First, check to see whether your house has already been documented. The Office of Preservation at the Utah State Historical Society has files on hundreds of buildings throughout the state, including those listed in the State and National registers.
Copies are available for a nominal cost.
Indications of a construction date are the first relatively large mortgage or the dramatic increase in the selling price of the property. Help with understanding legal descriptions can be found on the State Archives website . These fire insurance maps were drawn for over 75 communities in the state, many as early as the late 1880s, and were updated approximately every decade through the 1920s. The maps show each building on the principal residential and commercial blocks, and they are color coded to indicate the various construction materials. By comparing the maps from different years, you can establish an approximate date of construction and can determine when and what types of changes have been made to the building and surrounding property.