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In 1869 the completion of the transcontinental railroad transformed the Utah territory. Beyond business and transportation, one of the most dramatic changes took place in politics.
A solid Mormon population had made political parties irrelevant in Utah's earliest years. But non-Mormons flocking to the region with the railroads soon banded together in an effort to make a dent in Mormon control. They called their group the "Liberal Party". The Mormon majority responded by forming the "People's Party".
For the next twenty years Republican and Democrat parties would not exist in Utah. Instead, politics was split in a bitter fashion over religion.
It would prove to be one of the major stumbling blocks to Utah's admission to the Union. . .and a hard lesson on the balance between religion and politics.
It's a chapter from Utah's political history. . .in 2000, your vote can help write the next chapter.
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A photo recaptures the dramatic completion of the nation's transcontinental railroad in isolated Utah Territory on May 10, 1869.