Magna ( ) is a

metro township A metro township is a type of municipal government in Utah equivalent to a civil township. These were first allowed in Utah starting in 2015 (per Senate Bill 199 – the Community Preservation Act) both to allow existing unincorporated communities ...

Salt Lake County Salt Lake County is located in the U.S. state of Utah. As of the 2020 United States Census, the population was 1,185,238, making it the most populous county in Utah. Its county seat and largest city is Salt Lake City, the state capital. The coun ...

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 ...

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

. The current population of the township stands at 29,251 according to the 2020 census, a 10.4% increase over 26,505 in 2010.

History

Settlement

Settlement of the area began in 1851 shortly after pioneers reached 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 ...

. Early farmers settled in 1868 at the base of the northern

Oquirrh Mountains The Oquirrh Mountains is a mountain range that runs north-south for approximately 30 miles (50 km) to form the west side of Utah's Salt Lake Valley, separating it from Tooele Valley. The range runs from northwestern Utah County–centr ...

and called their community Pleasant Green. By 1900, there were about 20 families in the area. One of the first Pleasant Green farmers was Abraham Coon, who established a livestock ranch and settlement called Coonville in a canyon mouth at about 5400 South now known as Coon Canyon. Coon Creek flows out of Coon Canyon and is one of the major Oquirrh Mountain drainages. Coon Creek flows north and west through Magna to the

Great Salt Lake The Great Salt Lake is the largest saltwater lake in the Western Hemisphere and the eighth-largest terminal lake in the world. It lies in the northern part of the U.S. state of Utah and has a substantial impact upon the local climate, particula ...

. The Pleasant Green Cemetery located in the

Oquirrh Oquirrh is a census-designated place (CDP) in Salt Lake County, Utah, located on the slopes of the Oquirrh Mountains that gave it its name. Oquirrh was once part of Kearns, UT. Through annexation, the city of West Jordan cut Oquirrh off from Kearn ...

foothills, at about 3500 South, was established in 1883. In 1890, in response to a law requiring all children to receive free

public education State schools (in England, Wales, Australia and New Zealand) or public schools (Scottish English and North American English) are generally primary or secondary schools that educate all students without charge. They are funded in whole or in pa ...

, the first school was built in the community.

1900-1960

In the early 1900s,

copper mining Copper extraction refers to the methods used to obtain copper from its ores. The conversion of copper consists of a series of physical and electrochemical processes. Methods have evolved and vary with country depending on the ore source, loca ...

activity in the Oquirrhs began transforming the Pleasant Green area from an agricultural

hamlet ''The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark'', often shortened to ''Hamlet'' (), is a tragedy written by William Shakespeare sometime between 1599 and 1601. It is Shakespeare's longest play, with 29,551 words. Set in Denmark, the play depicts ...

to an industrial community. D.C. Jackling established the Utah Copper Company, which later became Kennecott Copper Corp. In 1906, the company began constructing its Magna Mill. Jackling chose the name "Magna" from the Latin word meaning "great" or "superior". Beginning in 1903, Magna saw a large influx of

Greek Greek may refer to: Greece Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe: *Greeks, an ethnic group. *Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family. **Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor ...

immigrants, primarily prompted by coal mine strikes in

Carbon County, Utah Carbon County is a county in the U.S. state of Utah. As of the 2010 United States Census, the population was 21,403. Its county seat and largest city is Price. The Price, UT Micropolitan Statistical Area includes all of Carbon County. Histo ...

and

Fresno, California Fresno () is a major city in the San Joaquin Valley of California, United States. It is the county seat of Fresno County and the largest city in the greater Central Valley region. It covers about and had a population of 542,107 in 2020, makin ...

. This group eventually established a thriving

Greektown Greektown is a general name for an ethnic enclave populated primarily by Greeks or people of Greek ancestry, usually in an urban neighborhood. History The oldest Greek dominated neighborhood outside of Greece were probably the Fener in Ista ...

and community. The formation of Magna's Greektown coincided with that of the forming of

Salt Lake City Salt Lake City (often shortened to Salt Lake and abbreviated as SLC) is the Capital (political), capital and List of cities and towns in Utah, most populous city of Utah, United States. It is the county seat, seat of Salt Lake County, Utah, Sal ...

