Y Mountain
Encyclopedia
Y Mountain is located directly east of Brigham Young University
in Provo, Utah
. The Slide Canyon/Y Mountain Trail leads to a large block Y located 1.2 miles (1.9 km) from a parking area at the mountain's base. This hillside letter was built over a hundred years ago as the insignia for BYU
. For years the trail to the Y has been one of the most hiked trails in Utah Valley
and provides a beautiful view of Provo
, Orem
, the rest of the many cities in Utah Valley and Utah Lake
. The trail is also regularly used by hikers, bikers, paragliders and hunters to access the backcountry in the Slide Canyon area.
The large white Y on the side of the mountain has become the nationally recognized insignia for BYU and the reason why BYU is often called "the Y". It is made of concrete and is 380 feet high and 130 feet wide (116 by 40 m). No other college in the United States
has a larger symbol; in fact, the Y is even larger than the "Hollywood Sign
" in Los Angeles
.
There are 14 strands of lights placed around the perimeter of the Y, which are lit five times a year by the Intercollegiate Knights. It is lit for Freshman Orientation, Homecoming, Y Days, and graduation in April and August. When the Y is lit, club members are selected to guard the Y to ensure the generator keeps the lights on until nearly midnight. The same volunteer guards assist the university grounds employees with the setup of the lights (and their removal several days later) and remain on duty to protect against vandalism as long as the lights are in place .
Like most college symbols, the Y has been the target of various pranks, many of them involving red paint, the principal color of BYU's archrival, the University of Utah
. It was most recently painted red by members of the Utah
baseball
team in 2004 http://newsnet.byu.edu/story.cfm/57504. It has also been painted many other times, such as an incident in 2002 when vandals dumped several cans of paint down the Y, giving it a multicolored visage until it was painted white again the next day. This incident was called the worst act of vandalism against the Y in the past decade.http://newsnet.byu.edu/story.cfm/40129 Unfortunately, while the intent of such actions may be humorous or in good fun, the repairs often cost several thousand dollars or more. In the previously mentioned case of the University of Utah baseball players, the cost of repair was reported to be over $6,000 and therefore, in accordance with laws of the state of Utah, the perpetrators were initially charged with second degree felonies.http://newsnet.byu.edu/story.cfm/55819
President George H. Brimhall
and BYHS Principal that year, Edwin S. Hinckley, proposed that they paint the letters BYU on the mountain instead.
April 1906 - The plans to construct the BYU on the mountain were begun. Professor Ernest D. Partridge was assigned to conduct a survey and designed the emblem. When this was complete, a line of high school and university students, and some faculty, passed buckets of lime
, sand, and rocks up the mountain in order to fill up the letters. After six hours of hard labor, only the Y had been completed, so the filling in of the remaining two letters was postponed and later abandoned.
1907 - The BYU Y Day tradition began. This consisted of thousands of students hauling, by bucket brigade
, gallons of whitewash
up the mountain to paint the giant Y. This tradition lasted until 1973. It was abandoned due to erosion of the mountain.
1908 - A 3 foot (0.9144 m) wall was erected around the letter to keep it together. This required an additional 20,000 pounds of concrete.
1911 - Serifs were added to the top and bottom of the Y, giving it its current look.
1924 - The tradition of "lighting the Y" began. Each year during special evenings (such as homecoming), mattress batting was placed in buckets and soaked in kerosene
. The buckets were then set around the edges of the Y and lit with torches. Eventually, this process evolved into using mattress batting soaked in used vehicle oil which was carried up the mountainside. Once at the Y the mixture was formed into "gook" balls (a little bigger than softballs) with a thumb size hole poked into the top. These were placed around the Y and just before lighting a bit of gasoline was poured into the holes to allow the torches to quickly light the entire Y. Using this method the Y would remain lit for about 20 minutes.
1975 - BYU began to use a helicopter to carry thousands of pounds of whitewash to repaint the Y. Repainting of the Y is accomplished about every 5 years.
1985 - As the previous method of lighting the Y was long considered hazardous (due to the potential wildland fire risk) and because of the brief amount of time the Y would actually remain lit, it was discontinued after the lighting in the spring of 1985. A generator and strands of lights were purchased for exclusive use on the Y, with up to 14 strands of the 25-watt lights bulbs being needed to outline the Y. These lights (first used for homecoming in the fall of 1985) provide several hours of much brighter light and allow the Y to be lit for several consecutive nights in celebration of each event rather than just a single evening. Initially, the lights and generator were dropped off and picked up by helicopter before and after each event, but after several years an old military ammunition bunker was installed on the mountainside near the Y to securely store the equipment when not in use.
