Spanish Fork, Utah, was the first Icelandic settlement in the United States. Icelandic people settled there primarily from 1855 to 1914. Icelandic influence in Spanish Fork is still prevalent today. This is primarily visible in the Icelandic Monument found in Spanish Fork, as well as the festivals that have been held over the years to pay tribute to the Icelandic people who helped establish Spanish Fork.
Icelanders in Spanish Fork
There was a large religious component in the motivation of the early Icelandic settlers coming to Utah. A majority of the Icelandic people that settled in Spanish Fork were members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, especially in the earlier years. These people learned of the Church while they were still in Iceland. The first people to bring word of the Church to the Vestmannaeyjar (Westman Islands), which is where many of these Icelandic immigrants lived before they came to America, were Thorarinn Haflidason and Gudmundur Gudmundsson. They had learned about the religion while they were in Denmark learning trade. They brought their new religion back to the Vestmannaeyjar, and taught it to their friends and family there. The people who converted to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints later moved from Iceland to Utah because that was the location of the Church headquarters, and prosperity was promised to the members who moved there.
Early life of the Icelanders in Spanish Fork
After first traveling to Salt Lake City, Utah, and being directed by Brigham Young, the president of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, to go south, the first three Icelandic settlers, Samuel and Margret Bjarnson and Helga Jónsdóttir, arrived in Spanish Fork on September 7, 1855. Their journey from Iceland took 10 months over land and sea (information found on the plaques at the Icelandic monument). They were directed to settle in Spanish Fork by Brigham Young due to the area already being inhabited by other Scandinavian people. All the Icelanders who came after them chose to come to Spanish Fork as well in an effort to maintain their culture. By 1860 there were 16 Icelanders living in Spanish Fork, making it the first permanent Icelandic settlement in the United States. The Scandinavian settlers already in Spanish Fork occupied different areas of the city, the Icelanders lived closely together in the southeast part of town.
When Icelanders first moved to Spanish Fork they lived in dug-outs, holes which they dug in order to provide a quick means of shelter; however, the Icelanders were known to be skilled in the art of building homes and quickly built the nicest homes Spanish Fork had seen. Spanish Fork came to be known as “Little Iceland.” The Icelanders living in Utah saw it as not only a place of religious freedom, but also a place of great opportunity to build a new home and receive new opportunities. These new opportunities also inspired Icelanders who were not members of the Church to emigrate from Iceland to Utah. They wrote home to their friends and family about their experiences. Although in their letters they acknowledged the difficulty of cultural differences, they referred to Utah as the “Sunshine Land” and invited their friends and family to come and join them. In addition, some Icelanders who were members of the Church returned to Iceland between the years of 1860 and 1914 to share their religion and new home with other Icelanders, inviting them to join the Church and embark to Utah. By 1914 there was a total of 410 Icelandic people settled in Spanish Fork.
Icelandic Monument
The Icelandic Monument is located at 785 E Canyon Road Spanish Fork, Utah. The monument consists of a wall listing the names of the 410 original Icelandic settlers, a lighthouse, and an Icelandic rock. On the side of the lighthouse there is also a list of names, sixteen of the first Icelandic people to settle in Spanish Fork. The purpose of the monument was to pay tribute to the people who founded the town, and to create a bridge between Iceland and Spanish Fork today. The bridge has been reinforced by a sister monument that was built in Iceland.