When Mormon leader Brigham Young founded Salt Lake City in 1847 he uttered the now oft quoted sentence: "This is the place; this is where we want to stay and build our temple." Temple Square is today the center of Mormon religion, boasting its most sacred temple. More than half of Salt Lake City's inhabitants are Mormons. Walking around the area, visitors will often run into missionaries offering to take them on a tour.
Utah's capital city is clean, well planned and a little boring. Historical and religious reminders of Mormonism are to be found throughout the city. The church is a place of congregation. Sculptures here honor the first Mormon settlers. And the Salt Lake Temple is the religion's most sacred site. In times past, Mormons were encouraged to take multiple wives. Today, the practice is outlawed. But faithful Mormons still marry young.
Sunday is the Lord's day and a day of rest, but not at the Tabernacle. This is where the world famous Mormon Tabernacle Choir gathers to perform. Their concerts are broadcast worldwide to over 1,500 TV channels and radio stations. Brigham Young, founding father of the Mormon Church, lived very close to the Salt Lake Temple in the Beehive House. He fathered 57 children by 16 different women. Mormons are known for their work ethic. In just 150 years they founded a city on a salt desert, which today has 200,000 affluent and influential citizens.
Almost all of the leading positions in the economic and political worlds of Salt Lake City are occupied by Mormons. The Church owns department stores, hotels and oil refineries. Indeed, it's a real economic empire.
