Est. 1894 · Utah State Capitol 1896-1915 · National Register of Historic Places · Richardsonian Romanesque Architecture · Joe Hill Trial · Ted Bundy Proceedings
Salt Lake City's main government building occupies Washington Square, a full city block in downtown Salt Lake City bounded by State Street, Second East, Fourth South, and Fifth South. Planning for a permanent seat of city and county government began in the 1880s. The cornerstone was laid July 25, 1892; the building was dedicated on December 28, 1894.
The architectural firm of Monheim, Bird, and Proudfoot designed it in the Richardsonian Romanesque style — the idiom popularized by H.H. Richardson — with an exterior of Kyune Canyon sandstone and an elaborate central clock tower. Construction costs exceeded $900,000. The firm was established specifically for this commission by Henry Monheim, a local architect, with George W. Bird and Willis T. Proudfoot of Wichita, Kansas.
From Utah's statehood in 1896 until the state capitol was completed in 1915, the building served as the de facto state capitol. Among its most historically significant episodes: the courtroom within the building was where labor organizer Joe Hill was tried and condemned to death in 1914.
An underground tunnel connects the building to the former Salt Lake City jail across the street — now the main library. That tunnel was used for decades to transport defendants to hearings; among those who passed through it was serial killer Ted Bundy during his Salt Lake City proceedings in the 1970s.
A 5.7-magnitude earthquake in March 2020 forced the building's closure; it reopened in November 2021 following seismic repairs.
Sources
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Salt_Lake_City_and_County_Building
- https://historytogo.utah.gov/utahs-constitution/
- https://saltlakemagazine.com/six-haunted-locations-in-salt-lake-city/
ApparitionsPhantom soundsPhysical contactEVP responsesChildren's laughter
The City and County Building's ghost tradition is specific enough to have names and locations attached. The central claim involves a construction accident in the early 1890s: a rope snapped while workers were hauling rough-hewn sandstone to the upper spires, sending the stone falling onto two young boys playing below the construction site. Both were killed.
The boys' mother is said to have sought them in death — a mournful logic that grounds her reported presence in the same hallways where staff have heard running footsteps and children laughing in empty sections of the building. A 20-year city employee, Jan Aramaki, gave a named account to KSL describing a phantom touch on her arm and the sound of typing in an empty office that stopped when she opened the door.
Former Mayor George Montgomery Scott — whose tenure the building predates — is the most frequently named adult ghost, reportedly encountered on the third floor near the office he once occupied. An apparition in flowing robes has also been reported; the specificity of the detail suggests a consistent witness tradition rather than vague impression.
The underground tunnel connecting the building to the old jail site carries what investigators describe as a particularly heavy atmosphere. Ghost investigators from KSL using a spirit box in the tunnel reported the words 'bad' and 'evil' within the first two minutes. The building is a regular stop on Salt Lake City ghost tours.
Notable Entities
George Montgomery Scott (former Mayor, alleged)
Where this legend is told
