Pioneer Memorial Museum: Salt Lake's treasure house of artifacts and stories is a 'secret' everyone can share

Books about the era, and the places and people of pioneer times, line shelves in the DUP's archive rooms. Shelves brim with files that collect documents and written histories of individual pioneers. Tiers of folders rise from floor to ceiling toward the back of the headquarters and museum building.

The details therein can be eye opening and fascinating.

As a result, the DUP and Pioneer Memorial Museum can be a valuable tool for those researching their roots. Genealogical libraries and the Web offer excellent resources for tracing family trees, but the society's mission, Smith notes, is somewhat different.

"They collect the facts," she says. "But we collect the stories."

Additional articles in the Rediscovering Deseret series:

Old age among myths of Daughters of Utah Pioneers membership

The area of Deseret started huge, got smaller as it became Utah

Shifting shape: Salt Lake City is a living metropolis

Hotel Utah, 100 years of history

Living history: The past comes to life at Antelope Island's Fielding Garr Ranch

Escape to another time at Lagoon's Pioneer Village

Life in 'Old Deseret' — This Is the Place Heritage Park carries on LDS pioneer traditions