[3] Intended from the beginning as the Western counterpart to Coney Island, Saltair was one of the early amusement parks, and for a time was the most popular family destination west of New York.

[4] A new pavilion was built, and the resort was expanded at the same location by new investors, but several factors prevented the second Saltair from achieving the success of its ancestor.

The advent of motion pictures and radio, the onset of the Great Depression, and the interruption of the "go to Saltair" routine kept people closer to home.

[5] Attempts over the next decade to breathe new life into the resort finally ended in November 1970 when an arson fire was set in the center of the wooden dance floor, destroying the main Saltair pavilion.

[6][7] A previous arson fire in September 1967 had destroyed the concourse, entry gate, concession stands, and various other support structures but spared the main building.

[9] The new pavilion was constructed out of a salvaged aircraft hangar from Hill Air Force Base, and located approximately a mile west of the original.

[11][12] Concerts and other events have been held at the newest facility, but by the end of the 1990s, Saltair was little more than a memory, too small to compete with larger venues that were closer to the public.

Rows of pilings snake outward toward the lake, all that remains of the railway trestle and pier that once led to the earlier Saltair resort.

The Saltair Pavilion is destroyed (along with much of Salt Lake City) by the eponymous creature in the 1972 underground independent film "The Giant Brine Shrimp" by Utah filmmaker Mike Cassidy.

[16] Saltair was featured in the 2021 episode of the paranormal reality show Ghost Adventures, largely as a result of allegations of the building being haunted.