Mount Pleasant National Guard Armory | |
 Photo from 2011 | |
  | |
| Location | 10 N. State, Mount Pleasant, Utah |
|---|---|
| Coordinates | 39°32′50″N111°27′17″W / 39.547107°N 111.454806°W Coordinates: 39°32′50″N111°27′17″W / 39.547107°N 111.454806°W |
| Area | 0.7 acres (0.28 ha) |
| Built | 1936-37 |
| Built by | G.W. Brand (supervisor); Works Progress Administration |
| Architect | Niels P. Larsen |
| Architectural style | PWA Moderne |
| MPS | Public Works Buildings TR |
| NRHP reference # | 86000740 [1] |
| Added to NRHP | April 9, 1986 |
The Mount Pleasant National Guard Armory, at 10 N. State in Mount Pleasant, Utah, was built in 1936-37 as a Works Progress Administration project. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1986. [1] It is, in 2019, the Mount Pleasant Recreation Center. [2]
Mount Pleasant is a city in Sanpete County, Utah, in the United States. Mt. Pleasant is known for its 19th-century main street buildings, for being home to Wasatch Academy, and for being the largest city in the northern half of the county. As of the 2010 census, the city population was 3,260.
The Works Progress Administration was an American New Deal agency, employing millions of job-seekers to carry out public works projects, including the construction of public buildings and roads. It was established on May 6, 1935, by Executive Order 7034. In one project, Federal Project Number One, the WPA employed musicians, artists, writers, actors and directors in large arts, drama, media, and literacy projects. The five projects dedicated to these were: the Federal Writers’ Project (FWP), the Historical Records Survey (HRS), the Federal Theatre Project (FTP), the Federal Music Project (FMP), and the Federal Art Project (FAP). In the Historical Records Survey, for instance, many former slaves in the South were interviewed; these documents are of great importance for American history. Theater and music groups toured throughout America, and gave more than 225,000 performances. Archaeological investigations under the WPA were influential in the rediscovery of pre-Columbian Native American cultures, and the development of professional archaeology in the US.
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. A property listed in the National Register, or located within a National Register Historic District, may qualify for tax incentives derived from the total value of expenses incurred in preserving the property.
It is a PWA Moderne-style two-story, flat-roofed building. It was designed by Salt Lake City architect Niels P. Larsen, who also designed at least six other armories in Utah. Surviving, as of 1986, were the NRHP-listed Manti National Guard Armory and ones in Nephi, Fillmore, and Spanish Fork (the latter was NRHP-listed in 1986, but was delisted in 1996, [1] presumably after being demolished); ones in Logan and Cedar City had been demolished. [3]
Niels P. Larsen was a member of the Wisconsin State Assembly.
The Manti National Guard Armory, at 50 E. 100 North in Manti, Utah was built in 1936-38 as a Works Progress Administration project. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1986.
Nephi is a city in Juab County, Utah, United States. It is part of the Provo–Orem metropolitan area. The population was 5,389 at the 2010 census and an estimated 6,111 in 2018. It is the county seat of Juab County. It was settled by Mormon pioneers in 1851 as "Salt Creek", and it acquired its current name in 1882. It is the principal city in the Juab Valley, an agricultural area. Nephi was named after Nephi, son of Lehi, from the Book of Mormon.
The main, south-facing, central facade of the building was transformed, by 2011, into a War memorial. [4]
The building was described as:
It consists of long rectangular block containing the principal entrance and flanking side wings. The front of the main block is broken up into three sections by low-relief pilasters. The center section has three recessed door panels and a slightly raised parapet which announces its importance. [This is the section which has been transformed into a war memorial.] The side wings have taller, stepped parapets and the ends are symmetrically pierced by vertical window panels. The structure is built of brick and has been plastered. It seems likely that the smooth plaster exterior is original. A compatibly styled garage addition was built at the northeast corner of the building.... [3]
A parapet is a barrier which is an extension of the wall at the edge of a roof, terrace, balcony, walkway or other structure. The word comes ultimately from the Italian parapetto. The German equivalent Brüstung has the same meaning. Where extending above a roof, a parapet may simply be the portion of an exterior wall that continues above the edge line of the roof surface, or may be a continuation of a vertical feature beneath the roof such as a fire wall or party wall. Parapets were originally used to defend buildings from military attack, but today they are primarily used as guard rails and to prevent the spread of fires. In the Bible the Hebrews are obligated to build a parapet on the roof of their houses to prevent people falling.
It was built on land donated by the city. Also on the property was "a two story building which was constructed in 1879 to house the ZCMI branch store at Mt. Pleasant. Its second floor housed the county courthouse and the city council chambers. It also had a large hall for political rallies, plays, etc., so that the building for many years was the "amusement" and community center for the town." [3] (Does that building still exist?)
Zion's Cooperative Mercantile Institution was the first department store in the United States. It was founded on October 9, 1868 by Brigham Young. For many years it used the slogan, "America's First Department Store".