May 20, 2006 - The 100th anniversary of the Y was celebrated. Many people hiked the Y that day to commemorate the occasion.
Brigham Young University
Brigham Young University is a private university located in Provo, Utah. It is owned and operated by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints , and is the United States' largest religious university and third-largest private university.Approximately 98% of the university's 34,000 students...
in Provo, Utah
Provo, Utah
Provo is the third largest city in the U.S. state of Utah, located about south of Salt Lake City along the Wasatch Front. Provo is the county seat of Utah County and lies between the cities of Orem to the north and Springville to the south...
. The Slide Canyon/Y Mountain Trail leads to a large block Y located 1.2 miles (1.9 km) from a parking area at the mountain's base. This hillside letter was built over a hundred years ago as the insignia for BYU
Brigham Young University
Brigham Young University is a private university located in Provo, Utah. It is owned and operated by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints , and is the United States' largest religious university and third-largest private university.Approximately 98% of the university's 34,000 students...
. For years the trail to the Y has been one of the most hiked trails in Utah Valley
Utah Valley
Utah Valley is a valley in North Central Utah located in Utah County, and is considered part of the Wasatch Front. It contains Provo, Orem, and their suburbs, including Highland, Eagle Mountain, Saratoga Springs, Mapleton, Spanish Fork, Lindon, Pleasant Grove, Springville, Lehi, Payson, and...
and provides a beautiful view of Provo
Provo, Utah
Provo is the third largest city in the U.S. state of Utah, located about south of Salt Lake City along the Wasatch Front. Provo is the county seat of Utah County and lies between the cities of Orem to the north and Springville to the south...
, Orem
Orem, Utah
Orem is a city in Utah County, Utah, United States, in the north-central part of the state. It is adjacent to Provo, Lindon, and Vineyard and is about south of Salt Lake City. Orem is one of the principal cities of the Provo-Orem, Utah Metropolitan Statistical Area, which includes all of Utah and...
, the rest of the many cities in Utah Valley and Utah Lake
Utah Lake
Utah Lake is a freshwater lake in the U.S. state of Utah. On the western side of Utah Valley, the lake is overlooked by Mount Timpanogos and Mount Nebo. The lake's only river outlet, the Jordan River, is a tributary of the Great Salt Lake and is highly regulated with pumps. Evaporation accounts...
. The trail is also regularly used by hikers, bikers, paragliders and hunters to access the backcountry in the Slide Canyon area.
The large white Y on the side of the mountain has become the nationally recognized insignia for BYU and the reason why BYU is often called "the Y". It is made of concrete and is 380 feet high and 130 feet wide (116 by 40 m). No other college in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
has a larger symbol; in fact, the Y is even larger than the "Hollywood Sign
Hollywood Sign
The Hollywood Sign is a landmark and American cultural icon in the Hollywood Hills area of Mount Lee, Santa Monica Mountains, in Los Angeles, California. The sign spells out the name of the area in and white letters. It was created as an advertisement in 1923, but garnered increasing recognition...
" in Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
.
There are 14 strands of lights placed around the perimeter of the Y, which are lit five times a year by the Intercollegiate Knights. It is lit for Freshman Orientation, Homecoming, Y Days, and graduation in April and August. When the Y is lit, club members are selected to guard the Y to ensure the generator keeps the lights on until nearly midnight. The same volunteer guards assist the university grounds employees with the setup of the lights (and their removal several days later) and remain on duty to protect against vandalism as long as the lights are in place .
Like most college symbols, the Y has been the target of various pranks, many of them involving red paint, the principal color of BYU's archrival, the University of Utah
University of Utah
The University of Utah, also known as the U or the U of U, is a public, coeducational research university in Salt Lake City, Utah, United States. The university was established in 1850 as the University of Deseret by the General Assembly of the provisional State of Deseret, making it Utah's oldest...
