It takes one summer for a newcomer to Utah to encounter the idea that the Fourth of July isn’t the only holiday this month — or, for some people, the most important one.
Pioneer Day, July 24, marks the day in 1847 when Brigham Young first led the Mormon pioneers into the Salt Lake Valley — and, as the legend goes, declared “This is the place.”
Salt Lake City, the site where Young and company landed, has the bulk of the big celebration of this day — but there are celebrations around the state. We’ve included as many of them as we could find in this listing.
In recent years, an alternative holiday, Pie ‘n’ Beer Day, has grown in popularity — for people who want to have a drink, and a slice of pastry or pizza, as part of the festivities. We’ve got some of those celebrations in this list, too.
(Rick Egan | The Salt Lake Tribune) Stephanie Fryar, from Waco, Texas, competes in the barrel racing event at the Utah Days of '47 Rodeo at the State Fairpark, on Monday, July 25, 2022.
Days of ‘47
These are the official events being organized and sponsored by Days of ‘47, the nonprofit that oversees the annual celebration of Utah’s state holiday.
Wednesday-Monday, July 19-24
Utah Days of ‘47 Rodeo • Five days of rodeo events (no events on Sunday, July 23), with gold, silver and bronze medals going to the top riders. Utah State Fairpark, 1000 W. North Temple, Salt Lake City. Tickets, from $17 to $32, at utahdaysof47rodeo.com.
Friday-Saturday, July 21-22
Float Preview Party • Get a close-up look at the floats to be featured in the Days of ‘47 Parade. Friday and Saturday, 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. both days. Mountain America Expo Center, 9575 S. State St., Sandy. Free admission.
Monday, July 24
Deseret News Marathon • Four races — a marathon, a half-marathon, a 10,000 meters and a 5,000 meters — with the longer ones starting up Emigration Canyon. Marathon starts at 5:30 a.m.; half-marathon and 10K at 6 a.m.; 5K at 7 a.m. Registration required, go to run.deseret.com for information.
Sunrise service • Music from the Salt Lake Valley Combined Institute Choir, directed by Alan Sacket and Rick Decker; a flag ceremony by the Mormon Battalion, led by Greg Christopherson; a musical number by Days of ‘47 royalty; and a talk by Latter-day Saints general authority James W. McConkie III. Starts at 7 a.m. at Assembly Hall on Temple Square, 50 W. North Temple, Salt Lake City. Admission is free; everyone must be seated by 6:50 a.m.
Days of ‘47 Parade • The big event, with floats, marching bands, horses, clowns, dignitaries and more. The route through Salt Lake City starts at South Temple and State Street, east to 200 East, south to 900 South, and east to 600 East, ending at the entrance to Liberty Park. Starts at 9 a.m. Camping on the parade route starts the day before.
(Rick Egan | The Salt Lake Tribune) Devan Kicknosway, from Ontario, Canada, and Marian Mike from White Mesa, Arizona, pose for an Instagram post, at the Native American Celebration in the Park, at Salt Lake City's Liberty Park, on Friday, July 23, 2021.
More events in Salt Lake County
Saturday, July 22
First Encampment Hike • A commemorative trek to the Salt Lake Valley’s first pioneer campsite. Starts at 7 a.m. at Donner Park, 2770 E. 990 South, Salt Lake City (up Emigration Canyon, just east of Hogle Zoo). The five-mile trek ends at First Encampment Park, 1700 S. 500 East, Salt Lake City. Trekking is free; breakfast at the end is $5 a plate.
A Pioneer Day Concert • An evening of song, dance and storytelling, featuring the Bonner Family, Truman Brothers, Darren Parry, Abraham Thomas, Terry Goedel, Heather Parker, The Debra Bonner Unity Gospel Choir, Brandon Pak and ROC: Remembering Our Culture. Show starts at 8 p.m.; gates open at 7 p.m. at 2601 E. Sunnyside Ave., Salt Lake City. Lawn seating is $15 for adults, $10 for youth (12 and under); premium seating is sold out; tickets available at deseretbookpresents.com.
