Provo, Utah County, Utah Genealogy

Quick History


Provo is the County Seat for Utah County. It is nestled in the valley between the tall peaks of Mount Timpanogos and the shores of Utah Lake. The first inhabitants were the Ute Indian tribes living in villages close to Utah Lake. The area was visited by explorers, trappers, and mountain men. A skillful, well respected mountain man, French Canadian trapper Etienne Provost trapped and explored the area in 1824. Mormon Pioneers from Salt Lake City traveled south to the Provo area and established Fort Utah on March 12, 1849, originally settling near Utah Lake. The name was soon changed to Fort Field. In April 1850 the houses and stockade were moved and replaced to a second spot where the Pioneer Museum now stands called Sowiette Park or North Park. The name of Provo was given the now permanent settlement. Located at the base of the Wasatch Mountain range, Provo and several of its neighboring communities constitute a community referred to as Utah Valley

The first large industry in Provo was Provo Woolen Mills opened in 1872, it was Utah’s largest factory for its time. In 1875 Brigham Young Academy was established. In 1903, BYA was dissolved and replaced by Brigham Young University High School and Brigham Young University. The old BYU High School building has been restored and is now the home of the Provo City Library.

A fire in 1918 damaged the Provo Woolen Mills, which never recovered. Between 1918 and 1919 over 200 people died in Utah county from the Flu Epidemic, some complete families. The Ironton steel mill in the early 1920s and later the much larger Geneva steel plant provided work for the people of Utah Valley. The Central Utah Vocational School (also known as Utah Tech) was established in 1941; the name has changed several times over the years and it is now Utah Valley University.


 * Historic Provo


 * Provo City Timeline

County Courthouse


County Courthouse 100 East Center Street Provo, Utah 84606

City Center
Provo City Center 351 West Center Provo, UT 84601 Phone 801-852-6000

Neighboring Communities
Orem | Springville

Provo Neighborhoods
The City of Provo is divided into 5 general areas with 34 smaller, specific neighborhoods. This list not only gives you the five areas, but links to maps of each neighborhood.


 * Central Area: Franklin | Dixon | East Bay | Franklin South | Joaquin | Maeser | North Park | Timp | Central Business District


 * Southeast Area: Foothills | Oak Hills | Pleasant View | Provost | Provost South | Spring Creek | University | Wasatch


 * Southwest Area: Fort Utah | Lakeview South | Lakeview North | Lakewood | Provo Bay | Sunset


 * Northeast Area: Edgemont| Indian Hills | North Timpview | Rock Canyon | Sherwood Hills

Biography

 * Heart Throbs of the West. 1939-1947. Salt Lake City: Daughters of the Utah Pioneers. 12 volumes., Provo City Library;.
 * Mormons and their Neighbors. Database of over 100,000 biographical sketches in the Western United States.
 * Our Pioneer Heritage. 1958-1977. Compiled by Kate B. Carter. Salt Lake City: Daughters of the Utah Pioneers. 20 volumes., Provo City Library;.
 * Pioneers and Prominent Men of Utah: comprised of photographs, genealogies, biographies, the early history of the Church. 1913. By Frank Esshom. Salt Lake City, Utah : Utah Pioneers Book. Online at: Vol. 1 part 1 - FamilySearch Digital Library, Vol. 1 part 2 - FamilySearch Digital Library
 * Personal History Collections
 * Daughters of Utah Pioneers
 * Early Latter Day Saints - A Mormon Trail Pioneer Database
 * FamilySearch Digital Library, BYU has digitized thousands of personal histories available at this searchable site.
 * Sons of Utah Pioneers Stories

History of Cemeteries in Provo

 * Fort Field Cemetery

The first of the settlers that died in 1849 were buried in the first Fort Field Graveyard in the William’s farm Which is located in Lake View which is now know as Geneva Road. There is a Daughters of Utah Pioneers marker near these burial grounds.


 * Temple Hill Cemetery

In 1850, a better location was found and a second fort was built along with a second Fort Field Cemetery. The name was changed to Temple Hill. By 1880 this site was discarded, as the area was too sandy. The Maeser Building of Brigham Young University now stands in this location.


 * Grandview Hill Cemetery

In about 1860 the Grandview Hill Cemetery came to be. By 1879, this location had around sixty burials. This was on private land and the landowners refused to allow other burials to take place. After a request to move the bodies, some were removed to Temple Hill Cemetery. Those that for various reasons couldn’t be moved are there now without markers.


 * Provo City Cemetery

Fort Field Cemetery was too wet, Temple Hill too sandy, and Grandview Hill was closed at the request of the private landowners. It was time for the creation of the Provo City Cemetery, that occurred on June 25, 1853. The transfer of burials from the previous cemeteries took several years to complete. The Daughters of Utah Pioneers memorial drinking fountain lists the name of the pioneers known to have been moved there. Some are buried with headstones, with many in unmarked graves.


