How about a mountain range that reflects the sunrise? That’s the Oquirrh Mountains. The Paiute Indians called them the “Shining Mountains”. Oquirrh is pronounced O-Ker. It is derived from a Ute Indian word.
When Mormon pioneers settled in the Salt Lake Valley, they called the area west of the Jordan River, Western Jordan. Brigham Young sent pioneers to settle there in 1848. They developed the Salt Lake Valley through hard work and service. Butterfield Canyon gave them timber. They cultivated crops in the fertile soil along the Jordan River. Bingham Canyon and other mines still supply valuable metals.
Archibald Gardner established the first mill west of the Jordan River. He led the Western Jordan congregation from March 8, 1859. Construction of the first non-log church building outside Salt Lake City began on May 15, 1861. It became known as the “Rock Meeting House”. The building still stands today.
The Oquirrh Mountains extend about thirty miles. The northern part reaches into the Great Salt Lake. The southern part ends in small hills northwest of Utah Lake. Gold seekers like the Donner Party missed the Oquirrh Mountains. Ironically, they overlooked one of the richest mountain ranges.
Brothers Sanford and Thomas Bingham herded cattle in the Oquirrhs in 1848. They noticed the rich minerals. They told Brigham Young. He wasn’t interested in mining. The brothers returned to ranching. Later, they moved to Ogden. They left their name on Bingham Canyon.
President Young harvested timber from the Oquirrh mountainsides. Archibald Gardner built a sawmill in 1853. They cut and hauled trees from Bingham Canyon. Some timber built the Tabernacle on Temple Square.
Colonel Patrick E. Connor and his men discovered the wealth of the Oquirrhs in the 1860s. The linking of the Union and Central Pacific railroads in 1869 made mining profitable. Enos A. Wall saw the value in copper.
Daniel Cowan Jackling felt that Wall’s copper deposit had great potential. He used steam shovels to mine the ore. In 1909, the open-pit system of mining became the method for the Utah Copper Company.
Kennecott Copper’s giant mine is now more than 2.5 miles across and 0.5 mile deep. Astronauts have even observed it from space. The Bingham copper pit is the largest man-made excavation on earth.
Today, the denuded Oquirrhs “shine” best at night. Electrical lights trim them. Beacons guide airplanes. Homes sparkle around the foothills. Kennecott’s works look like glittering Tinker Toys.
The Oquirrh Mountain Utah Temple stands on a bluff overlooking the Salt Lake Valley. It serves about 83,000 members of the Church. These members live near the Oquirrh Mountains.
The Oquirrh Mountain Temple was open to the public in 2009. It was dedicated on August 14-16, 2009. The Oquirrh Mountains, once overlooked, now stand as a testament to the shining potential within.