Sunday, July 23
The Cookout • The second annual event, designed to bring Utah’s black people together to celebrate and to eat. Food, entertainment and games. Fairmont Park, 1040 E. Sugarmont Drive, noon to 7 p.m. Free. Part of the OurSundays program, supported by the ACE Fund and the Black Faculty and Staff Association of the University of Utah.
Monday, July 24
This Is the Place Heritage Park • A full day of events to celebrate Utah’s heritage, including a candy cannon shooting out taffy, games, panning for gold, riding ponies and trains, arts and crafts, and a watermelon-eating contest. Runs 10 a.m.-5 p.m. at This Is the Place Heritage Park, 2601 E. Sunnyside Ave. Tickets are $18.95 for adults, $16.95 for seniors (65 and older), $14.95 for children (3 to 11), free for children 2 and under.
Native American Celebration in the Park • The 29th annual event, called “Salt Lake City’s hottest powwow,” with food booths, arts and crafts, entertainment, cultural sharing and more. The first grand entry (a roll call for dancers and drum groups) is at noon; activities continue through 10 p.m. A drone light show, sponsored by Salt Lake City, is scheduled for 10 p.m. Liberty Park, 600 E. 900 South. Admission to the powwow is $5.
(Leah Hogsten | The Salt Lake Tribune) Madyson Mason, 10, learns how to throw a hatchet during Pioneer Day festivities at the American West Heritage Center in Wellsville, July 24, 2020.
Wasatch Front
Cache County
Pioneer Day Celebration, Logan • Monday, July 24, all at Willow/Horseshoe Park, 500 W. 700 South (unless otherwise noted): 1-mile and 3-mile run, starts at 7:30 a.m. (registration at 7 a.m.); open grass volleyball tournament, 8 a.m. (registration at 7:30 a.m.); 3-on-3 basketball, 3-on-3 soccer, horseshoe, cornhole and spike ball tournaments, starting at 9 a.m. (registration at 8:30 a.m.); yoga, 9 a.m.; family fun Zumba, 10 a.m.; pioneer crafts and games, 11 a.m.-5 p.m., Cache Pioneer Museum, 160 Main St.; parade, noon, starts at Center Street and 100 West, going west to 500 West, then south to Willow Park (at 700 South), noon; playland, 1:30-3 p.m.; duck dash, 1:30 and 2:30 p.m.; candy cannon, 2 p.m.; bingo bonanza, 4 p.m.; entertainment by Johnny Utah, 5:30 p.m.; music by Fender Benders, 6:30 p.m.; music by Ryan Shupe, 8:30 p.m.;l fireworks, 10 p.m.
Pioneer Day Festival, Wellsville • Saturday, July 22: Learn about our pioneer ancestors, as our living history interpreters talk about the history of Cache Valley from 1820 to 1920. Also includes the Cache Smokeout, an amateur barbecue competition. American West Heritage Center, 3025 S. Highway 89-91. Tickets are $10, plus $5 for five samples from the barbecue (while supplies last).
Utah County
Fiesta Days, Spanish Fork • Thursday, July 20-Monday, July 24: Carnival, city office parking lot, 40 S. Main, 10 a.m-11 p.m. Saturday and Monday, closed Sunday; craft fair and food vendors, City Park, 49 S. Main, Saturday and Monday, closed Sunday; community theater production of “Matilda,” Spanish Fork High School auditorium, 99 N. 300 West, 2 p.m. Saturday and Monday. Saturday, July 22: PRCA Xtreme Bulls, fairgrounds, 7 p.m., tickets at FiestaDaysRodeo.com; street dance, Center Street between Main and 100 East, 8 p.m., free. Sunday, July 23: Concert by Halo Ray, City Park stage, 7:30 p.m., free. Monday, July 24: Speedy Spaniard River Trail 10K and Mile Run, starting at 6:30 and 7 a.m., respectively, both ending at Sports Park Complex, 295 W. Volunteer Drive, registration required; pancake breakfast, 8-10 a.m., $5, City Park; Grand Parade, 9 a.m., Center Street and Main Street, free; outdoor quilt show, 9 a.m.-5 p.m., Jones-Hughes Pioneer Park, 143 S. Main St., free; concert by Fire at Will followed by fireworks, 8-10 p.m., Spanish Fork Sports Park, 493 W. Volunteer Drive, free admission.