 * Provo City Cemetery 610 S. State St. Provo, Utah 84606 Phone: 801-852-6607 Searchable data base at Cemetery Lookup Map

Areas of the Provo City Cemetery:
 * Babyland: This special area is located west of the Veterans Monument. This is for families who need only an infant space. This area was filled in 1992.
 * Angel Garden Once the Babyland plots had all been filled, Angel Garden was created with a special Angel “The Messenger” to watch over them.
 * Veterans Monument: Names of all veterans buried in the cemetery are inscribed onto marble tiles which adhere to the stone extensions of the Monument.


 * Cemetery Map

Transcriptions:
 * Findagrave.com
 * Utah Burial Search
 * Utah Gravestone Photo
 * BillionGraves


 * East Lawn Memorial Hills Cemetery 4800 N. 650 E. Provo, Utah 84601 Phone: (801) 225-9114

Transcriptions:
 * Findagrave.com
 * Utah Burial Search
 * Utah Gravestone Photo Project
 * BillionGraves

Other Early Cemeteries Near Provo

 * Christmas City graveyard, located on the south side of the entrance to Provo Canyon shows on old township maps. This was an old mining area and is now a gravel pit.
 * Mary Ellen Flat in American Fork Canyon has a cemetery where many miners are buried.
 * Undocumented Burial Sites
 * Orem Hill, On the east side of State Street, three-fourths the way up the hill there were several burials.
 * The mouth of Slate Canyon was said to have several burials.
 * Below the "Y" on the mountain had burials.
 * Springdell in the canyon had burials also.

People choose to be laid to rest by favorite trees, hills, and beautiful spots may have burial spots.

Obituaries
Provo City Library owns microfilmed copies of the newspaper dating back to 1888 (with some years and issues missing for the first forty years). Check the obituary index for you ancestor, the papers can be found at the Provo City Library.
 * Provo City Library historical obituary resources.
 * Utah County Obituary Index

Church History and Records
Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints


 * Provo, Utah 1884 Ward boundaries


 * Tracing Latter-day Saint Ancestors


 * Roman Catholic

Directories

 * 1867 - Owens, George. Salt Lake City Directory: Including a Business Directory of Provo, Springville, and Ogden, Utah Territory. Salt Lake City: G. Owens, 1867. Digital version at Internet Archive - free.


 * 1884 - Utah Gazetteer and Directory (of Logan, Provo, Ogden, and Salt Lake City). Salt Lake City, Utah: R.L. Polk, 1884. Digital version at Internet Archive - free.


 * 1891 - Directory of Provo City and Utah County: Containing Alphabetical Lists of Business Firms and Private Citizens of Provo, American Fork, Lehi, Payson, Spanish Fork, and Springville. Salt Lake City, Utah: R.L. Polk & Co., 1891. Digital version at Internet Archive - free.


 * 1901-1902 - Provo City and Utah County Directory: Including the Cities of Provo, American Fork, Lehi, Payson, Spanish Fork and Springville. Salt Lake City, Utah: R. L. Polk & Co., 1901. Digital version at Internet Archive - free.


 * 1904-1905 - Provo City and Utah County Directory: Including the Cities and Towns of Provo, Alpine, American Fork, Castilla Springs, Cedar Valley, Clinton, Colton, Fairfield, Goshen, Lehi, Mt. Nebo, Payson, Pleasant Grove, Salem, Santaquin, Spanish Fork, Springville, Thistle and Tucker. Salt Lake City, Utah: R.L. Polk & Co., 1904. Digital version at Internet Archive - free.


 * 1911 - Provo City and Utah County Directory: Including the Cities and Towns of Provo, Alpine, American Fork, Benjamin, Castilla Springs, Cedar Valley, Colton, Elberta, Fairfield, Goshen, Lehi, Payson, Pleasant Grove, Salem, Santaquin, Soldier Summit, Spanish Fork, Springville, Thistle and Tucker. Salt Lake City, Utah: R. L. Polk & Co., 1911. Digital version at Internet Archive - free.


 * 1913-1914 - Provo City and Utah County Directory: Including the Cities and Towns of Provo, Alpine, American Fork, Benjamin, Castilla Springs, Cedar Valley, Colton, Elberta, Fairfield, Goshen, Lehi, Payson, Pleasant Grove, Salem, Santaquin, Soldier Summit, Spanish Fork, Springville, Thistle and Tucker. Salt Lake City: R. L. Polk & Co., 1913. Digital version at Internet Archive - free.


 * 1915-1916 - Provo City and Utah County Directory: Including the Cities and Towns of Provo, Alpine, American Fork, Benjamin, Castilla Springs, Cedar Valley, Colton, Elberta, Fairfield, Gilluly, Goshen, Lehi, Payson, Pleasant Grove, Salem, Santaquin, Soldier Summit, Spanish Fork, Springville, Thistle and Tucker. Salt Lake City: R. L. Polk & Co., 1915. Digital version at Internet Archive - free.


