Crystal Palace Market Ghost Sign

The Crystal Palace Market ghost sign appeared briefly at 240 S 1300 E SLC.  I took this photo last night (4/15/2025) and by tonight (4/16/2025) it was covered with plywood.

The Crystal Palace Market ghost sign at 240 South 1300 East Salt Lake City

The building was constructed in 1935 and opened as Sewells United Stores, a grocery chain originating in Nevada and operating in the intermountain west.

The Crystal Palace markets were a competing chain in SLC.

In 1937 Sewells acquired 3 Crystal Palace markets and, along with their 2 other SLC Sewell stores (including this one), merged them under the name Sewells Crystal Palace.

In May 1938, Sewells sold their 5 SLC stores to John Gerendas, a Greek immigrant who had co-established the Success Markets in Helper, Utah.

Gerendas changed the names of all 5 markets to Crystal Palace, with locations at:

• No. 1: 525 E 1700 South
• No. 2: 304 E 100 South
• No. 3: 216 E South Temple
• No. 4: 914 E 900 South
• No. 5: 240 S 1300 East

This location near the University of Utah at 240 S 1300 East was Crystal Palace Market No 5.

Gerendas expanded and eventually owned 9 Crystal Palace markets.

Gerendas became ill and died in 1942. Before his death, he sold most of his stores to his employees. His son, Greg, continued operations of some of the Crystal Palace markets.

Gerendas helped employees Bill Ward and Harold Robinson purchase this location. They put a Robinson & Ward sign in the window but kept the big Crystal Palace sign on the building.

The market served the University of Utah area until 1988. It was the longest serving and last Crystal Palace market to close.

The building was converted into a restaurant space and opened as Pancho Villa U in 1989. It changed hands several times in the 1990s including Hot Rod Hundley’s Sports Family Restaurant, China Star, and Einstein Bros Bagels. It was most recently Coffee & Tonic.

SLC building permit plans indicate the new space will be a restaurant (named Henry Baker?). The renovation project includes an interior remodel, restoration of existing brick, facade renovation, window replacement, addition of a front canopy, small rear addition with steel stairs, and changes to entry walls and landscaping.

The 1876 Explosion at Arsenal Hill

On April 5 1876, a large explosion rocked Salt lake City.

The powder magazines behind the old city wall and containing about 45 tons of explosives (gunpowder, blasting powder, dynamite, Hercules powder, and Giant powder) exploded on Arsenal Hill (now known as Capitol Hill).

Salt Lake City in 1870 showing the locations of the Arsenal and
Powder Magazines in relation to other landmarks.

Salt Lake City in 1862 showing the locations of the Arsenal and
Powder Magazines in relation to other landmarks.

Arsenal Hill was named after the Arsenal Building which was located near the present location of the DUP Pioneer Museum.

It was not the Arsenal building that exploded, it was four magazine buildings located outside of the old city wall on the western edge of City Creek Canyon, approximately where the Capitol Hill Water Tanks are now located (about 100 E Girard Ave (560 N)). Two were built of brick and two were built of rock.

Three sequential blasts hurled large boulders and debris, blowing out windows, damaging buildings, and killing several people.

The Salt Lake Tribune reported in gruesome detail about body parts strewn about near the center of the blast. What could be gathered of the human remains were picked up and taken to City Hall “where many people went to see them.”

Brigham Young’s Empire Mill in City Creek Canyon (aka the “Witches House” in City Creek) was nearly destroyed.

Nearly a thousand windowpanes of the Mormon Tabernacle building were destroyed, complicating the upcoming LDS General Conference meeting.

Some people believed judgement day had come, others thought perhaps an earthquake or a volcanic eruption. And still others thought Fort Douglas had finally decided to attack SLC with cannon fire and drive the Mormons out of the Salt Lake Valley.

The inquest determined that the most likely cause of the explosion was due to target shooting of two teenage boys who were tending to cattle in the area. A burning paper wad shot from a gun ignited loose powder that was strewn around the magazines.

Not everyone was satisfied with this explanation, especially the Salt Lake Tribune. But no other explanation was put forward.


