By RUTH CASTILLO
Celebration has begun in Salt Lake City, commemorating the settlement of the first pioneers in Utah.
“The Van Guard Company arrived in Salt Lake on July 24,1847,” said Donald Q. Cannon, church history professor at BYU.
According to “Wagons Rolling West”, a series about the 1847 Pioneer trek, the pioneers of 1847 were a very organized and prepared company, divided into companies of 100s, 50s and 10s.
According to church history of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, LDS pioneers began their trek during the peak of their persecution.
In “Wagons Rolling West”, it says that the pioneers started into the great unknown of the west with few provisions and great fear of the journey before them.
“The pioneers experienced an incredibly difficult trek,” said Andrew Hedges, church history professor at BYU.
“Wagons Rolling West” tells of the vast desert with few positive prospects for development and describes the hard work of the pioneers as they dug ditches and planted seeds.
Hedges believes that people need to remember the pioneers’ faith and trust in the Lord. “The pioneer celebration is a very worthy cause,” he said.
According to the Salt Lake City Convention and Visitor’s Bureau, the pioneers’ difficult arrival in Salt Lake City is celebrated with festivities such as the Days of ’47 Parade, royalty pageant, youth parade, concerts at Temple Square and a rodeo.
According to the bureau, the parade is one of the largest and oldest parades in the United States.
“The Days of ’47 Parade began in 1849,” said Susan McHenry, a director of Days of ’47. She said that the parade has been an ongoing tradition for about 150 years.
“The parade is to remind us of the pioneers arrival into the Salt Lake Valley,” she said.
McHenry believes that Utahns are very proud of the pioneer heritage and that people look forward to the celebration every year.
The Days of ’47 Royal Pageant is also a popular event during the pioneer celebration, McHenry said. “The royal court are descendents from pioneers who settled in Utah before the railroad was constructed.”
The royal court will appear in the parade. “It’s tradition,” McHenry said.
