Holladay in Salt Lake County, Utah — The American Mountains (Southwest)
Utah Nephi Smart Tannery
Photographed by Jeremy Snow, May 19, 2025
1. Utah Nephi Smart Tannery Marker
In a deep hollow south of 3900 South, Uriah Nephi Smart built his tannery in 1880. This two story building was thirty feet wide and one hundred feet long. It was built of adobe bricks, which were made from clay taken from a bank north of the building site. The foundation was of red sandstone from Red Butte Canyon, and the lumber in the building was red pine from Millcreek Canyon.
There were eight large redwood vats on the bottom floor which were used to soak the hides, some in lime water to loosen the hair, and others in tannic acid to soften the hides.
Uriah Smart made his own tannic acid from pine bark, ground in a mill south of the tannery. He also made his own neat's-foot oil used to soften the leather by boiling down animal bones in large cast-iron kettles.
On the top floor of the tannery the leather was fleshed and softened, sheep and goat skins were tanned, and the hides were stored. This property was donated by Uriah Nephi Smart's grandson, Rowland W. Smart.
Erected 1988 by Daughters of Utah Pioneers. (Marker Number 444.)
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Location. 40° 41.217′ N, 111° 49.199′ W. Marker is in Holladay, Utah, in Salt Lake County. It is at the intersection of East 3900 South and S 2490 E Street, on the right when traveling east on East 3900 South. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 2488 E 3900 S, Salt Lake City UT 84124, United States of America. Touch for directions.
Regionally, this marker is in the Wasatch Front and in Greater Salt Lake. It is also in the American Mountain West and in Colorado Plateau. Globally, it is in North America, the Rocky Mountains, the Western Hemisphere, the Western World, and the Anglosphere. Historically, it finds itself in what was once New Spain and also Mexicos Alta California.
Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within 2 miles of this marker, measured as the crow flies: Pioneer Flour-Mill Site (approx. 0.7 miles away); Early East Millcreek Schools (approx. Ύ mile away); Legacy of the Black Pioneer (approx. Ύ mile away); The Tithing Yard (approx.
Photographed by Jeremy Snow, May 19, 2025
2. Utah Nephi Smart Tannery Marker
Credits. This page was last revised on May 24, 2025. It was originally submitted on May 23, 2025, by Jeremy Snow of Cedar City, Utah. This page has been viewed 136 times since then and 14 times this year. Photos: 1, 2. submitted on May 23, 2025, by Jeremy Snow of Cedar City, Utah. • Andrew Ruppenstein was the editor who published this page.
