Many of the earliest settlers of the Utah Territory had been Masons before coming west. However, Freemasonry did not become regularly established in the Territory until U.S. Army personnel created the first recognized Lodge at Camp Floyd in 1858. As greater numbers of diverse settlers arrived in the Intermountain West, additional Lodges were formed under the authority of several different Grand Lodge jurisdictions.
On the afternoon of January 16, 1872 a Masonic Convention assembled in Salt Lake City for the purpose of organizing a Grand Lodge for the Territory of Utah. This convention continued in session four days, transacted the business for which it was called, and some time during the afternoon of January 20, “the Grand Lodge of Utah closed its sessions in due form.”