That incredible mess they're making on Social Hall Avenue is worth it. If all the right people at all the right levels of authority give their approval within the next week, Utahns will be able to enjoy a highly progressive and unprecedented historic representation of the old Social Hall, Utah's first public building, which has been compared with Boston's Faneuil Hall and Philadelphia's Independence Hall.
Built of Red Butte Canyon sandstone in 1852, the Social Hall has been called the first playhouse west of the Missouri River. Brigham Young strongly favored it, saying that if he "were placed on a cannibal island and given the task of civilizing its people, I should straightway build a theater for the purpose."Besides its theatrical function, the Social Hall's basement was the scene for dancing - with the cotillion, minuet and square dances favored, since Brigham Young opposed the waltz and round dances. "Besides my own I have the whole people's burdens, and I get rid of them by kicking them off my toes."
By modern standards, the building was tiny - measuring 40 by 80 feet, leaving a rather small auditorium with seating capacity for about 300 people.
The city grew in population, and in 1862 another building, the Salt Lake Theatre, took over many public functions. The old Social Hall was destroyed in 1922 - though not as completely as everyone thought.
Ironically, this year's excavation project had nothing to do with searching out the history of the old hall. Rather, it was intended to create an underground walkway from the ZCMI Center to Social Hall Avenue to eliminate a highly dangerous street crossing. By accident it has become a lot more interesting than that.
Jim Walton, vice president of Zions Securities, the firm initiating the project, says they expected to find "some rubble from the old foundation - piles of rock. But when we exposed the southwest corner, it was apparent that the old foundation was quite intact."
Acting wisely, Zions Securities called in archaeologists so that the excavation could "be done right."
Actually, there is a state law that requires a recognition of historic value through the recovery of artifacts and the taking of photographs. According to David Madsen, state archaeologist, Zions Securities has gone far beyond that. It has recovered 14 boxes of artifacts such as porcelain door knobs, a lens from an old spotlight, an old piece of ceramic, builders' tools, glass beads, inkwells and even utensils.
But everyone thinks the most important artifact is the building itself. With the help of many specialists, there is a solid, impressive effort to retain the historical integrity of its remains.
Madsen says, "Everyone is really excited about it. The project is economically viable. It is socially viable because it will preserve the fabric of the city. And it is good from the standpoint of public interest."
What they are trying to do is create a unique historic gallery reached by escalators covered with a glass structure. "The building will reprise the old hall," says Madsen. "It will be a tubular structure with walkways above the stone so you can look directly down on it."
I was so excited by the concept that I asked Walton if I could see the model that architect Wally Cooper finished just last Friday. He was kind enough to show it to me, and it is impressive indeed.
Cooper envisions a double escalator going from Social Hall Avenue down to the level of the Social Hall's basement. There will be another escalator to the ZCMI Center. "It will come up right in the middle of the old building."
By the end of this week the walls will have been carefully removed and packed, to be put back later. "After construction," says Cooper, "we'll come in and put the walls back down and build the new structure off those walls. We're not trying to re-create the old Social Hall in the sense that it has been done by Pioneer Trail Foundation. We're trying to create an image of the old Social Hall by literally tracing its outline in steel. What you see would be the corners, the pitch of the roof and the chimneys on the roof. It's an open and airy outline of the original building. Inside of that frame - not touching it but inside it - would be a glass enclosure that would provide the cover for the people using the escalator. It is a building within a building because it sits inside the frame. It will have the same proportions as the Social Hall, but it is just glass - a gem sitting inside the steel framework."
Cooper's desire is to "create a monument and memory of what existed there." He has succeeded admirably, even down to the lean-to structure on the east end of the building which will include a skylight revealing the two sandstone brick ovens and fireplaces that were unearthed by the dig.
A diorama will attempt to recreate the whole fabric of the city at the time. People will be able to inspect the monument through the glass at any point. They can go down the escalators and inspect it and walk around it.
If they survive all their hurdles, the model and the detailed plan for this historic gallery will become public within a week or so. It will be a major aesthetic and historic contribution to the city.