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Brigham Young Monument

The Brigham Young Monument, also known as the Pioneer Monument, is a bronzed historical monument in Salt Lake City, Utah. It was created by Cyrus Edwin Dallin and honors Brigham Young, the Utah governor, LDS Church president, and leader of the Mormon pioneers into the Utah Territory in 1847. The twenty-five-foot monument includes bronze figures of an Indigenous person facing east and a bearded fur trapper facing west, as well as a bas-relief of a pioneer man, woman, and child. It was first shown at the Chicago World’s Fair in 1893, later stood on Temple Square, and has been at its present location near Main and South Temple Streets since 1993.

The Brigham Young Monument with a bronze figure atop a tall stone pedestal and relief sculptures at the base, with a white building and bare trees behind it.
Brigham Young Monument in Salt Lake City, showing the bronze statue and decorated pedestal near a large white building.
© · Public domain
Brigham Young Monument standing on a circular street island in Salt Lake City.
The Brigham Young Monument rises from a traffic circle in Salt Lake City.
© Unknown authorUnknown author · Public domain
Brigham Young Monument with a standing figure on a tall pedestal and a seated figure below, surrounded by a low fence.
The Brigham Young Monument stands beside the street, with a standing figure atop the pedestal and a seated figure at the base.
1904 © Unknown authorUnknown author · Public domain
Brigham Young Monument with a standing statue atop a tall pedestal in a tree-lined street median, with a large multi-spired building in the background.
The Brigham Young Monument in Salt Lake City, shown with its central statue and surrounding pioneer figures.
© Rijksmuseum · CC0
Brigham Young Monument on an ornate pedestal with a figure standing atop and pioneer figures below, with a grand spired building in the background.
The Brigham Young Monument stands in Salt Lake City with its sculpted figures and the Mormon Temple visible behind it.
© Edward H. Mitchell · Public domain

Identification

TitleBrigham Young Monument
Alternative namePioneer Monument
Typehistorical bronze monument

Historical context

Idea announcedDecember 1891
Consultative board formedDecember 1891
Commissioned byWilford Woodruff, the fourth president of the Church, and his counselors, along with Joseph F. Smith Sr.
FundraisingA collection was announced among the Church's members
Amount raisedUS$25,000
CompletionDallin finished the work on schedule

Creator

Sculptor's originBorn in Utah
ArtistCyrus Edwin Dallin

Iconography and meaning

Related work by artistRobbins Memorial Flagstaff in Arlington, Massachusetts (1914), which revisited the motif of the sitting figures, including an Indigenous American woman and a Patriot on alert
Additional plaqueA bronze plaque listing the pioneers who arrived in the Salt Lake Valley on July 24, 1847, and their equipment
South side reliefA bronze bas-relief of a pioneer man, woman, and child
Base figuresA bronze Native American facing east and a bronze fur trapper facing west, both representing those who preceded the Mormon settlers
Rear plaqueA bronze plaque listing the names of the pioneers who arrived in the Salt Lake Valley on July 24, 1847
Right side figureA seated Native American holding a staff
Left side figureA seated settler with a rifle resting on his lap
Front plaqueA plaque with the monument's name and the reason it was erected
HonoreeBrigham Young, the second president of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
Front reliefA bronze bas-relief depicting a Mormon pioneer in full length with his wife and child
Dedication subjectBrigham Young, pioneer colonizer, Utah governor, and president of the LDS Church, who led the Mormon pioneers into the Utah Territory in 1847
Top statueA bronze statue of Brigham Young, standing with his right hand leaning on a cane and his left hand pointing into the distance

Materials

Base materialgranite
Materialbronze

Physical characteristics

ComponentsStanding monument with a 9-foot bronze statue on a granite pedestal, plus relief panels and side figures
Height25 feet (7.62 meters)

Discovery and provenance

First public displayWorld's Columbian Exposition in Chicago, May 1 to October 30, 1893

Location and ownership

Current locationNorth sidewalk of the intersection of Main and South Temple Streets, a few yards north of its 1897 site, between the Salt Lake Temple and the Joseph Smith Memorial Building, Salt Lake City, Utah, United States
Temporary location after first exhibitionTemple Block, southeast corner of Temple Square in Salt Lake City

History and restoration

Original dedication siteA 25-by-25-foot plot at the center of the intersection of Main and South Temple Streets
DedicatedJuly 20, 1897
Relocation year1993
Moved to intersection1897
Current unveiling dateNovember 15
Number of times opened/unveiledThree times
Delayed opening causeSlow construction of the granite pedestal and final arrangement of the composition
People involved in final arrangementBrigham Young's son, Church architect Don Carlos Young, and grandson Dick Young