Four colossal bronze sugar beets greet you. They stand proudly in Salt Lake City’s Sugar House Business District. These aren’t your average root vegetables. These are larger-than-life symbols of community history.
Commissioned by the Redevelopment Agency of Salt Lake City the Sugar Beets were unveiled before Sugar House’s 150th anniversary in 2004. Artist Day Christensen created them. He saw the sugar beet as the perfect representation of the area’s identity. Christensen a sculptor and mixed-media artist is well-known for his public art in Utah. He even received a Utah Arts Council grant in 2008.
The Sugar Beets’ story goes deeper than just art. It’s tied to a fascinating chapter in Utah’s pioneer past. In 1851 Governor Brigham Young sent a team to France. They were there to get the technology for making sugar from locally grown beets. The Deseret Manufacturing Company built a factory. They hoped to make Sugar House self-sufficient.
The project however was a complete failure. The resulting sugar was inedible. The factory closed in 1855. It later became a paper factory a bucket factory and even a roundhouse for the Utah Central Railroad. The attempt to create sugar from beets wasn’t a total loss though. It gave Sugar House its name. It also spurred further innovation. Eventually successful beet sugar production took place in Lehi in 1887.
Today the Sugar Beets sculpture stands as a reminder. It’s a testament to early attempts at industrialization in Utah. It also celebrates the resilience and spirit of Sugar House. A community that thrived despite early setbacks. Look closely at the details of each beet. Imagine the stories they could tell. They stand tall as a symbol of Sugar House’s enduring legacy.