 * 1917-1918 - Provo City and Utah County Directory: Including the Cities and Towns of Provo, Alpine, American Fork, Benjamin, Castilla Springs, Cedar Valley, Clinton, Colton, Elberta, Fairfield, Geneva Resort, Gilluly, Goshen, Lehi, Mosida, Payson, Pleasant Grove, Salem, Santaquin, Soldier Summit, Spanish Fork, Springville, Thistle, Tucker, Tyng and Vivian Park. Salt Lake City: R. L. Polk & Co., 1917. Digital version at Internet Archive - free.


 * 1920 - Provo City and Utah County Directory: Including the Cities and Towns of Provo, Alpine, American Fork, Benjamin, Castilla Springs, Cedar Valley, Clinton, Colton, Elberta, Fairfield, Geneva, Gilluly, Goshen, Lehi, Mosida, Payson, Pleasant Grove, Salem, Santaquin, Soldier Summit, Spanish Fork, Springville, Thistle, Tyng and Vivian Park. Salt Lake City: R. L. Polk & Co., 1919. Digital version at Internet Archive - free.


 * 1922 - Provo City and Utah County Directory: Including the Cities and Towns of Provo, Alpine, American Fork, Benjamin, Castilla Springs, Cedar Valley, Clinton, Bolton, Elberta, Fairfield, Geneva, Gilluly, Goshen, Lehi, Mapleton, Mosida, Orem, Payson, Pleasant Grove, Salem, Santaquin, Soldier Summit, Spanish Fork, Springvile, Thistle, Tyng, and Vivian Park. Salt Lake City, Utah: R. L. Polk & Co., 1921. Digital version at Internet Archive - free.


 * Provo City and Utah County Directory : including the cities of Provo, American Fork, Lehi, Payson, Spanish Fork, and Springville Library has 1891 (film), 1904-05 (film), 1913-14, 1915-16, 1917-18, 1920, 1926 (film), 1930-31, 1935-36, 1941, 1946, 1950, 1955, 1961, 1965, 1969-70, 1975, 1980, 1985, 1987, 1996-.

History
The Provo City Library has a rich selection of items pertaining to the City's history.


 * Remembering Provo: Historical Photographs Project
 * Historic Photos
 * Provo - History to Go
 * A History of Utah County
 * A Historical Study of the Exploration of Utah Valley and the Story of Fort Utah


 * Founding Fort Utah: Provo's Native Inhabitants, Early Explorers, and First Year of Settlement


 * From Fort to Village: Provo, Utah, 1850-1854


 * Heart Throbs of the West


 * History of Provo, Utah


 * Memories That Live: A Centennial History of Utah County


 * Our Pioneer Heritage


 * Tales from Utah Valley: Spellbinding and Sometimes Strange Selections from the Daily Herald's History Page


 * The Story of Provo, Utah


 * Treasures of Pioneer History

Maps

 * Maps of Provo
 * Provo City Geographic Information Systems
 * Map of Provo City, Utah County, Utah, north of Center Street 1895
 * Plat maps of Utah County, ca. 1890-1970

Newspapers

 * The Daily Herald
 * Utah County Newspapers

Historical Newspapers

 * The Utah County Democrat. (Provo City, Utah) 1898-1909
 * Daily Enquirer in BYU's Digital Collections
 * Provo Daily Enquirer 1881 - 1897 Utah Digital Newspapers
 * Provo Historical Newspapers has a list of different newspapers held by the Provo City Library. The newspapers are on microfilm from the various eras for Provo's history.

Societies, Museums and Libraries



 * Brigham Young University Family History Library Harold B. Lee Library N Campus Drive, Provo Phone: (801)422-6200.


 * Provo City Library 550 North University Avenue Provo, Utah 84601 Phone: 801-852-6650


 * Daughters of Utah Pioneers Museum 500 North 500 West Provo, Utah 801-852-6609


 * Sons of Utah Pioneers Village 500 North 500 West Provo, Utah Phone: 801-377-8294

Suggested Reading

 * Pleasant Views: A History of the Early Pleasant View Area of Northeast Provo, Utah


 * Provo: A Story of People in Motion


 * Provo & Orem: A Very Eligible Place: An Illustrated History


 * Provo, Pioneer Mormon City


 * Provo's Two Tabernacles and the People Who Built Them


 * Tales from Utah Valley: Spellbinding and Sometimes Strange Selections from the Daily Herald's History Page

Vital Records

 * Utah Health Department

Birth Records

 * Register of births 1898-1905

Marriage Records

 * Marriage information may be located at the Western States Marriage Database searchable by bride or groom.

Death Records

 * Utah Death Index 1905-1951 Hint Keyword: enter the year of death and enter the name of county if known.


 * Social Security Death Index, begins in about 1962 and is current to within two months.


 * Utah Death Record 1888-1946.


 * Utah Department of Archives 1903 to 50 years ago Choices of search types - name, date of death (year, month, day, or any combination) and county. Images of actual death certificates

Websites

 * Fort Field
 * Fort Utah
 * Fort Utah
 * Fort Utah Marker
 * Immigrant Ancestors Project
 * Provo Cemeteries
 * Provo City Library
 * Mount Timpanogos
 * Provo Genealogy (Utah Genealogy)