Cultural, Historical, Geological, and Paleontological Resources

The history of Davis County began with the fur trappers of the early nineteenth- century. These men, in search of fur bearing animals, as well as adventure, crossed the area many times. Permanent occupation; however, did not begin until the arrival of the Mormon pioneers in 1847. In the fall of 1848, the first pioneers arrived in the area and settled along Davis Creek, about one half mile south of Farmington. Daniel C. Davis, a captain in the Mormon Battalion, spent the winter of 1848‑49 in that location (Jolliffe 1948:20). When the area was formed into a county by the Territorial legislature in 1850, it was named in honor of Davis (Hardy 1948:21).

Shortly after creation of the County, communities were quickly established along the principal travel corridor between Ogden in the north and Salt Lake City in the south. Two of these communities were Farmington and Kaysville. These communities grew quite rapidly for the first few years. The 1850 census showed a population of 280 people for the Farmington area while the Kaysville-Layton area had a total of 417 people in 1853 (Adams 1948:121, Arrington 1966:27). Other parts of the county did not fare as well. South Weber, which was settled in 1851, never grew into a very large settlement. However, other communities would be created as the population increased and the farming communities expanded. Layton, originally part of Kaysville, became its own separate community in 1891 and Fruit Heights had been part of East Kaysville until 1939 (Dawson 1980:2, Van Cott 1990:149).

The communities of Kaysville and Farmington continued at a slow growth rate until the arrival of the Utah Central Railroad in late 1869 (Arrington 1966:272). The railroad was built south from the Union Pacific line in Ogden to Salt Lake City. This construction of this line was a major impetus to growth in the area. The railroad provided increased distribution of agricultural goods throughout the region and opened new outside markets for these commodities, as well as allowing for the importation of industry, farming equipment and goods.

Even though the arrival of the railroad provided the potential for development of a more urbanized and industrialized community, many factors weighed against these changes. Prominent among these was the presence of two much larger and growing cities, Ogden and Salt Lake City. Urbanization was already well under way in these areas. Industry flocked to the two larger towns where the railroads built locomotive yards and the population was able to supply workers for the industries that centered on the railroads. While industry was growing to the north and south of Davis County, agricultural activities continued to dominate the economy of the area throughout the 19th century and well into the twentieth century. Dairy farming and the raising of alfalfa hay and grain were the two enterprises most prominent in the county (Adams 1948:128; Bowman 1948:173). Several creameries were built to process milk products in Layton, Kaysville and South Weber in the late 1800s. Later, sugar beets became an important crop and a sugar beet factory was built in Layton.

The major growth areas of Davis County were at first in the eastern part of the county along the current US-89 corridor. This was the first major north-south transportation corridor through the area. Along this corridor the towns began to grow; however, since this was located along the base of the Wasatch Front, expansion moved toward the western part of the county. Current U. S. Highway 89 (the Mountain Road) and its predecessor roads, grew in importance over time until the 1930s. Since then it has been used primarily for transportation to and from the Ogden area. Though not a major focus of population or commerce, the Highway 89 corridor remained an agricultural region of the county, well‑known for its fruit orchards. Its higher elevation, sloping conditions and favorable soils encouraged establishment of fruit orchards, especially of cherries and peaches.

The economy of the area continued to develop slowly during the early twentieth-century with a marked improvement towards the end of the Great Depression and prior to the United States’ entry into World War II. The time period (late 1930s), marked a radical change for Davis County. As political events began to change and war loomed, the Federal government began a buildup of defense industry establishments along the Wasatch Front including areas of Davis County. In 1939, Congress appropriated money for the construction of Hill Air Force Base in Layton, which was completed in November 1940 (Christensen 1989:498‑499). At the same time, the US Army needed a supply point close to rails in the west that could service the various military bases along the west coast and borders. In September 1941, the Utah General Depot in Ogden (now Defense Depot Ogden) was operational. With entry into the war, the Navy also needed a supply base close to railroads and away from enemy attack. Hence, in June 1942 construction of the Clearfield Naval Supply Depot was started and completed in April 1943 (Christensen 1989:498‑499). These facilities along with the Ogden Arsenal, which was established in 1920, formed a strong military presence in Davis County during World War II and markedly altered the economic and population patterns of the county and permanently changed the landscape.

