The Bluff meetinghouse was part of the Bluff Fort. Initially, residents would meet under an old cottonwood tree near the San Juan River. When a swing was attached to the tree, it become known as the “Swing Tree”. Later, the people realized that they needed a better place to meet so the meetinghouse was built at the end of 1880.
At first, it was a double-length cabin. It later was expanded with a new section to make it larger. Besides a meetinghouse, it was also used as a schoolhouse, community center and courthouse.
The Bluff Fort was built along a wagon road established by Mormon pioneers. It was part of the “Hole-in-the-Rock Expedition” which began in 1879. The goal of the expedition had been to create a mission at Montezuma along the San Juan River. The pioneers decided to use a route known as the “Escalante shortcut” believing that the journey would take six weeks. In reality, it took 6 months and 260 miles on the Hole-in-the-Rock Trail.
Since the trail was not designed for wagons, it had to be chiseled and blasted open in the Hole-in-the-Rock sandstone cliffs. After traveling for months, the pioneers decided to not pursue the last 20 miles to the intended location. Instead, they settled in the area that would become Bluff City in 1880.
Historical Marker Inscription
Sketched by Remington Lange 1893
Bluff’s log meetinghouse was the center of all public gatherings for the small community on the remote San Juan frontier. The meetinghouse, which was part of the north wall of the Bluff Fort, served as chapel, courthouse, ballroom, concert hall and schoolhouse. It was a place where pioneers were entertained with dances, dramatizations and musical performances. It was also a place of worship and learning, and on occasion, it sheltered families whose mud roofs failed to keep the rain out or whose cabins were flooded by the river. The meetinghouse was built in the latter part of 1880. “It offered a handy place for friends to meet, and for strolling lovers to rest in the evening. …not just a church, but simply a meetinghouse, vested with all essentials for solemn worship, but not too good nor too nice for any lawful service to the busy pioneers.” On Christmas, “…children thronged the old log school house during the day, and the place became the scene of many a merry party in long winter evenings.” —Albert R. Lyman
This site is being developed and maintained by the Hole-in-the-Rock Foundation
Location
37° 17’ 3.582” N, 109° 33’ 10.968” W
550 Black Locust Ave, Bluff, UT 84511, United States
Historical Markers of the World 