As I pulled off of the road in Salina (Utah), I thought that I was in Texas (or maybe Alaska) when I saw the size of the soda cans by the side of the road. All that I can say is that these people must really be on a sugar high.
I also noted that just down the street there was an Indian warrior that guarded the soda cans.
Miss Mary's Museum is located in the historic Crosby Memorial Presbyterian Church and School of Salina, but it is only open during the summer months.
The Salina POW Camp is known as "the worst massacre at a POW camp in U.S. history" because on July 8, 1945, an American soldier who was mentally unstable used a machine gun to kill nine and wound twenty German prisoners of war. After the massacre the soldier stated that he had never been sent overseas to fight in the war and felt that he had been "cheated out of his chance to kill Germans."
The town of Redmond has a Historic Town Hall Building and a nice Veterans Memorial, but Redmond is best known as the location of the World's only Real Salt mine. I stopped at the mine headquarters and inquired about a tour of the mine, but I was informed that they do not give public mine tours. They do, however, have an interesting web site with a controllable underground camera so that you can view the mine's interior.
The community of Axtell is just up the road and has a really small log post office building.
The ghost town of Clarion is located near Axtell and is the site of an early twentieth century experiment in Jewish rural living.
In 1910, Jewish reformers wanted to abandon urban living and traditional occupations and move back to the land to find a purer life with manual labor. The group purchased 6,085 acres of land in Utah and Jewish settlers moved into the area and founded the community of Clarion.
The first two years were productive, then the settlers were plagued by severe weather, dust storms, heat, bugs, and a shortage of water. In 1912 their harvest produced only half of the expected yield and subsequent years were not any better. Within a few years all of the Jewish settlers had moved away. Today, only a few abandoned farmsteads are all that remain of Clarion.
The Sanpitch Dragon in Gunnison is a mosaic mural located under the U.S. Highway 89 bridge where it crosses the San Pitch River. Due to the bridge design, when cars drive over the bridge, the car tires make a noise that sounds like a dragon's roar.
Located on Main Street is the very ornate Casino Star Movie Theatre and a nice Veterans Memorial.
The ghost town of Dover is located about three miles west of Gunnison.
When Utah achieved statehood on January 4, 1896, the community of Dover did not have a cannon to fire; so the residents of Dover decided to explode some dynamite with a well-driving hammer. Unfortunately, the hammer blew apart and injured several people. Not the kind of celebration that you want to be invited to participate in!
In the late 1800s the area was plagued with flooding and swarms of mosquitoes that brought a diphtheria epidemic. The death rate was very high and by 1900 most people had left the area. Today, all that remains of Dover is the cemetery.
Levan is located in the approximate geographic center of Utah and reportedly received its name because "Levan" is "Navel" spelled backwards.
While we were in Highland, we were able to attend the Smash Company Spring Solo Showcase and the Renaissance Acadwmy Elementary Drama production of Annie. Both were outstanding! We also had breakfast with some of the cast members before leaving for home.
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