Additional update:

Using modern data processed by ChatGPT (so it could be totally bogus) I attempted to correlate the historic data with modern understandings of blast overpressure. I then overlayed this information on a modern aerial view of Salt Lake City to view in more familiar surroundings.

In order to do this, first the energetics of a gunpowder explosion needed to be converted to a TNT equivalent as that is a more standard measurement in modern times. And from that, the overpressure can be calculated which can then be correlated to modern data about building destruction as assembled by federal agencies such as FEMA, FAA, and the DoD.

In my simplistic mapping and calculations, I did not take into account any terrain features that would change the on-the-ground impacts.

So, with all that in mind.... 

ChatGPT says:

• The explosive power of gunpowder is significantly lower than that of TNT. Gunpowder has an energy density of approximately 3 MJ/kg, while TNT has about 4.184 MJ/kg. This means that gunpowder has about 72% of the explosive power of TNT.
• To estimate the TNT equivalent of 45 tons of gunpowder:
• Convert tons to kilograms: 45 tons = 45,000 kg
• Calculate total energy of gunpowder: 45,000 kg × 3 MJ/kg = 135,000 MJ
• Convert to TNT equivalent:135,000 MJ ÷ 4.184 MJ/kg = ~32,250 kg of TNT and 32,250 kg = 32.25 tons of TNT
• So, the explosion in 1876, if it involved 45 tons of gunpowder, would be roughly equivalent to 32.25 tons of TNT in modern terms.
  
  
• To estimate the overpressure effects of a 32.25-ton TNT explosion and analyze its impact on suburban buildings using FAA and DoD guidelines, we conclude with the following results: A 32.25-ton TNT explosion would devastate a suburban neighborhood within 100-200 meters, cause moderate damage up to 500 meters, and break windows up to a kilometer away.
  
  
• Buildings constructed in the 1870s were vastly different from modern suburban structures in terms of materials, construction techniques, and overall resilience to blast effects. Compared to modern reinforced concrete and steel structures, these buildings were far more vulnerable to blast overpressure.
  
  
• How Blast Effects Translate to 1870s Buildings

Overpressure (psi)	Effect on 1870s Buildings
0.1 - 0.3 psi	Light wooden structures may lose windows and suffer minor wall damage. Masonry buildings may have cracked walls.
0.5 - 1 psi	Most wooden homes collapse or suffer severe roof damage. Masonry buildings experience cracked or partially collapsed walls.
1 - 2 psi	Masonry walls fail, wooden buildings completely destroyed.
2 - 5 psi	Total destruction of all wooden and masonry buildings.
5 - 10 psi	Near-ground-zero obliteration of all structures.

Distance from Blast (m)	Expected Damage (1870s Buildings)
100 m	All wooden and masonry buildings destroyed.
200 m	Wooden buildings flattened, masonry severely damaged or collapsed.
500 m	Wooden buildings badly damaged or destroyed, brick buildings may partially collapse.
1 km	Masonry buildings may suffer cracked walls, wooden buildings lose roofs.
2 km	Minor damage, primarily broken windows.

Final Takeaway (from ChatGPT):  If an explosion of this scale occurred in 1876, it would have wiped out most buildings within at least 200 meters, left few standing at 500 meters, and damaged structures up to a kilometer away. In contrast, modern buildings—especially steel-reinforced ones—would generally survive at greater distances with only repairable damage.

Modern aerial image of Salt Lake City. Rings show the distance from the blast central point at 100, 200, 500, 1000, and 2000 meters.  At the 2000 meter mark (outermost ring), 1870s buildings would have minor damage, primarily broken windows.

Modern aerial image of Salt Lake City. Rings show the distance from the blast central point at 100, 200, 500, and 1000 meters. At the1000 meter mark, 1870s masonry buildings may suffer cracked walls and wooden buildings lose roofs.

Modern aerial image of Salt Lake City. Rings show the distance from the blast central point at 100, 200, and 500 meters. At the 500 meter mark, 1870s wooden buildings would be badly damaged or destroyed, and brick buildings may partially collapse.

 

Blog Update April - July

Massive update to the blog. Here are some of the posts from my Instagram account. @rachels_slc_history

A computer crash, new laptop, data restored from backup, and a RTO mandate.  I've been a bit busy.

However, I need to do better at keeping this updated.