Since World War II the economy of the area has seen a decreased reliance on agriculture and has become more of an expansion of the Wasatch Sprawl between Salt Lake City and Ogden. A growing number of local industries have also started in the area such as those located at the massive Freeport Center (formerly Clearfield Naval Supply Depot). Hill Air Force Base continues to be a major employer of Davis County residents.

Morgan County is situated among the Wasatch Mountains east of the Wasatch Front. The history of the area begins with the first Euro-Americans to enter the Morgan Valley. These were the fur trappers of the British Hudson’s Bay Company under Peter Skene Ogden, as well as a number of independent American fur trappers and traders. Attracted by the bountiful streams and forested slopes of Morgan Valley, these trappers began utilizing the area’s resources as early as the 1820s (Utah State Historical Society 1988:18). By 1825, competition for these limited resources led to a confrontation, near Mountain Green, between Peter Skene Ogden’s company and a group of American trappers. Ogden avoided a bloody conflict by fleeing the area after 23 of his men left his company to join the American fur trappers (Roylance 1982:426; Stuart 1983:6).

Trappers continued to be the sole exploiters of the valley until the arrival of Thomas J. Thurston, an early Latter-day Saint (Mormon) settler in the spring of 1855 (Deseret Evening News 1906:61). Thurston was joined shortly thereafter by Bishop Charles S. Peterson (the founder of the town of Peterson in the county) (Deseret Evening News 1906:61). The main access route from the Wasatch Front to Morgan Valley was through Weber Canyon. The access was rugged and difficult due to the lack of any functional roads. With the assistance of several residents of Weber and Davis Counties, Thurston and Peterson constructed a road suitable for wagon travel through the canyon (Deseret Evening News 1906:61). With the completion of the road, Peterson and Roswell Stevens, who had helped with the road’s construction, settled at Weber City. The name was changed to Peterson in 1872 (Historical Records Survey 1937:3).

News of the area’s fertile farmland reached the residents of the surrounding counties. Eager pioneers made their way into the valley to try their hand at farming. Within five years of the initial settlement by Thurston and Peterson, several new communities had been established including Mountain Green, Mt. Joy (North Morgan), Richville and Round Valley (Morgan County Historical Society 1989). Morgan City, established in 1860, soon became one of the area’s largest communities (Morgan County Historical Society 1989:56).

In 1862, the Territorial Legislature officially created Morgan County and designated Weber City (Peterson) as the county seat. In 1866, the county seat was moved to the small town of Littleton. Two years later, in 1868, the seat was once again moved, this time to Morgan City (Morgan County Visitors Bureau 1992). With its new found fame, the town changed its name to Morgan City in honor of Jedediah Morgan Grant, First Counselor to Brigham Young and father of future (1940) president of the Mormon Church, Heber J. Grant (Works Progress Administration 1945:359). Around the same time, Morgan City received a franchise to incorporate (Morgan County Historical Society 1989:149).

Eager to build their communities into thriving residential and agricultural centers, residents of the valley exploited the natural resources of the area. As early as 1859, the Porter family had set up a lumber mill at the mouth of Hardscrabble Canyon, which provided building supplies for local residents. Lumber was the major industry in the area from 1860 to 1875. In 1862, Samuel and Thomas Brough began making bricks in a Richville brickyard, and Daniel Williams constructed and operated a lime kiln near Morgan. Other area masons began hewing blocks and red and “bluish” sandstone suitable for building from the surrounding outcrops (Deseret Evening News 1906:61). With the construction of numerous irrigation ditches throughout the area, the grain crops, particularly wheat, were flourishing.

Perhaps the biggest boon to the growth and economy of Morgan City specifically, and Morgan County broadly, was the completion of the Union Pacific segment of the Transcontinental Railroad through Morgan County between 1867-68 (Morgan County Visitors Bureau 1992; Historic Records Survey 1937:4). A “One Thousand Mile” marker, located just north of Morgan, commemorates the point at which 1,000 miles of track had been laid in the construction of the Railroad from Omaha, Nebraska (Stuart 1983:8). Ties for the local portion of the line were made by a mill located at Hardscrabble Canyon. Not only did the railroad’s completion put Morgan on the main freight/passenger line between Salt Lake City and all points east, but it also provided an outlet market for local agricultural products. The town soon became the county’s major trade center. The coming of the railroad also brought with it the first telegraph line and the first full-scale bridge across the Weber River (Deseret Evening News 1906:61; Historical Records Survey 1937:4). Prior to this time, crossing of the river had to be done by fording the waters at low levels or by boats, a hazardous journey at the best of times.

