'This is the Place' to Spend a Spring Day in Salt Lake

Photo by Mike Bitton
Aubrey, Jana and Ashton Bitton pose for a photo in front of a home that dates back to the 1850s at the This is the Place monument in Salt Lake City, Utah.

Today we headed up the canyon to show our daughters the spot where Mormon prophet Brigham Young, on first seeing the Salt Lake Valley, reportedly uttered the words, "This is the right place. Drive on."

In addition to a monumental monument, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has reconstructed a village of 1850s-era buildings at the site. We had a good time exploring them, and snapped quite a few photos.

Mike's Bitton ancestors and Jana's Brown ancestors both joined the Mormon church in the mid-1800s and moved to the Salt Lake Valley to help settle the West. It's somewhat moving to know that if we reach far enough back in our family histories, there were brave, strong, faith-drenched people who could take on a desert frontier and win.