Archives West Finding Aid

The papers of the Utah Chapter of the Sierra Club contain information on the administration and activities of both the national organization and the local groups and chapters. The material covers the 1872 to 2001, with the bulk of the information from the 1970s and 1980s. They have been organized into eight series, three of which have been divided into sub-series. These series are Sierra Club National Society, the Utah Chapter Administration Files, Bureau of Land Management, Forest Service, National Parks and Monuments, Wildlife Environmental Health, The Sierra Club is one of the largest environmental organizations in the United States. Nature writer John Muir founded the organization in 1892 and was its president until his death in 1914. Its stated purpose is to protect and preserve the natural environment. During the past century, the club has become well known for its aggressive efforts to block projects it has deemed harmful to the earth's ecosystem.

From the death of John Muir until the 1960s, the membership of the Sierra Club remained small, only a few thousand. They continued to be actively involved protecting regions of the West, particularly in California and Alaska as well as Yellowstone. The club so became noted for its excursions into Yosemite and the High Sierras in California. In 1952 David Brower became the executive director. Under his leadership, the Sierra Club became more actively involved in trying to shape state and national policy. In 1960 the Sierra Club Foundation was established as a charitable organization to raise money for the Sierra Club and other environmental groups. Throughout the following decade, the membership of the club grew exponentially from seven thousand to nearly seventy thousand by the end of the decade. The club likewise became involved in more nationwide issues. Despite his influence and success, Brower's tenure was controversial and he was removed from office in 1969.

By the 1960s, the Sierra Club had been active in Utah for many years. During that decade, the Uinta Group of the Sierra Club was organized. In September 1969, the Uinta group applied to become a Chapter. Its bylaws were drawn up and approved on October 13, 1969. The Chapter was formally organized by the national office on November 17, 1969, at Eliot Hall in Salt Lake City with June Viavant as chairwoman, Carol Weins as secretary-treasurer, and Jack McLellan as conservation chariman (the name was changed to the Utah Chapter of the Sierra Club in 1975). Also in 1969, they began issuing the Uinta News, a local newsletter on environmental activism. In September 1985, the name of the newsletter was changed to Utah Sierran.

Over the years, the Utah Chapter has been involved in many environmental issues both independently and in conjunction with the national club. Among the first issues were the Alton Coal project and Kaiparowits power station in southern Utah. The Utah Chapter fought throughout the 1970s to keep mining out of southern Utah and to limit power stations. They also became heavily involved with many government agencies such as the Bureau of Land Management and the U.S. Forest Service. They sought to extend wilderness designation to Utah roadless areas and to influence the decisions of those conducting the Roadless Area Review and Evaluation (RARE). In 1979 and 1980, the Utah Chapter opposed the Sagebrush Rebellion, fearing that if states got control of millions of acres of BLM land, they would then allow extensive mining.

Since then, the Utah Chapter has been active in politics and in disseminating environmental awareness and in extending protection to Utah's roadless and wilderness areas. They have actively campaigned for candidates and opposed others. One of their most famous members was nature writer Edward Abbey, who spent a great deal of time living and writing in southern Utah.

In the 1990s, the Chapter was noted for its opposition to nuclear dump sites in the West Desert of Utah and to the proposed Legacy Highway which would cross wetlands near the Great Salt Lake. They have also monitored the chemical weapons stored in the Tooele Army Depot and supported President Clinton's decision to create the Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument in 1996. Currently the Chapter is involved in organizing weekly hikes and excursions to the outdoors in addition to supporting candidates and lobbying extensively in the Utah Legislature. They also continue to oppose many building and mining operations throughout the state. As of 2003, membership in the Utah Chapter was 5,000.

For more in-depth information see: Michael Cohen.  The History of the Sierra Club 1892-1970. Sierra Club Books (1998); and Stephen Fox.  John Muir and his Legacy. Little, Brown & Company (1970). See also the website for the national Sierra Club and for the Utah Chapter.

Series I contains information on the national organization, officers, and publications of the Sierra Club collected by the Utah Chapter, but itis not a comprehensive collection on the national organization. It does, however, contain useful information on the history of the national organization and of its operations in Utah. Series II is divided into two sub-series: Utah Chapter Administration Files and Utah Wilderness Coalition. The first contains bylaws, minutes, and administrative information on the Utah Chapter. Also included are the issues of the Uinta News and Utah Sierran from 1969 to 1991. This sub-series also includes information on the many political initiatives of the Utah Chapter. Sub-series B contains information on the Utah Wilderness Coalition, a group organized by the Utah Chapter to bring many diverse environmental groups together into a common forum.

Series III has four sub-series dealing with various issues pertaining to the Bureau of Land Management, such as wilderness, state land management, and environmental concerns. It includes extensive newspaper clippings and BLM publications. Boxes 8 through 13 contain site-specific information on BLM lands. Series IV contains Forest Service information, particularly on wilderness designation proposals and the Sierra Club's involvement with the mid-1970s Roadless Area Review and Evaluation (RARE) I and II. Series V focuses on environmental concerns about National Parks and Monuments, especially those in Utah. Series VI concerns Utah Wildlife, including detailed information on specific species (both flora and fauna). Series VII is devoted to environmental health in Utah, such as air quality, water quality, proposed nuclear dumping sites in Utah, and the chemical weapons stored at the Tooele Army Depot. Within all these series, the collection contains numerous articles, correspondence, and reports received and published by the Utah Chapter.

The final series, Series VIII, has four sub-divisions: General Environmental Issues, Logan Canyon, Alton Coal/Kaiparowits/Coal, and Water/Central Utah Project. The first deals with issues such as road construction and expansion, land development and growth, power, recycling, mining, and waste disposal. Sub-series B discusses construction through Logan Canyon in northern Utah. Sub-series C deals with the 1970s mining and power plant operations that were proposed in Southern Utah. The final sub-series deals with water quality throughout the state, dam construction, and the Central Utah Project.

A large amount of published material in this collection has been removed and is now catalogued as Book Collection 47. These publications consist mainly of federal publications such as environmental impact statements, project proposals, etc.