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SALT LAKE CITY -- The southern Utah site of a wagon train massacre was dedicated as a national historic landmark on Sunday, 154 years to the day the tragedy occurred.
About 350 people watched as Zion National Park Superintendent Jock Whitworth presented plaques to mark the Mountain Meadows Massacre Historic Site in scenic meadows 30 miles north of St. George.
The 760-acre site is where 120 members of an Arkansas wagon train were shot and killed by a Mormon militia on Sept. 11, 1857. The Baker-Fancher wagon train was on a stop-over in the meadows on its way to California when it was attacked.
Government officials, church leaders and descendants of survivors were among speakers at the dedication ceremony. Descendant organizations worked for nearly a decade to elevate the meadows to historic landmark status.
(Copyright 2011 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
