Located in Northern Utah, the town of West Jordan obtains its name from the River Jordan located in Israel. The city was founded by Mormon Missionaries on their exodus from the East to escape religious persecution for their Mormon faith. In 1849, the foundations of West Jordan were laid down. A year later, its first sawmill was constructed by Archibald Gardner. Gardner also constructed a canal to bring water to the people of West Jordan. In West Jordan's early history, its major economic sources of income included milling, mining, and agriculture. In the 1860s, one of America's first non log chapels was constructed by the people of West Jordan. Aside from its use as a religious place of worship, the chapel also used for social events and activities as well as a center of educational instruction.
Face with a growing economy and a growing population, West Jordan embarked on a major effort to build canals to provide its people with more water to better encourage more growth and prosperity. This allowed the town of West Jordan to become the site of the earliest test flights for air plane flights in the Western United States from 1909 to 1910. Despite having a small population, it was incorporated into the state government during the 1940s. By the 1960s, it became one of the fastest growing communities in Utah. This was followed by rapid urbanization in the 1970s and by the 1990s, the population of West Jordan reached over forty thousand people.
Today the town of West Jordan boasts a population of over one hundred thousand people. However because of the ever rapid population growth, the city faces many problems with transportation and inadequate schools have forced the townsfolk to deal with such as their city seems to burst at the seams with its ever increasing population. Fortunately, the town of West Jordan is prepared to deal with this problem and have thus began a system of major construction projects that aim to help the town accumulate its population growth.West Jordan is bordered east by the river Jordan, which the town takes as its namesake. Located to the west are the Oquirrh Mountains. Other neighbors include Jordan Hills and Welby, two towns with growing populations. Cities that neighbor West Jordan include the cities of Murray, Sandy, Copperton and West Valley City. As for its climate, it is Alpine Climate.
Written by Lyndsey Morgan
