BYU ScholarsArchive

Article Title

Handcart Trekking: From Commemorative Reenactment to Modern Phenomenon

Authors

Melvin L. Bashore

Keywords

Mormon studies, reenactment, handcart trekking

Abstract

From an early date, Mormons have remembered and celebrated their history with jubilees, commemorative celebrations, pageants, markers, and reenactments. Only two years after the first Mormons arrived in the Salt Lake Valley, several thousand Church members celebrated the event with the first Mormon Pioneer Day on July 24, 1849. There was a procession, speeches, songs, prayers, and a bounteous feast reminiscent of the Pilgrims’ first Thanksgiving. By the second half of the nineteenth century, the Pioneer Day celebration had been firmly established throughout the Mormon corridor.

Recommended Citation

Bashore, Melvin L. (2018) "Handcart Trekking: From Commemorative Reenactment to Modern Phenomenon," BYU Studies Quarterly: Vol. 57: Iss. 1, Article 5.
Available at: https://scholarsarchive.byu.edu/byusq/vol57/iss1/5