Near Grantsville in Tooele County, Utah — The American Mountains (Southwest)
Iosepa Historical Memorial
Photographed By Dawn Bowen, June 17, 2007
1. Iosepa Historical Memorial Marker
Inscription.
Iosepa Historical Memorial. . This hallowed place was dedicated on August 28, 1890 by President Wilford Woodruff for all the nations in the isles of the seas, the Polynesian pioneers, their descendants and the faithful Church leaders who left their home in the mid 1800’s and migrated to this gathering place in Zion to be married in the holy Temple for time and eternity. , For 28 years (1889–1917) Iosepa was their home. In spite of the climate, isolation, loneliness, sickness, hardship and death, their faith and courage never faltered. They overcame the cold winter, the summer heat, enjoyed the new life of spring and the bounteous harvest of the fall. , Their native songs and dances filled this beautiful valley, which they made “bloom as a rose,” with love and aloha. A few remained in Utah, some on this consecrated spot, while the rest returned home to their beloved isles of the sea. , The seeds of our Polynesian pioneers bore fruit in Hawaii, the Laie Temple, Brigham Young University - Hawaii, and the Polynesian Cultural Center. Holy Temples stand firm in New Zealand, Western Samoa, Tonga, and Tahiti as monuments to the testimonies of the faithful Polynesian pioneers. We close this memory with their song of love: Iosepa Kuu Home Aloha Iosepa My Home of Love / Iosepa Kuahiwi Ika Nani Iosepa With its Beautiful Mountains / Iosepa Ka Home No Ka’oi Iosepa My Best Home. , (list of donors)
This hallowed place was dedicated on August 28, 1890 by President Wilford Woodruff for all the nations in the isles of the seas, the Polynesian pioneers, their descendants and the faithful Church leaders who left their home in the mid 1800’s and migrated to this gathering place in Zion to be married in the holy Temple for time and eternity.
For 28 years (1889–1917) Iosepa was their home. In spite of the climate, isolation, loneliness, sickness, hardship and death, their faith and courage never faltered. They overcame the cold winter, the summer heat, enjoyed the new life of spring and the bounteous harvest of the fall.
Their native songs and dances filled this beautiful valley, which they made “bloom as a rose,” with love and aloha. A few remained in Utah, some on this consecrated spot, while the rest returned home to their beloved isles of the sea.
The seeds of our Polynesian pioneers bore fruit in Hawaii—the Laie Temple, Brigham Young University - Hawaii, and the Polynesian Cultural Center. Holy Temples stand firm in New Zealand, Western Samoa, Tonga, and Tahiti as monuments to the testimonies of the faithful Polynesian pioneers. We close this memory with their song of love:
Iosepa Kuu Home Aloha Iosepa My Home of Love /
Iosepa Kuahiwi Ika Nani Iosepa With its Beautiful Mountains /
Iosepa Ka Home No Ka’oi Iosepa My Best Home.
Location. 40° 32.307′ N, 112° 44.834′ W. Marker is near Grantsville, Utah, in Tooele County. Marker is on Utah Route 196 at milepost 23,, 15 miles south of Interstate 80, on the left when traveling south. Touch for map. Marker is in this post office area: Dugway UT 84022, United States of America. Touch for directions.
Other nearby markers. At least 2 other markers are within walking distance of this marker. Iosepa Settlement Cemetery (within shouting distance of this marker); This Lonely Fire Hydrant (within shouting distance of this marker).
Additional keywords. American Pacific Islanders
Photographed By Dawn Bowen, June 17, 2007
2. Iosepa Historical Memorial Marker
Photographed By Dawn Bowen, June 17, 2007
3. Overview of Iosepa Cemetery
Photographed By Dawn Bowen, June 17, 2007
4. Iosepa Settlement Cememtery Marker
The Iosepa Community developed after Polynesian converts to the Mormon faith were employed as laborers by the Iosepa Agricultural and Stock Company in 1989. After numerous hardships, including bouts with leprosy, the colony attained a degree of financial independence and its population reached 228. In 1915 when the L.D.S. Church began to build the Hawaiian Temple, the need for "gathering" subsided. The Iosepa project was allowed to end and most of the settlers and their children returned to the Islands by 1917.
Credits. This page was last revised on January 25, 2020. It was originally submitted on June 24, 2007, by Dawn Bowen of Fredericksburg, Virginia. This page has been viewed 2,855 times since then and 47 times this year. Photos:1, 2, 3, 4. submitted on June 24, 2007, by Dawn Bowen of Fredericksburg, Virginia. • J. J. Prats was the editor who published this page.