Mapleton’s Pioneer Days, Mapleton • Saturday, July 22: Flag-raising ceremony, 7 a.m., free, Mapleton City Park; 5K and fun run, starts at 7 a.m. (fun run) and 7:30 a.m. (5K), registration required; starts at Mapleton City Building, 125 W. Community Center Way; Pancake breakfast, 7:30 to 9 a.m., $6, Mapleton City Park; Parade, Main Street, 9 a.m.; Fun and games, 10 a.m.-2 p.m., free, Mapleton City Park; Humanitarian Fair, 10 a.m.-2 p.m., free, Memorial Hall (northeast corner of the city park); Hot dog dinner, 5:30 to 7:30 p.m., $6, Mapleton City Park; Helicopter ping pong ball drop, 6:30 p.m., free (registration required in advance), Ira Allan Sports Park, 1728 S. 800 West; concert with Party Crashers, followed by fireworks, 8 p.m., free, Ira Allan Sports Park.
Pioneer Day Celebration, Orem • Monday, July 24: Food trucks, activities, and entertainment by Trash Panda Drum Group, comedian Arvin Mitchel, and bands Michael Barrow & the Tourists and No Limits, ending with fireworks at 9:30 p.m. Events start at 5 p.m., run until 9:45 p.m. University Place, 575 E. University Parkway, Orem. Free admission; no reserving spots in the Orchard before 4 p.m.
Pioneer Day Extravaganza, Provo • Saturday, July 22: Pioneer crafts, a root-beer chug, live music and a children’s entrepreneur market. 10 a.m.-2 p.m. Kiwanis Park, 1019 N. 1100 East. Free admission.
Weber County
Ogden Pioneer Days, Ogden • Rodeo runs through Monday, July 24 (except Sunday) at Ogden Pioneer Stadium, 668 17th St.. Saturday, July 22, concludes with a concert by country singer Charley Jenkins. Monday, July 24, concludes with a drone show. Tickets at ogdenpioneerdays.com. Monday, July 24: The Horse & Hitch Parade, followed by the Grande Parade, on Washington Boulevard, from 31st Street to 20th Street, starting at 9 a.m.
(Rick Egan | The Salt Lake Tribune) A parade watcher grabs the hose as he battles the water balloons from the Panguitch High Wrestling team during the Pioneer Day Parade in Panguitch, Saturday, July 23, 2022.
Elsewhere in Utah
Beaver County
Horse Races and Rodeo, Beaver • Monday, July 24: Horse races start at 1 p.m., rodeo starts at 7 p.m. at Canyon Breeze Racetrack, 371 N. Highway 153.
Garfield County
Pioneer Day Celebration, Panguitch • Thursday-Saturday, July 20-22: The Panguitch Invitational Rodeo, open to junior high and high school-age competitors. Triple C Arena, 800 N. Main. Sessions start at 9 a.m. Thursday and Friday, and 6 p.m. all three days. Tickets are $10 for adults, $5 for children, $35 for a family pass; all-performance pass is $15 for adults, $10 for children. Saturday, July 22: Lions Club fundraiser breakfast, 7:30-9:30 a.m., Zions Bank, 90 Center St.; parade, Main Street, starting at 10 a.m.; fireman’s lunch, 12:30 p.m. at County Fair Building, 725 N. Main; kids games, 2 p.m., City Park, 800 N. Main.
Grand County
Red Cliffs Lodge, Moab • The lodge, at Milepost 14 on State Highway 128, has Pioneer Day activities planned. Saturday-Sunday, July 22-23: Art classes with Jennifer Vannatta. Saturday-Monday, July 22-24: Vintage tintype photography sessions, conducted by Westslope Tintype. Monday, July 24: A special all-you-can-eat Chuck Wagon Dinner, 5:30 to 8 p.m., at the Red Cliffs Lodge River Deck restaurant, for $35 for adults and $19.95 for children 12 and under; a special Celestial Cinema showing of the 1950 John Ford movie “Wagon Master.”
