Just 75 days after Brigham Young led the first pioneer company into the Salt Lake Valley - after crops had been planted and a fort built - the uncle to the Prophet Joseph Smith was sustained as the first president of the newly created Salt Lake Stake on Oct. 3, 1847. (See related article on this page.)

Since that day 150 years ago, 15 additional presidents have been called to preside over the Salt Lake Stake - a stake that is the gateway to gathering in the valley as much today as it was during the pioneer era."The land we walk on was settled by the original pioneers," observed Scott R. Jenkins, current president of the Salt Lake Stake. "Within our boundaries is the Salt Lake Temple and the new assembly hall. We certainly have an interesting heritage to honor."

In commemoration of that heritage, Oct. 3 was selected for a sesquicentennial reunion for all who had ever been members of the stake. An anticipated highlight of the reunion was attendance of four of the past five stake presidents; including Glen P. Umberger, J Malan Heslop, David O. Martin and Scott R. Jenkins. Paul A. Hanks was unable to attend due to his calling as president of the Texas Dallas Mission.

"Over time, thousands and thousands of people have lived and served in a stake that has had remarkable influence for more than a century-and-a-half," said Pres. Jenkins.

Today, the Salt Lake Stake is the oldest, existing stake in the Church.

Ten stakes had been organized prior to the Salt Lake Stake in 1847, starting with the first stake in 1834 in Kirtland with Joseph Smith as president. By 1846, however, all stakes had been discontinued.

The Salt Lake Stake was the first created in the West. It encompassed the entire Salt Lake Valley, as well as areas in Davis, Morgan, Summit and Tooele counties. During the early months of the western migration, the Salt Lake Stake covered the entire Church in the valleys of the mountains.

Before the stake was divided on Jan. 28, 1900, to create the Jordan and Granite stakes, the Salt Lake Stake was composed of 51 wards located within the confines of Salt Lake County.

In 1972, when the stake observed its 125th anniversary, 88 stakes had been created from its original area.

By 1997 the number of stakes increased to 204 as the further division of those stakes resulted in the creation of yet newer stakes. Such stakes as the Sandy Utah Hillcrest Stake, Kearns Utah Western Hills Stake, and Centerville Utah Canyon View Stake are seventh-generation stakes, for instance.

"No other area of the earth has seen such intensive and sustained growth of the Church as the Salt Lake City area," claimed Brother Heslop, compiler of the stake's history.

Through the years, 63 men have served in stake presidencies. The length of service of these stake presidencies has varied greatly. Pres. John Smith, first president of the stake, served for one year before being called as the third patriarch to the Church, while Pres. Angus M. Cannon served 28 years. Pres. Nephi L. Morris served 25.

The history shows that 17 men served exceptional lengths of time on the high council, including Alfred W. Peterson who served nearly 42 years.

Eighty-five wards and 25 branches were created during the stake's 150 years. A total of 329 bishops have been called for an average length of service of 10.6 years, with a total aggregate service of 3,304 years.

Elijah F. Sheets was remembered for serving nearly 50 years as bishop from 1855 to 1904 in the Eighth Ward.

In pioneer times, as in present, the Salt Lake Stake has been characterized by the willingness of members to serve, continued Pres. Jenkins. "The thing that has always impressed me about this stake," he said, "is the openness, and the warmness of the members to accept anyone from anywhere. That's the way it's always been."

In more recent years, the stake has given "thousands of hours of service to refugee branches" that were organized by Pres. David O. Martin to aid the Vietnamese, Hmong, Laotian and Hispanic cultures that were settling within the stake.