, happening only about 15 miles to the east. Boston Consolidated Copper constructed a second mill in the area in 1909. In 1911, the companies merged and the mill was renamed, Arthur Mill. Construction workers lived in a temporary settlement known as Ragtown. Several substantial homes were built in the tent city and later moved to the present community. As the mills began operating, some local farmers traded in their plows for a steady company paycheck and began moving in to work at the mills. In 1914, Renald Woolley, the Post Master of the township, petitioned to have the Pleasant Green post office changed to Magna because of confusion with other towns such as Pleasant Grove. The petition was accepted and in a meeting above his store, the locals accepted the name of Magna for the town and post office, on October 19, 1915. (see West Valley View, June 9, 1983). By 1909, the Hawthorne School (no longer standing) had been built in the eastern Magna area. In 1908, the Webster School (destroyed by fire and demolished in June 2004) was built at the west end of what is now Main Street. In 1924, the first building of the present

Cyprus High School Cyprus High School is a public high school located at 8623 West 3000 South in Magna, Utah, United States. Cyprus High opened in 1918, and now has an enrollment of 1650 students. The principal of the school as of 2021 is Rob McDaniel. The school' ...

was completed. Over the years, buildings and additions have been constructed on the campus. At the time, commuting to work by automobile was not practical. Few mineworkers had cars and cross valley roads were in marginal condition. Workers lived in the town and walked to the mills. Downtown Magna included churches, saloons, fraternal halls, and stores. Several small neighborhoods, such as Greektown, Japantown, Snaketown, and Little Italy, developed around Main Street. Many early residents were immigrants, primarily from

Eastern Europe Eastern Europe is a subregion of the Europe, European continent. As a largely ambiguous term, it has a wide range of geopolitical, geographical, ethnic, cultural, and socio-economic connotations. The vast majority of the region is covered by Russ ...

but Magna was not a mining town. In 1914, an Italian women by the name of Anna Carrone settled here and met

coal miner Coal mining is the process of extracting coal from the ground. Coal is valued for its energy content and since the 1880s has been widely used to generate electricity. Steel and cement industries use coal as a fuel for extraction of iron from ...

, Rocco Polidori. They became a couple and moved to

Denver Denver () is a consolidated city and county, the capital, and most populous city of the U.S. state of Colorado. Its population was 715,522 at the 2020 census, a 19.22% increase since 2010. It is the 19th-most populous city in the Unit ...

Colorado Colorado (, other variants) is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It encompasses most of the Southern Rocky Mountains, as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the western edge of t ...

and went on to found the meat company Polidori Sausage. Between 1915 and 1960, the town's fortunes fluctuated with the copper industry. During the

Great Depression The Great Depression (19291939) was an economic shock that impacted most countries across the world. It was a period of economic depression that became evident after a major fall in stock prices in the United States. The economic contagio ...

, the mills shut down for a period, and workers were laid off. Around 1940, there was a resurgence as the pending war boosted copper demand. Growth continued after

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

, and throughout the 1960s.

1960-1980

By the 1960s, the community was experiencing the first signs of a suburban transition. The Hercules Powder Co., once a small dynamite manufacturing firm had begun producing rocket motors at its Bacchus Works plant, south of the Magna community, named after 1912 founder T.W. Bacchus. The increased jobs were one factor that encouraged subdivision development in the Magna, Kearns, and

West Valley City West Valley City is a city in Salt Lake County, Utah, Salt Lake County and a suburb of Salt Lake City in the U.S. state of Utah. The population was 140,230 at the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census, making it the List of cities and towns in ...

areas. In 1961, the voters in the Magna Improvement District (now the Magna Water and Sewer District) approved a bond that financed a sewage treatment plant, water storage tanks, pumps, and well development. The improvements created sufficient capacity to serve more than double the population at the time and helped open the way for development. Not only did Magna's population begin shifting southward during the 1960s, but also automobile commuting, both to work and shopping, became common. As business activity moved to other areas, Main Street slowly began to deteriorate. Presently, some of the commercial space there is vacant. During the 1970s, as part of a general west valley suburbanization trend, the community experienced more dramatic growth. Inexpensive land south and east of the historic town center began being developed into moderately priced single-family homes. The new neighborhoods tended to attract

middle-income The middle class refers to a class of people in the middle of a social hierarchy, often defined by occupation, income, education, or social status. The term has historically been associated with modernity, capitalism and political debate. Comm ...

working class The working class (or labouring class) comprises those engaged in manual-labour occupations or industrial work, who are remunerated via waged or salaried contracts. Working-class occupations (see also " Designation of workers by collar colou ...

couples with younger families. While the community had grown from approximately 8,900 in 1960 to 10,000 in 1970, the population had increased to over 23,000 by 2000. This increase is about double the countywide growth rate.

1980-present

The process for Magna to become a township took over 10 years. Growth and development continue to define Magna. The West Bench plan for the redevelopment of mining land should have a major impact on the future of Magna.