Kane County
Fireworks on the Water, Kanab • Monday, July 24, at Jackson Flat Reservoir, Kaneplex Drive: Kids activities starting at 4 p.m.; music with Haden Ballard, Chris Paul Band, W Duo and Cole Hartley, 4-10 p.m.; free hot dog dinner, 5 p.m.; church history walk, 6 p.m.; dance, 8-10 p.m.; fireworks, 10 p.m. Free.
Washington County
Pioneer Day Celebrations, Washington City • Monday, July 24: Parade starts at 10 a.m., starting at 200 North and 300 West, going south to Telegraph Street, west to Main Street, then north to 200 North. That’s followed by events (details to be announced) in Veterans Park, 75 E. Telegraph St., ending with fireworks at 10 p.m. Free.
Wayne County
Bicknell International Film Festival • Friday-Saturday, July 21-22: Celebrating the “best” of B-movies, this year with the theme, “Cowboys! Dinosaurs! The good, the bad, and worse!!” A caravan from Etta Place Cider, 700 W. Main St., Torrey, to the Bicknell Theatre, 11 E. Main, Bicknell, starts at 6 p.m., followed by a screening of the 1969 Ray Harryhausen classic “The Valley of Gwangi.” Saturday, a roundtable starts at 10:30 a.m. at Robbers Roost Distillery, 700 State Road 24, Torrey, followed by another screening at 7 p.m., of the 2015 movie “Cowboys vs. Dinosaurs,” starring Eric Roberts, also at the Bicknell Theatre. Tickets and information available at EntradaInstitute.org.
(Rick Egan | The Salt Lake Tribune) The Beer Bar on 200 South in Salt Lake, seen here in 2020, will play host to its annual Pie and Beer celebration on Monday, July 24, 2023.
Pie ‘n’ Beer Day
There are those who celebrate the alternative to Pioneer Day, called Pie ‘n’ Beer Day — where pints and slices are predominant. You must be 21 or older to participate in these bar-based events. (Gastronomic SLC, with whom The Tribune has a content-sharing agreement, provided tips for some of these events.)
Beer Bar • The bar, at 161 E. 200 South, Salt Lake City, boasts it has “the world’s largest pie and beer event,” with 24 breweries providing the beer and 25 kitchens baking 10,000 slices of pie. Their event runs from noon to 4 p.m. on Monday, July 24. Cost is $40 for five pairings; proceeds go to the Wildlife Rehabilitation Center of Northern Utah.
The DLC at Quarters • This “Pioneer Pie ‘N’ Beer Celebration” features a burlesque variety show produced by Hot Take Burlesque, at Quarters Arcade Bar, 5 E. 400 South, Salt Lake City. The show starts at 9 p.m., doors open at 8 p.m., Saturday, July 22. Tickets are $15, at 24Tix.com.
Flanker Kitchen + Sporting Club • This restaurant/bar, at 6 S. Rio Grande in The Gateway, Salt Lake City, is offering its second annual “Pie & Beer Day Brunch,” hosted by 103.1 The Wave, on Sunday, July 23. The specials include a $7 Uinta Lime Pilsner with the restaurant’s signature $9 key lime pie. Other food and beverage specials are available. DJ Napo will spin ‘80s and ‘90s hits.
Hyatt Regency Salt Lake City • The hotel, at 170 S. West Temple in downtown Salt Lake City, will be serving personal-sized peach pies (with locally grown peaches and brown sugar strreusel) paired with Uinta Brewing’s Cutthroat Pale Ale, all day. The hotel is hosting a pop-up wellness experience with KarickaSoul Essentials, 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. in the lobby (near the West Temple entrance).
Powder Mountain Ski Resort • The resort’s Bower Lodge, 3926 N. Wolf Creek Drive, Eden, will be serving pizza and beer, 5 p.m. to 9 p.m., Monday, July 24.
VFW Bar • This bar, at 2920 S. Highland Drive, Salt Lake City, throws an event with beer, food and the Celtic fusion band Callanish. It’s happening 9 to 11 p.m., Saturday, July 22.