About Immaculate Conception · Copperton, Utah
Immaculate Conception Catholic Church is a small Roman Catholic parish in the historic mining community of Copperton, Utah, in the Oquirrh Mountains southwest of Salt Lake City. The parish is the direct successor of Holy Rosary Parish, founded in Bingham Canyon in 1890 to serve the overwhelmingly Catholic, immigrant copper miners and their families; when Kennecott's open-pit mine expanded and eventually buried the town of Bingham, the parish was relocated to the neighboring town of Copperton and rededicated in 1949 as Immaculate Conception. Today the parish belongs to the Diocese of Salt Lake City and remains a tight-knit, multi-generational community where many families can trace their membership back to grandparents and great-grandparents who worshipped first in Bingham and now in Copperton. Worship, religious education for children and adults, youth Masses, a food bank, a men's group, ladies' association, and choir are part of parish life, with a welcoming Sunday liturgy and a Bible study / faith-sharing group that gathers on the first Monday of each month.
- Established
- 1890
- Patron
- The Blessed Virgin Mary, under the title of the Immaculate Conception
- Rector
- Reverend Southan Star Alban (Temporary Administrator, per the Diocese of Salt Lake City parish page)
- Diocese
- Diocese of Salt Lake City
Why belong here
Immaculate Conception is a small, multigenerational parish where many families have worshipped together for three or four generations, originally in Bingham Canyon and now in Copperton. The parish offers the core sacramental life of a Catholic community — Sunday Mass, Reconciliation, Baptism, Confirmation, Weddings, Funerals, Quinceañera Masses, and Anointing of the Sick — alongside active ministry opportunities for every age: religious education for children and adults, a youth group that serves as lectors, altar servers, and singers, a parish choir, a Ladies Association, a Men's Group that welcomes non-Catholics for fellowship and social-justice projects, a parish food bank, and a monthly Bible-discussion and faith-sharing dinner on the first Monday of each month at 5:30 PM. For Catholics in the western Salt Lake Valley looking for a friendly, working-class parish with deep historical roots, Immaculate Conception welcomes anyone who walks through its doors.
Mass times at Immaculate Conception
Weekly Mass schedule
Confession times
- Saturday at 5:00 PM (per Diocese of Salt Lake City parish page)
- By appointment — call Fr. Joubran at (801) 833-3550 (per parish website)
About Immaculate Conception Parish
Immaculate Conception Catholic Church is a small Roman Catholic parish in Copperton, Utah, in the Oquirrh Mountains southwest of Salt Lake City, belonging to the Diocese of Salt Lake City. It is the spiritual heir of Holy Rosary Parish, the Catholic church that once stood in Bingham Canyon and served the immigrant copper-mining community there. The parish describes itself as a warm and friendly parish family where many members can trace their membership back to grandparents and great-grandparents who worshipped first in Bingham and now in Copperton. Children attend religious classes, participate in youth Masses, and play in the parish hall's play area during coffee and donuts after Sunday Mass.
History of the Parish
Catholic life in Bingham Canyon began with Father Patrick Walsh's visit in 1871 and grew under Father (later Bishop) Lawrence Scanlan, who arrived in 1873 and celebrated the first Masses in the Bingham school. A temporary Catholic church was erected in 1890, and in 1910 a larger parish church was built in Carr Fork and dedicated on October 30 as Holy Rosary Parish. By 1912 an estimated 65 percent of Bingham miners were foreign-born, and the parish supported missions in Copperfield and Lark (1924) and Copperton (1935); the Our Lady of Victory Missionary Sisters opened a convent there in 1941, succeeded by the Franciscan Sisters of the Atonement in 1947.
Relocation to Copperton and the Bingham Mine
By the late 1940s it was clear that Kennecott's open-pit copper mine would swallow the town of Bingham. Bishop Duane G. Hunt, with assistance from the Catholic Extension Society, relocated the parish to Copperton and dedicated the new Immaculate Conception church in 1949. Father John J. Sullivan, Holy Rosary's last pastor, celebrated the final Mass in the old Bingham church in 1958 and oversaw the sale of the property to Kennecott Copper pending its destruction. The Copperton church marked the 75th anniversary of its building in 2024.
