Pioneer Heritage

Manti was one of the first communities settled in what was to become Utah. Chief Walkara (or Walker), a Ute Tribe leader, invited Brigham Young to send pioneers to the area to teach his people the techniques of successful farming. In 1849, Brigham Young dispatched a company of about 225 settlers, consisting of several families, to the Sanpitch (now Sanpete) Valley. Under the direction of Isaac Morley and George Washington Bradley, the settlers arrived at the present location of Manti in late November. They endured a severe winter by living in temporary shelters dug into the south side of the hill on which the Manti Temple now stands. Brigham Young named the new community Manti, after a city mentioned in the Book of Mormon. Manti was incorporated on Feruary 2, 1851 along with Salt Lake City, Ogden and Provo. The first mayor of Manti was Dan Jones. Manti served as a hub city for the settlement of other communities in the valley, as well as other areas in central and southern Utah.