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By Kent Larsen
Historic Mormon 'Honeymoon' Trail Part Of New National Monument
WASHINGTON, DC -- US President Bill Clinton recently named Arizona's
Vermilion Cliffs as a national monument, and in the process preserved
a portion of the Honeymoon Trail, or Old Arizona Road, used by the
Mormon settlers of Arizona to travel to the St George Temple. The
naming of the land, situated north of the Grand Canyon and southwest
of Page, Arizona, as a national monument protects all Federal land in
the area from sale or development.
The Vermilion Cliffs were traversed by a number of historic Mormon
exploration parties, including those led by Jacob Hamblin. Hamblin
passed by the cliffs regularly in his missionary journeys to visit
the Hopi Indians. Pioneer John D. Lee established Lee's Ferry at the
eastern end of the Cliffs, on the Colorado river. The ferry became
the principal crossing point for hundreds of miles.
Several Mormon settlements can still be seen on the monument, and
after the St. George Temple was completed in 1877, the Mormon
settlers of Arizona traveled along the base of the 3,000 foot cliffs
on their way to St George.
Source:
White House Proclamation on Vermilion Cliffs
USNewswire 9Nov00 D6
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