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In the early 1950’s, a group of church and civic leaders saw a need for a cemetery in the Salt Lake Valley that would be different from other cemeteries. This cemetery was designed with a mortuary on the premises and set at the foot of the beautiful Cottonwood Canyons. Memorial Mountain View Mortuary and Cemetery resulted from their idea and was the first combined mortuary and cemetery in the Intermountain West. In 1958, Kurt Lyman and the Mountain View Investment Group, including J. Tom Fines, Bruce R. McConkie, Tom Erichson, and John Barrett, purchased 18 acres of land on the east side of the valley to meet the needs of a growing population in that area. They developed a plan to create roads, a parking lot, water lines, flowerbeds, tree plots, and lay the foundation for a chapel and mortuary. A year later, Kurt Lyman left the Mountain View group and created a new company, Memorial Estates.

He began work on a new cemetery to serve the west side of the valley on Redwood Road. Groundbreaking ceremonies for Memorial Redwood Mortuary and Cemetery were held in 1960 and construction began on the chapel and mortuary in 1961. Mr. Lyman returned in 1964 to purchase Memorial Mountain View Mortuary and Cemetery from the Mountain View Investment group. He began to renovate the property based on the now successful Memorial Redwood location. He oversaw the construction of a larger mortuary and chapel as well as new roads. The park increased in size from 18 acres to 23 acres, and the park was endowed under Mr. Lyman’s leadership. He turned his attentions back to Redwood in 1965, as its continued success warranted necessary improvements. The shop was expanded, and a new office was built. More land was also purchased, giving Memorial Redwood Mortuary and Cemetery a total of ten acres of grassland. In 1965, 12 acres of land were purchased in the foothills above Bountiful. At the time, no paved roads led to the cemetery and a mile-long dirt track was graded to access the property. The idea of locating a mortuary at the geographical center of the Salt Lake Valley came to fruition in 1968.

In Murray, land was purchased and the Memorial Murray Mortuary on 9th East was completed in 1970. In 1974, a local company called Security National Financial Corporation (SNFC) purchased the properties of Mountain View, Redwood Mortuary/Cemetery, Lakeview Bountiful Cemetery, and the Ninth East Mortuary from Mr. Lyman. SNFC leadership brought the mortuaries into an era of tremendous growth. Redwood, for example, began with only 16 grassy acres and expanded to 85 acres. At the time of SNFC’s purchase, the mortuaries were ranked 12 out of 12 for numbers of families served. By 1988, they had moved to second in the state for numbers of families served. SNFC sought to create a memorable visual experience and began adding sidewalks and new grass at Redwood. Thousands of trees have been planted since 1978 in Memorial properties. Memorial purchased Cottonwood Mortuary, Holladay Cemetery, Lake Hills Mortuary and Cemetery, and Deseret Mortuary in 1990. From a seedling of an idea, our mortuaries and cemeteries have blossomed into the most respected and dedicated funeral providers in the state. Each year, we serve thousands of families in the Salt Lake Valley area.