. It was most recently painted red by members of the Utah
Utah Utes
The Utah Utes are the athletics teams of the University of Utah. They are named after the Ute tribe of Native Americans. The men's basketball team is known as the "Runnin' Utes"; the women's basketball team, formerly known as the "Lady Utes," now prefers to be referred to as the "Utes"; and the...
baseball
Baseball
Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each. The aim is to score runs by hitting a thrown ball with a bat and touching a series of four bases arranged at the corners of a ninety-foot diamond...
team in 2004 http://newsnet.byu.edu/story.cfm/57504. It has also been painted many other times, such as an incident in 2002 when vandals dumped several cans of paint down the Y, giving it a multicolored visage until it was painted white again the next day. This incident was called the worst act of vandalism against the Y in the past decade.http://newsnet.byu.edu/story.cfm/40129 Unfortunately, while the intent of such actions may be humorous or in good fun, the repairs often cost several thousand dollars or more. In the previously mentioned case of the University of Utah baseball players, the cost of repair was reported to be over $6,000 and therefore, in accordance with laws of the state of Utah, the perpetrators were initially charged with second degree felonies.http://newsnet.byu.edu/story.cfm/55819
History
Early 1906 - When the junior class of Brigham Young University High School wanted to paint '07 on the side of the mountain, the BYHS senior class became upset. To settle this conflict BYUBrigham Young University
Brigham Young University is a private university located in Provo, Utah. It is owned and operated by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints , and is the United States' largest religious university and third-largest private university.Approximately 98% of the university's 34,000 students...
President George H. Brimhall
George H. Brimhall
George Henry Brimhall was President of Brigham Young University. After graduating from Brigham Young Academy, Brimhall served as principal of Spanish Fork schools and then as district superintendent of Utah County schools, finally returning to Brigham Young Academy...
and BYHS Principal that year, Edwin S. Hinckley, proposed that they paint the letters BYU on the mountain instead.
April 1906 - The plans to construct the BYU on the mountain were begun. Professor Ernest D. Partridge was assigned to conduct a survey and designed the emblem. When this was complete, a line of high school and university students, and some faculty, passed buckets of lime
Lime (mineral)
Lime is a general term for calcium-containing inorganic materials, in which carbonates, oxides and hydroxides predominate. Strictly speaking, lime is calcium oxide or calcium hydroxide. It is also the name for a single mineral of the CaO composition, occurring very rarely...
, sand, and rocks up the mountain in order to fill up the letters. After six hours of hard labor, only the Y had been completed, so the filling in of the remaining two letters was postponed and later abandoned.
1907 - The BYU Y Day tradition began. This consisted of thousands of students hauling, by bucket brigade
Bucket brigade
A bucket brigade or human chain is a method for transporting items where items are passed from one stationary person to the next.The method was important in firefighting before the advent of hand pumped fire engines, whereby firefighters would pass buckets to each other to extinguish a blaze. A...
, gallons of whitewash
Whitewash
Whitewash, or calcimine, kalsomine, calsomine, or lime paint is a very low-cost type of paint made from slaked lime and chalk . Various other additives are also used...
up the mountain to paint the giant Y. This tradition lasted until 1973. It was abandoned due to erosion of the mountain.
1908 - A 3 foot (0.9144 m) wall was erected around the letter to keep it together. This required an additional 20,000 pounds of concrete.
1911 - Serifs were added to the top and bottom of the Y, giving it its current look.
1924 - The tradition of "lighting the Y" began. Each year during special evenings (such as homecoming), mattress batting was placed in buckets and soaked in kerosene
Kerosene
Kerosene, sometimes spelled kerosine in scientific and industrial usage, also known as paraffin or paraffin oil in the United Kingdom, Hong Kong, Ireland and South Africa, is a combustible hydrocarbon liquid. The name is derived from Greek keros...
. The buckets were then set around the edges of the Y and lit with torches. Eventually, this process evolved into using mattress batting soaked in used vehicle oil which was carried up the mountainside. Once at the Y the mixture was formed into "gook" balls (a little bigger than softballs) with a thumb size hole poked into the top. These were placed around the Y and just before lighting a bit of gasoline was poured into the holes to allow the torches to quickly light the entire Y. Using this method the Y would remain lit for about 20 minutes.
1975 - BYU began to use a helicopter to carry thousands of pounds of whitewash to repaint the Y. Repainting of the Y is accomplished about every 5 years.
1985 - As the previous method of lighting the Y was long considered hazardous (due to the potential wildland fire risk) and because of the brief amount of time the Y would actually remain lit, it was discontinued after the lighting in the spring of 1985. A generator and strands of lights were purchased for exclusive use on the Y, with up to 14 strands of the 25-watt lights bulbs being needed to outline the Y. These lights (first used for homecoming in the fall of 1985) provide several hours of much brighter light and allow the Y to be lit for several consecutive nights in celebration of each event rather than just a single evening. Initially, the lights and generator were dropped off and picked up by helicopter before and after each event, but after several years an old military ammunition bunker was installed on the mountainside near the Y to securely store the equipment when not in use.
May 20, 2006 - The 100th anniversary of the Y was celebrated. Many people hiked the Y that day to commemorate the occasion.