Kennecott Land Kennecott Land, a subsidiary of Rio Tinto Group, is an American land development company formed in 2001 and based in South Jordan, Utah in the United States. Kennecott Land owns 93,000 acres (380 km²) of undeveloped land in Salt Lake and Too ...

plans major development in the areas immediately surrounding Magna. The area west of Magna along

I-80 Interstate 80 (I-80) is an east–west transcontinental freeway that crosses the United States from downtown San Francisco, California, to Teaneck, New Jersey, in the New York metropolitan area. The highway was designated in 1956 as one o ...

is currently slated to become one of 2 major "urban centers" for Kennecott Land's west bench development plan. The Historic Main Street underwent a major remodel in 2006. Main Street has also become a popular location for filmmakers. including the

Disney corporation The Walt Disney Company, commonly known as Disney (), is an American multinational mass media and entertainment conglomerate headquartered at the Walt Disney Studios complex in Burbank, California. Disney was originally founded on October ...

, and films such as

Disney Channel Disney Channel, sometimes known as simply Disney, is an American pay television channel that serves as the flagship property of Disney Branded Television, a unit of the Disney General Entertainment Content division of The Walt Disney Compan ...

's TV movie, ''

Dadnapped ''Dadnapped'' is a Disney Channel Original Movie which premiered February 16, 2009. Starring actors from Disney Channel Original Series, the movie had 4.6 million viewers for its premiere. Although the story centers on a hostage situation, the ki ...

'', and some of the '' Halloweentown'' movies filmed on Magna Main Street. A two-part episode (and series finale) of the TV series ''

Touched by an Angel ''Touched by an Angel'' is an American fantasy drama television series that premiered on CBS on September 21, 1994, and ran for 211 episodes over nine seasons until its conclusion on April 27, 2003. Created by John Masius and executive produced ...

'', "I'll Walk with You". The popular TV series '' Granite Flats'' also uses some of the Magna locations in part of the series. Disney's series 'Andi Mack' is also filmed in Magna. On March 18, 2020, Magna was the site of the epicenter for the 5.7 magnitude earthquake 2020 Salt Lake City Earthquake. The quake was followed by more than 850 aftershocks. The temblor struck at approximately 7:10 am, and was felt strongly across the Wasatch Front. Damage was light, although several historic buildings with unreinforced brick walls suffered damage.

Geography

According to the

United States Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau (USCB), officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the U.S. Federal Statistical System, responsible for producing data about the American people and economy. The Census Bureau is part of the ...

, the metro township has a total area of , all land. The community lies just to the northeast of the

and is directly south of the

Demographics

According to estimates from the Kem C. Gardner Policy Institute of the

University of Utah The University of Utah (U of U, UofU, or simply The U) is a public research university in Salt Lake City, Utah. It is the flagship institution of the Utah System of Higher Education. The university was established in 1850 as the University of De ...

, as of 2015, there were 27,451 people in Magna. The racial makeup of the county was 69.76% non-Hispanic

White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no hue). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully reflect and scatter all the visible wavelengths of light. White on ...

, 0.30%

Black Black is a color which results from the absence or complete absorption of visible light. It is an achromatic color, without hue, like white and grey. It is often used symbolically or figuratively to represent darkness. Black and white have o ...

, 0.48% Native American, 1.50%

Asian Asian may refer to: * Items from or related to the continent of Asia: ** Asian people, people in or descending from Asia ** Asian culture, the culture of the people from Asia ** Asian cuisine, food based on the style of food of the people from Asi ...

, 0.37%

Pacific Islander Pacific Islanders, Pasifika, Pasefika, or rarely Pacificers are the peoples of the list of islands in the Pacific Ocean, Pacific Islands. As an ethnic group, ethnic/race (human categorization), racial term, it is used to describe the original p ...

, and 1.95% from two or more races. 25.64% of the population were

Hispanic The term ''Hispanic'' ( es, hispano) refers to people, Spanish culture, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or Hispanidad. The term commonly applies to countries with a cultural and historical link to Spain and to Vic ...

Latino Latino or Latinos most often refers to: * Latino (demonym), a term used in the United States for people with cultural ties to Latin America * Hispanic and Latino Americans in the United States * The people or cultures of Latin America; ** Latin A ...

of any race.

Education

Magna lies within the

Granite School District The Granite School District spreads across central Salt Lake County, Utah, serving West Valley City, Millcreek, Taylorsville, South Salt Lake, and Holladay; Kearns and Magna Townships; and parts of West Jordan, Murray and Cottonwood Heights. ...

and is home to 5 elementary schools, Copper Hills, Elk Run, Lake Ridge, Magna, and Pleasant Green. It also has Matheson Junior High, and

, whose sports teams compete in 5A-level competition (1A being the lowest and 5A the highest). The former Brockbank Junior High was closed in 2016 and combined with the Cyprus High campus.

