A plaque at the new monument records the history of memorials to events and burials that occurred in Mountain Meadows in 1857:1859: The original monument is established by the U.S. Army. It consists of a stone cairn topped with a cedar cross and a small granite marker set against the north side of the cairn and dated May 20, 1859. Military officials mark some other burial sites in the valley with simple stone cairns.
1932: The Utah Trails and Landmarks Association builds a protective stone wall around the 1859 gravesite in September 1932. The association's president is George Albert Smith of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles and later president of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
1936: The Arkansas Centennial Commission and Arkansas History Commission place a cast-iron historical marker on Highway 7 about three miles south of Harrison, Ark., near the William Beller home and what is now known as Milum Spring, to identify the departure place for some members of the caravan.
1955: On Sept. 4, 1955, the Richard Fancher Society of America unveils a granite memorial to the victims in a park at Harrison, Ark.
1990: The state of Utah and families of victims and local citizens erect the Mountain Meadows Memorial on a nearby hill. The granite marker lists the known victims and surviving children. President Gordon B. Hinckley of the LDS Church dedicates the hilltop memorial on Sept. 14, 1990, during a meeting in Cedar City.
1999: Under the direction of President Hinckley and with the cooperation of the Mountain Meadows Association and others, the LDS Church replaces the 1932 wall and installs the present gravesite memorial. President Hinckley is to dedicate the memorial on Saturday, Sept. 11.