The Murray Downtown Historic District is located in the historic city center of

Murray Murray may refer to: Businesses * Murray (bicycle company), an American manufacturer of low-cost bicycles * Murrays, an Australian bus company * Murray International Trust, a Scottish investment trust * D. & W. Murray Limited, an Australian who ...

, Salt Lake County,

Utah Utah ( , ) is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. Utah is a landlocked U.S. state bordered to its east by Colorado, to its northeast by Wyoming, to its north by Idaho, to its south by Arizona, and to it ...

. It was listed on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic v ...

in 2006, with a boundary increase in 2020. The historic district is significant for its association with the development, particularly economic and social, of the community from a rural outpost to an industrialized city with a remarkably urban core in its commercial district.Johnson, Wesley G. and David Schirer. Between the Cottonwoods: Murray City In Transition. Salt Lake City: Timpanogos Research Associates, 1992. Murray is one of only a few towns in Utah and the only community in the

Salt Lake Valley Salt Lake Valley is a valley in Salt Lake County in the north-central portion of the U.S. state of Utah. It contains Salt Lake City and many of its suburbs, notably Murray, Sandy, South Jordan, West Jordan, and West Valley City; its total po ...

, other than Salt Lake City, to have substantial mixed commercial/residential development with resident population living in the upper floors of commercial buildings.The History Spotter's Guide: A Walking Tour of Murray Historic Business District. Edited by Mary Ann Kirk, prepared by Judson Callaway and Su Richards. Published by Murray City, 2004. The population of Murray's urban center was remarkable for its integrated mix of Utah-born residents and recent immigrants attracted by the smelter industry. The tight urban streetscape along

State Street State Street may refer to: Streets and locations *State Street (Chicago), Illinois * State Street (Portland, Maine) *State Street (Boston), Massachusetts *State Street (Ann Arbor), Michigan * State Street (Albany), New York *State Street (Manhatta ...

between approximately 4800 South Street (formerly Murray Boulevard) and Vine Street is a distinctive reminder of the heyday of Murray's commercial importance in the south-central part of the valley. The district is also significant as an urban streetscape and for the architectural variety and quality of the individual buildings, three of which were individually listed on the National Register. Many of the buildings are particularly noteworthy as examples of the evolution of the modern Main Street, in Murray's case, State Street. Between the 1920s and 1950s, the storefronts of numerous buildings were updated to reflect the changes in America's architectural tastes. 4850 S State St

The contributing buildings represent Murray's major historic construction phases, and have good integrity for the historic period, which ranges from 1897 to approximately 1956. The commercial business district is a companion to the

Murray Downtown Residential Historic District The Murray Downtown Residential Historic District is the best representative area of the residential settlement and development of the city of Murray, Utah, United States. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2005. It is ...

, which abuts the business district on the east and was listed on the

in 2005. The district includes three buildings previously listed on the National Register of Historic Places: the

Warenski-Duvall Commercial Building and Apartments The Warenski-Duvall Commercial Building and Apartments, built in 1915, is a two-story brick, two part commercial block that is listed in National Register of Historic Places. The building is significant for its role in the early urbanization of Mu ...

; the Iris Theater ( Desert Star Theater), Apartments, and Commercial Building; and the Murray Theater.

References

External links

{{National Register of Historic Places Buildings and structures in Murray, Utah Commercial buildings on the National Register of Historic Places in Utah Historic districts on the National Register of Historic Places in Utah National Register of Historic Places in Salt Lake County, Utah