Item Detail
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14037
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0
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0
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English
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The Urban Wonders : City Tourism in the Late-19th-Century American West
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Journal of the West
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Spring 2002
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41
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10-19
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The visits of tourists to Salt Lake City and other cities in the American West often encountered things that either met or conflicted with their expectations. Salt Lake City's Mormon population was often categorized with San Francisco's Chinese population as being either 'odd,' 'quaint,' or even 'deplorable.' Guidebooks usually discussed the wide streets and 'general tranquillity' of Salt Lake City. Although guidebooks often depicted the Salt Lake Temple as finished years before it was actually completed, tourists generally wrote about buildings that were in the process of construction. Guidebooks chose to picture the 'overall garden-like feel' of Salt Lake City's built environment. Many tourists were also surprised that the Mormons were courteous, efficient, and civilized