Welcome to SALT LAKE CITY

Salt Lake City is the capital and the most populous city of the U.S. state of Utah. The name of the city is often shortened to Salt Lake or SLC. Salt Lake City has a population of 181,698 as of July 1, 2008, making it the 125th largest city in the United States. The Salt Lake City metropolitan area spans Salt Lake, Summit and Tooele counties, and has a total estimated population of 1,115,692 as of July 1, 2008. Salt Lake City is further situated in a larger urban area known as the Wasatch Front and is part of the Salt Lake City-Ogden-Clearfield CSA that has an estimated population of 1,717,261. The total estimated population of the Wasatch Front (Salt Lake CSA, Provo MSA, Logan MSA) is 2,196,755 as of July 1, 2008.

The city was founded in 1847 as Great Salt Lake City by a group of Mormon pioneers led by their prophet, Brigham Young, who fled hostility and violence in the Midwestern United States. They extensively irrigated and cultivated the arid valley and faced persecution from the U.S. government for their practice of polygamy, which was abandoned in 1890. Today, Salt Lake City is still home to the headquarters of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS, also known as the Mormon Church). According to data from the LDS Church, the State of Utah, combined with IRS and Census Bureau estimates, Salt Lake County was 53% LDS in 2004, as reported in the Salt Lake Tribune.

Mining booms and the construction of the first transcontinental railroad initially brought economic growth, and the city was nicknamed the Crossroads of the West. Salt Lake City has since developed a strong outdoor recreation tourist industry based primarily on skiing. Salt Lake City was host to the 2002 Winter Olympics and is the industrial banking center of the United States.

Events

Salt Lake City hosted the 2002 Winter Olympics.Although the city is often stereotyped as a predominantly LDS city, it is culturally and religiously diverse. The city is the location of many cultural activities. A major state holiday is Pioneer Day, July 24, the anniversary of the Mormon pioneers' entry into the Salt Lake Valley. It is celebrated each year with a week's worth of activities, including a children's parade, a horse parade, the featured Days of '47 Parade (one of the largest parades in the United States), a rodeo, and a large fireworks show at Liberty Park.

Salt Lake City has a significant gay population, and the second-largest parade in the city is a gay pride parade, part of the annual Utah Pride Festival held every June.

First Night on New Year's Eve, a celebration emphasizing family-friendly entertainment and activities held at Rice-Eccles Stadium at the University of Utah, culminates with a fireworks display at midnight.

The Greek Festival, held the weekend after Labor Day, celebrates Utah's Greek heritage and is located at the downtown Greek Orthodox Church. The 3-day event includes Greek music, dance groups, Cathedral tours, booths and a large buffet. Attendance ranges from 35,000 - 50,000.

The Utah Arts Festival has been held annually since 1977 with an average attendance of 80,000. About 130 booths are available for visual artists and there are five performance venues for musicians.

Salt Lake City also hosts portions of the Sundance Film Festival. The festival, which is held each year, brings many cultural icons, movie stars, celebrities, and thousands of film buffs to see the largest independent film festival in the United States. The headquarters of the event is in nearby Park City.

Beginning in 2004, Salt Lake City has been the host of the international Salt Lake City Marathon. In 2006 Real Madrid and many of the nation's best cyclist had engagements.

Salt Lake City has begun to host its own events in the last few years, most notably the Friday Night Flicks, free movies in the City's parks, as well as the Mayor's health and fitness awareness program, Salt Lake City Gets Fit.

Salt Lake City was host to the 2002 Winter Olympics. At the time of the 2002 Olympics, Salt Lake City was the most populated area to hold a Winter Olympic games. The event put Salt Lake City in the international spotlight and is regarded by many as being one of the most successful winter olympics ever.

At Dream Theater's Salt Lake City show, Governor Jon Huntsman, Jr. signed a proclamation making July 30, 2007 "Dream Theater Day" in the state of Utah.

Museums

Salt Lake is home to several museums. Near Temple Square is the Church History Museum. Operated by the The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, the museum contains collections of artifacts, documents, art, photographs, tools, clothing and furniture from the history of the LDS Church, which spans nearly two centuries.

The University of Utah campus is home to the Utah Museum of Fine Arts as well as the Utah Museum of Natural History. West of the university, located at the Gateway District near downtown, is the Clark Planetarium, which also houses an IMAX theater. Also in the Gateway District is Discovery Gateway, a children's museum.

Other museums include the Utah State Historical Society, Daughters of Utah Pioneer Memorial Museum, Fort Douglas Military Museum, and the Social Hall Heritage Museum.

On December 5, 2007, the Salt Lake Chamber and Downtown Alliance announced that a two-block section of downtown south of the planned City Creek Center is planned to become a new arts hub. This will include renovations to two theaters already located in the area, as well as a new theater with a seating capacity of 2,400 and increased space for galleries and artists. The opening of the new facilities are anticipated to coincide with the opening of the City Creek Center in 2011. The site of the $81.5 million theater was officially revealed and attempts to secure funding began. However, the plans for the theater have come under criticism, especially from nearby smaller theaters that host off-Broadway tours who claim that such a theater cannot be supported and that it will negatively affect their business.

Utah Museum of Natural History

The Utah Museum of Natural History (UMNH) is a museum located on the campus of the University of Utah in Salt Lake City, Utah, United States. The museum shows exhibits of natural history subjects, specifically about Utah's natural history. The mission of the museum is to illuminate the natural world and the place of humans within it.

Days of '47 Parade

The Days of '47 Parade is an annual parade presented by The Days of '47, Inc. The three-hour event is held in Salt Lake City starting at 9:00 a.m. MDT on July 24, the same day as Pioneer Day, a Utah state holiday.

Utah Pride Festival

The Utah Pride Festival is a festival held in downtown Salt Lake City in June, celebrating Utah's diversity and gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender populations. The event is a program of The Utah Pride Center. It includes the state’s second-largest parade. In 2004 an estimated 50,000 people attended, the largest since the festival began in 1977 when the "Salt Lake Coalition for Human Rights" sponsored a three-day conference. The 1977 keynote speakers were David Kopay, the first NFL player to come out of the closet, and Air Force Sgt. Leonard Matlovich, an ex-Mormon who was the first out gay person ever to appear on the cover of Time Magazine. Affirmation: Gay & Lesbian Mormons (then called "Gay Mormons United") was also founded during this conference, on June 11, 1977.

However, in 2005, the first year in which an admission was charged attendance at the festival was between 15,000 and 20,000. Some have attributed this decline to patrons not wanting to pay for the festival. Utah Pride organizers, however, argue that 2005 was the first year in which an accurate method of counting the attendance were employed, and that the numbers did not reflect a drop in attendance.

Aspects of the Utah Pride include the Parade and Festival, a film festival, Dyke March, interfaith service, 5K charity run and related parties and receptions.

Participation in the Festival cuts across a broad spectrum of Salt Lakers. Past speakers during the celebration have ranged from Salt Lake City Mayor Rocky Anderson, who was quoted in support of same sex marriage, to Rep. Jackie Biskupski, the state’s first openly gay state legislator.