The world s largest collection of genealogical records is housed in a secure vault located in the mountains near familysearch world headquarters in salt lake city utah.
The granite mountain records vault utah usa.
But there is one facility though hard to gain access to which is an amazing example of long term thinking and it is not what you might expect.
The granite mountain facilities feature a dry environment controlled facility used for long term record storage as well as administrative offices shipping and receiving docks a processing facility and restoration laboratory for microfilm.
The granite mountain records vault also known simply as the vault is a large archive and vault owned by the church of jesus christ of latter day saints lds church excavated 600 feet into the north side of little cottonwood canyon.
It was built in 1965 mostly to hold family history records.
The vault safeguards more than 3 5 billion images on microfilm microfiche and digital media.
Although surrounded by rock technically quartz not granite don t think you can go dynamiting your way in there as it was constructed to withstand a nuclear blast and has steel bank safe type doors designed to seal tighter under impact.
2 4 million rolls of microfilm containing approximately 3 5 billion images of family history records that s what is really inside the mormon church s granite mountain records vault.
According to family search.
The granite mountain records vault was built in 1965 to preserve and protect important family history and historical records.
The utah based church of jesus christ of latter day saints does actually have a vault in the canyon though.
Granite mountain records vault.
Besides genealogical preservation and storage granite mountain records vault serves as the deep archives for a myriad of church materials including scriptures in every language published large leather bound temple ordinance books that were hand kept through the 1960s materials and minutes from presiding priesthood quorums financial records backup tapes and audio visual masters from legacy to johnny lingo.
Granite mountain records vault utah the vault at granite mountain was built by the lds churchto protect billions of genealogical records documents and photos of family history on microfilms.
The main function of the vault is storage preservation and reproduction of genealogical records.
The church of jesus christ of latter day saints built the granite mountain records vault in 1965 to preserve and protect records of importance to the church including its vast collection of family history microfilms.
In 2014 it opened the vault and began the process of digitizing fifty years worth of records.
The church recently allowed items to be shared publicly.