Wilfords Personal Journal Entry 24 July 1847: "We gazed with wonder and admiration upon the vast rich fertile valley which lay for about 25 miles in length and 16 miles in width. Clothed with the Heaviest garb of green vegitation in the midst of which lay a large body of salt water...After gazing awhile upon the seenerywe travelled across the table land into the valley 4 mile to the encampment of our Brethren who had arrived 2 days before [-] they had pitched there encampment upon the bank of two small streams of pure water & had commenced plowing. Had broke about 5 acres of ground & commenced planting Potatoes"
BUT
Wilford Woodruff in 1880: "When we came here thirty-three years ago we found this place a barren desert. There was no mark of the white man here. It was a desert indeed, hardly a green thing to meet the eye." Discourse by Elder Wilford Woodruff, Delivered in the Salt Lake Asembly Hall, at the semiannual conference of the Salt Lake Stake of Zion,
The first story was slanted to say, "Hey, look how great of a place we have here... Come join us."
The second story was slanted to say, "Hey, look how well we've prospered here. This was nothing when we got here and look what a great place we've turned it into."
It all depends on what they are selling, and who they are selling it to.
There is a park on the corner 500 East and 1700 South which is close to the spot that they camped. It is true there used to be 2 creeks that merged there. The creeks are no underground. North of the park on 500 East are a couple of historically marked homes of Wilford. One built the year after his revelation and the other built long before as a country cottage.
The LDS church continues to lie about Wilford's revelation as if it was the end of polygamy. There is a legacy of polygamy in the state of Utah that will never die.