Echo in Summit County, Utah — The American Mountains (Southwest)
Echo School and Church
Utah Historic Site
Photographed by Jimmy Emerson, September 18, 2020
1. Echo School and Church Marker
Inscription.
Echo School and Church. Utah Historic Site. This Victorian Gothic building stands as the remaining historic edifice of "Echo City," one of many boom towns built along the Transcontinental Railroad. In 1876, the Echo City School District constructed the building with English immigrant John Shill reportedly designing and supervising the construction. Most of the materials are local: red pine lumber from Saw Mill in Echo Canyon, sandstone from a quarry in Grass Creek, brick from clay in the Echo hills. The bell arrived by rail. Protestants began using the building for evangelical purposes in 1882, and for a few years even provided the weekday school classes. The LDS Church began worshiping here in 1905 and purchased the building in 1914 after Echo built a new school house. In 1940 major remodeling occurred, including a concrete basement and stairway. People of all denominations helped. The building became idle in 1963 as a result of Echo's decline in population. A local LDS Young Adult group used the building in the 1970's. In 1983 ECHO, a non-profit corporation dedicated to preserving the site, purchased the building to continue its use as a community center.
This Victorian Gothic building stands as the remaining historic edifice of
"Echo City," one of many boom towns built along the Transcontinental
Railroad. In 1876, the Echo City School District constructed the building with English immigrant John Shill reportedly designing and supervising the construction. Most of the materials are local: red pine lumber
from Saw Mill in Echo Canyon, sandstone from a quarry in Grass Creek,
brick from clay in the Echo hills. The bell arrived by rail. Protestants
began using the building for evangelical purposes in 1882, and for a few
years even provided the weekday school classes. The LDS Church began
worshiping here in 1905 and purchased the building in 1914 after Echo
built a new school house. In 1940 major remodeling occurred, including
a concrete basement and stairway. People of all denominations helped.
The building became idle in 1963 as a result of Echo's decline in
population. A local LDS Young Adult group used the building in the
1970's. In 1983 ECHO, a non-profit corporation dedicated to preserving the site, purchased the building to continue its use as a community
center.
Erected 1989
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by Division of State History. (Marker Number N-1016.)
Location. 40° 58.704′ N, 111° 26.489′ W. Marker is in Echo, Utah, in Summit County. It is on East Temple Lane. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 50 E Temple Ln, Echo UT 84024, United States of America. Touch for directions.
Regionally, this marker is in Utah’s Uinta Mountains, in the Wasatch Front, and in Greater Provo. 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: Echo Church and School (a few steps from this marker); Control of Influence
Credits. This page was last revised on July 22, 2026. It was originally submitted on July 22, 2026, by Jimmy Emerson of Dalton, Georgia. This page has been viewed 5 times since then. Photos:1, 2. submitted on July 22, 2026, by Jimmy Emerson of Dalton, Georgia. • Andrew Ruppenstein was the editor who published this page.
