Saturday, February 24, 2018

The Seagull Monument...!

Once in a great while, statues are built to honor or remember certain animals for heroic deeds. Such is the case of the monument for seagulls in Utah.

Seagull Monument



Photo credit: Benmckune

The state bird of Utah is the seagull. This might seem an unusual choice for a state bird as it lacks the nobility or beauty of some other birds. But the seagull played a major role in the founding of Utah. Some members of the Mormon faith talk of a “Miracle of the Gulls” which took place in 1848.

When Mormon pioneers arrived in Salt Lake Valley late in the planting season of 1847, they only managed to plant a very small crop which kept them alive into 1848. As a result, their second crop was vital to their survival.

A swarm of katydids, now known as Mormon crickets, invaded the settlers’ farms and began to eat the crops they desperately needed. When seagulls arrived to eat the insects and save their plants, the Mormons saw it as divine intervention. In honor of this “miracle,” a pillar was erected with two bronze seagulls at the top in Temple Square in Salt Lake City by the Mormon Church.

That's right, folks. A monument for seagulls. Strange as this may seem, it probably makes a whole lot of sense to the Mormon folks in Utah.

Coffee out on the patio this morning. Windy, but it isn't raining.

6 comments:

Momlady said...

I can understand why.

Sixbears said...

There are monuments to worse things, that's for sure. Coffee by the springs in FL. Life is good.

HermitJim said...

Hey Momlady...
Guess it seemed like a miracle due to the timing.
Thanks for stopping by this morning!


Hey Sixbears...
There sure is, my friend. Sounds like a great start to your day!
Thanks for coming over today!

JO said...

Another lesson learned here. I bet all the droppings helped fertilize the ground too.

Patio sounds good, these past few days have been cold and my flowers have had to be covered today's high will be around 56.

Mamahen said...

Interesting story...It's raining here...again! I like rain, but even I have had enough. We are expecting flooding for the third time since the first of the year! We live on a hill, so we are ok, but I have many family and friends affected by the floods.

Dizzy-Dick said...

That is quite a monument. I wonder if real seagulls come and visit it. I don't see any white spots or streaks so I guess they don't. (grin)