Inspired guidance in the founding and layout of Parowan (1851)

In the winter of 1851 (including January 1851), members of the Mormon 'Iron Mission' established the settlement at Little Salt Lake Valley (Parowan), Utah. William Horne Dame, serving as chief surveyor for the pioneer company, described experiencing a distinct spiritual impression while surveying the ground that led him to alter the planned location of the public square and the fort’s cornerstones from the initial site. At the same time George A. Smith, who led the Iron Mission and the Parowan pioneers through an extremely cold season with threat of starvation, is reported to have received specific spiritual impressions regarding the placement of the fort and the management of their limited resources. Grace Libbey Smith Cheever (daughter of George A. Smith) later described these as “remarkable providences” that enabled the colony to survive its first year without loss of life. When President Brigham Young visited the settlement later, he inspected the layout and declared that Dame had been guided by the Spirit of Revelation. The combined accounts credit the inspired decisions about site and resource management with placing the fort and public square in positions well suited for defense and the natural flow of the land and with helping the Parowan pioneers survive the harsh founding winter.