Establishing a recognized social order: Social and cultural factors in the development of Utah public libraries, 1980 to 1920

The history of tax-supported public libraries illustrates the movement of Utah society from utopianism to American secularism. The first libraries were to assist with building the Kingdom of God. After the completion of the transcontinental railroad, non-Mormon religious groups founded sectarian schools and libraries in an attempt to “Americanize” Utah society. The renunciation of polygamy in 1890 signaled Mormon society's acceptance of the American social order. Libraries established between 1890 and 1910 united communities in the cause of establishing a public library and served as a sign that the community was socially, politically, and culturally American. By 1910, the majority accepted monogamy as the norm. The growing cities and towns faced the same problems as other urban societies. Libraries were established as adjuncts to the public schools and as a force for social reform and intellectual and cultural self-improvement. By 1914, communities established public libraries for the image of stability and progress they projected. Even the smallest cities in the state were economically prosperous enough to allocate public funds for cultural institutions. Mary E. Downey was hired as State Library Organizer to serve the needs of rural libraries, demonstrating that Utah society was now open to external professional leadership and Utah's leaders were eager to establish public institutions equal to those in other states. Utah library establishment had come to resemble the establishment of libraries in most other Western states, although education and moral guidance of young people played a larger role. Uniquely in Utah, children of Mormon polygamist leaders cooperated with non-Mormon leaders to maintain secular public institutions. The library had become one of many public projects essential to community development. Women's clubs were central to the establishment of public libraries through traveling libraries, fund raising, and campaigning for support of a tax levy. Individual men and women also played critical leadership roles. Librarianship was established as a profession in the state during this same period. With the passage of the 1919 County Library Law, the establishment of public libraries in Utah entered a new phase of development.