Golden Spike Centennial Commission

The commission was charged to portray "the natural resources and scenic wonders of Utah and the preshistoric culture of the west, showing the development of irrigation, farming, mining, forestry, transportation, culture and the arts." The commission was also authorized to "hold and maintain an exposition on some appropriate site." [Duties are enumerated in section 2 of the enabling legislation.] Prior to becoming a legal entity, commission members played an important part in urging Congress to create the Golden Spike National Historic Site at Promontory, Utah.?In 1967, an amendment specified that the commission act as an advisory council to provide assistance to the board of expositions and the division of expositions in carrying out the proposed centennial observance at Promontory.

The Golden Spike Centennial Commission consisted of eleven members appointed by the governor with the advice and consent of the Senate. The governor designated George A. Christensen as chairman of the commission and added four executive members.

"In formulating plans for the 1969 centennial, the commission divided its projected activities into five basic divisions of responsibility, and committees were selected to work on possible events and activities related to each division"--administration division, exposition division, centennial events division, cooperative activities division, and promotion division ("Compiled Digest of Administrative Reports, 1966," pp. 255-257.)