Transportation

Magna lies on the grid system of the Salt Lake Valley, between 7200 and 9200 West and 2100 and 4100 South. SR-201 runs along the northern border as an

expressway Expressway may refer to: * Controlled-access highway, the highest-grade type of highway with access ramps, lane markings, etc., for high-speed traffic. * Limited-access road, a lower grade of highway or arterial road. *Expressway, the fictional s ...

and intersects with

to the west. West 3500 South ( SR-171) is the major east–west local road, while South 8400 West ( SR-111) is the major north–south road. The

Utah Transit Authority The Utah Transit Authority (UTA) is a special service district responsible for providing public transportation throughout the Wasatch Front of Utah, in the United States, which includes the metropolitan areas of Ogden, Park City, Provo, Salt ...

(UTA) operates a local bus route and

bus rapid transit Bus rapid transit (BRT), also called a busway or transitway, is a bus-based public transport system designed to have much more capacity, reliability and other quality features than a conventional bus system. Typically, a BRT system includes ...

(BRT) line within the community, both follow roughly the same route and enter from West Valley City. The BRT line is called 3500 South MAX and was the first and, as of April 2016, still the only BRT route operated by UTA. The bus system goes from UTA's Millcreek TRAX station on West 3300 South all the way to South 8400 South in Magna, between which it passes by the beginning of the TRAX Green Line (which connects with the

Salt Lake City International Airport Salt Lake City International Airport is a civil-military airport located about west of Downtown Salt Lake City, Utah, in the United States. The airport is the closest commercial airport for more than 2.5 million people and is within a 30-minu ...

, via

Downtown Salt Lake City Downtown (also called City Center) is the oldest district in Salt Lake City, Utah. The grid from which the entire city is laid out originates at Temple Square, the location of the Salt Lake Temple. Location Downtown Salt Lake City is usually def ...

the West Valley Central station by the Valley Fair Mall. Although the bus route of the 3500 South MAX stops at South 8400 South in Magna, the bus also loops around other places in Magna, including the majority of Magna Main Street. The 3500 South MAX runs every 15 minutes on the weekdays, as opposed to a majority of the UTA bus routes which run every half-hour to an hour.

Mass media

''The Magna Times'' is a local weekly

broadsheet A broadsheet is the largest newspaper format and is characterized by long Vertical and horizontal, vertical pages, typically of . Other common newspaper formats include the smaller Berliner (format), Berliner and Tabloid (newspaper format), ta ...

community newspaper that is based and published in Magna. In 2009, it had a circulation of Arbor 4,000 copies.

Culture

Magna is home to The Empress Theatre. Due to its historical significance, the theatre was added to the National Register for Historic Places on May 9, 1985
National Register #85000962
. Downtown Magna was used as a central filming location for the hit Disney Channel series ''

Andi Mack ''Andi Mack'' is an American family comedy-drama television series created by Terri Minsky that premiered on Disney Channel on April 7, 2017. It ran for three seasons and 57 episodes, concluding on July 26, 2019. The series stars Peyton Elizabe ...

''. "The Spoon" Diner, a popular location for Andi and her friends to eat at, was actually made specifically for the show.

Notable people

Gary Andersen Gary Lee Andersen (born February 19, 1964) is an American football coach who was most recently head football coach at Utah State University. Andersen has also been the head football coach of Southern Utah (2003), Wisconsin (2013–2014), and Or ...

, head football coach,

Utah State University Utah State University (USU or Utah State) is a public land-grant research university in Logan, Utah. It is accredited by the Northwest Commission on Colleges and Universities. With nearly 20,000 students living on or near campus, USU is Utah's ...

Parley Parker Christensen Parley Parker Christensen (July 19, 1869 – February 10, 1954) was an American attorney and politician who was a Utah state representative, a Los Angeles City Council member, and the Farmer–Labor Party's presidential nominee during the 1920 ...

, Utah and California politician, Esperantist. Teacher in Murray. *

Nathaniel Coleman Nathaniel Coleman (born January 1, 1997) is an American professional climber who won the silver medal in men's combined sport climbing at the Tokyo 2020 Olympics. He became the first American male climber to qualify for the Olympic Games after ad ...

, 2020 Olympic silver-medalist in men's combined sport climbing. * Emily S. Richards national suffrage leader. cite news, Last=Delliskave, first=Shaun, Date=Jan 22, 2020, title=Murray suffragettes who helped earn women the right to vote , newspaper=Murray City Journal, url=https://www.murrayjournal.com/2020/01/22/295068/murray-suffragettes-who-helped-earn-women-the-right-to-vote * Robert F. Sanders, American YouTuber, AKA "Road Guy Rob".

References

Sources

* * * The Magna Community Master Plan, Salt Lake County Public Works Department Planning Division, February 1989. * Magna Town Council

External links

*
Magna Chamber of Commerce

Magna Town Council

Art in Magna

3500 South MAX
(official UTA web page) {{Authority control 2001 establishments in Utah Wasatch Front Townships in Salt Lake County, Utah Former census-designated places in Utah Salt Lake City metropolitan area Mining communities in Utah Townships in Utah