporated municipalities in Utah and only 67 liquor stores in a state that covers 84,899 sq mi (219,899 sq km.)

I would like to explore Salt Lake City a bit more some day. We enjoyed visiting the Mormon Temple square and the Mormon Church History Museum.  For some reason I felt compelled to buy these souvenirs from the museum gift shop.  If you are amazed that anyone is making missionary action figures, you will be doubly amazed that there were four different sets to choose from. They all look equally wholesome, but have different stances and facial features.
It was a difficult decision, but I finally picked these guys:

Where You Could Be

Contemplating a Summer getaway? Here are some ideas:

We'll get those cows to mosey along and then we can take a dip in that pool.

Or, how about the Country Squire Motel in Knoxville, Tennessee? It has a putting green (not shown):

But this looks like the nicest swimming pool, and the scenery is terrific. It's the Harrison Hot Springs Hotel in British Columbia:

L. Bush stayed there in 1952 and had this to say:
 

Hi neighbor! Believe it or not I might be getting home the last of this week. Took a trip up into Canada with my family and we stayed here one night. Fine scenery.

Do you still have Hay's Dairy? You might have the driver leave a bottle of milk for me Friday. Have him charge it to me.

L. Bush.

Salt Lake City, Utah

Beautiful colorful cars and buildings and a bright blue sky. And look at that big wide street. In fact, the back of the card brags about the width, stating that like all Salt Lake City streets it is: "132 feet wide, allowing ample room for parking on either side and plenty of room for driving."

Oh, if they just could have seen into the future. We thought that was progress, but we also discovered that designing everything for the automobile made it very difficult for people to walk anyplace, and actually ended up being detrimental to downtown businesses. It's also a lot of money for pavement (on land that could be used for something else),  a lot of radiant heat during hotter months,  and a headache for storm water management when it rains or there is substantial snow melt. A 132-foot wide street may be inviting for a car, but it likely to strike fear in the hearts of potential pedestrians. Do you see any crossing signals here? It makes me wonder what we are doing now in the name of progress, that will be seen as folly in the future.

It's difficult to redesign an urban grid, but in a situation like this it could be a great opportunity.  With 132 feet, you have plenty of room to add a planted center median to serve as a pedestrian refuge and also offset reflective heat from pavement.  You still have plenty of room left for wide sidewalks and bike lanes.