Holy Rosary, Immaculate Conception, and Saint Joseph the Worker
Although Holy Rosary Parish ended in 1958, its legacy continues. In 1969 Bishop Joseph L. Federal created Saint Joseph the Worker Parish in West Jordan for Catholics — many of them former Binghamites — who had resettled there. The two parishes share a common pride in their working-class immigrant Catholic roots.
Clergy and Staff
According to the Diocese of Salt Lake City parish page, the parish is currently served by Reverend Southan Star Alban as Temporary Administrator (he is also Temporary Chaplain at Saint Joseph Villa in Salt Lake City) and by Deacon Paul Graham. The parish website additionally references Fr. Joubran as the contact for confession appointments and pastoral emergencies. Pastoral emergencies can be directed to Fr. Joubran at (801) 833-3550 or to Deacon Paul at (801) 971-3130.
- Reverend Southan Star Alban — Temporary Administrator
- Deacon Paul Graham
- Fr. Joubran — confession and pastoral-emergency contact
Sacraments
The parish celebrates the full range of Catholic sacraments and invites parishioners to email for more information about any of them.
- Baptism
- Confirmation
- First Reconciliation and First Eucharist (through Religious Education)
- Weddings
- Funerals
- Sacrament of Reconciliation (Confession)
- Anointing of the Sick and Communion to the Homebound (training available)
- Quinceañera Masses
Ministries and Parish Life
Immaculate Conception runs a wide array of lay-led ministries, each with a named contact for people who want to get involved. The parish hall is a busy place, with religious-education classrooms, a children's play area during coffee and donuts, and a monthly Bible-discussion dinner.
Religious Education
Religious education is offered for children and adults; families are invited to email the parish to inquire about class schedules and registration.
- Child religious education
- Adult faith formation
- Bible Study & Faith Sharing dinner — 1st Mondays at 5:30 PM in the parish hall, with children's playroom
Youth, Music, and Liturgical Ministries
Young people are invited to take active roles in the liturgy and parish life through youth Masses and social-justice projects, and the parish choir is open to new singers. Lector training is offered periodically.
- Youth Mass and social-justice projects (young adults — lector, altar server, singer)
- Parish Choir (contact Teddy)
- Lectors (training — contact Greg, (801) 703-5264)
- Altar Servers
Parish Groups
Two long-standing lay groups anchor the parish's social and service life. The Ladies Association and the Men's Group both organize fellowship and outreach, and the Men's Group explicitly welcomes non-Catholics.
- Ladies Association (contact Danielle)
- Men's Group — fellowship, BBQs, pancake breakfasts, social-justice projects; all welcome including non-Catholics (contact Leo)
Outreach: Food Bank and Social Justice
Immaculate Conception operates a parish food bank and participates in social-justice projects through both the youth ministry and the Men's Group. Those interested in volunteering can contact Greg for the food bank.
- Parish Food Bank (contact Greg)
- Social-justice projects (youth and Men's Group)
Visit, Contact, and Pastoral Emergencies
The parish is located at 8892 W State Highway, Copperton, Utah 84006 (mailing address: P.O. Box 151, Copperton, UT 84006). The main parish number is (801) 233-3330. For confession appointments and pastoral emergencies, callers may reach Fr. Joubran at (801) 833-3550 or Deacon Paul at (801) 971-3130.
- Address: 8892 W State Highway, P.O. Box 151, Copperton, UT 84006
- Phone: (801) 233-3330
- Pastoral emergencies: Fr. Joubran (801) 833-3550; Deacon Paul (801) 971-3130
Pastors & rectors through the years
- Father Patrick Walsh1871
First Catholic priest to visit Bingham Canyon.
- Father (later Bishop) Lawrence Scanlan1873 onward
Arrived in 1873; celebrated the first Masses in Bingham and laid the groundwork for what became Holy Rosary Parish.
- Father John J. Sullivanuntil 1958
Last pastor of Holy Rosary Parish in Bingham; celebrated the final Mass in the old church in 1958 and oversaw the sale of parish property to Kennecott Copper as the mine expanded to bury the town.