Unique in the history of such a small rural town such as Morgan, was the founding of a school of medicine in 1880. The Medical College of Utah was established by Dr. Frederick S. Kohler for the purpose of training future doctors (Divett 1960:3). The college operated for only two years, graduating a single class of four students in 1882 and closing down in 1883 due to a lack of enrollment resulting from (unproven) newspaper reports of poor teaching and suspect ethics (Divett 1960:1 and 6).

Construction and industry were the major themes of the years between 1895 and 1915. In 1896, construction of the East Canyon Dam was begun. Built of dirt and rock with a half-inch thick steel core, the dam was completed in 1898. Shortly after, in 1903, the first culinary water system was constructed in Morgan City. In 1904, the Morgan Canning Company was established and a large factory constructed in Morgan. Intended to service the highly productive pea farmers of the Morgan Valley, the company also received produce from farmers of the Cache Valley. The company was sold to the California Packing Company in 1928. The plant was closed down some time later. In 1905, the Union Pacific Railroad built a new depot and freight center to accommodate the growing market of the area (Deseret Evening News 1906:61). The completion of this depot was followed by the implementation of a phone system by the Rocky Mountain Bell Telephone Company (Historic Records Survey 1937:4).

Local industry continued to grow in the ensuing years. In 1907, the Union Portland Cement Company was started near Devil’s Slide, a town established at the mouth of Lost Creek Canyon in 1904 for employees of the Portland Company (Historical Records Survey 1937:4-5). The abundance of high grade local limestone made the area suitable for such a venture. The current facility, which was constructed in 1947 by the Ideal Basic Cement Company, is one of the largest employers in the county (USHS 1988:18; Anonymous n.d.). In 1912, C.F. Holding and F.A. Bean constructed a power plant near Hardscrabble Canyon. The venture failed shortly thereafter. The Utah Power and Light Company took over the electrical power franchise for the area in 1914, building a new plant and installing additional power lines (Historical Records Survey 1937:4).

Due to drought and the Great Depression in the late 1920s and early 1930s, growth throughout the area slowed drastically. Agriculture and dairying continued to be the major industries in the valley although outside markets for local products ceased to exist. In order to help pull the nation out of the depression, the federal government established a national Reconstruction Program, of which the Works Progress Administration (WPA) was a part. Morgan County residents were the recipients of sorely needed federal funding through a WPA program designed to construct new schools and provide jobs for needy people. Funding was provided for the construction of a new district elementary school and mechanical arts building (Morgan County Historical Society 1989:67).

Education, which had always been important to the residents of the Morgan Valley as evidenced by the construction of 34 schools by 1929, came to the forefront in the late 1930s. In 1936, all of the schools scattered throughout the valley were consolidated into a single school district. Until that time, each community had been responsible for funding and maintaining its own schools. Following the consolidation, many of the smaller local schools were abandoned and students from throughout the area were bused to facilities in Morgan (Morgan County Historical Society 1989:65-68). Having created the first consolidated school system in the state, Morgan received national recognition for its efforts (Morgan County Visitors Bureau 1992).

In 1944, the school district constructed a one-story food canning center in Morgan. The center was used for the processing of local produce with a portion of the products to be used to supplement the school lunch program. The building was also made available to county residents to can their own products for personal use (Morgan County Historical Society 1989:136). The facility was closed down in 1958 when changes in the purchasing and distribution of food for school lunches eliminated the need for the center (Morgan County Historical Society 1989:138).

Morgan residents once again benefitted from federal funding when the Weber Basin Reclamation Project was implemented in 1952. Under this program, federal money was used to construct power plants and dams in the county (USHS 1988:18). It wasn’t until nearly a decade after the program’s implementation, however, that Morgan was truly impacted. In the mid-1960s, the old earthen dam at East Canyon was replaced with a large concrete structure. At the same time, Lost Creek Reservoir was created by the construction of a 220-foot high earth-fill dam. Both projects were undertaken by the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation [BOR] (Roylance 1982:427).

In 1964, near the time of the construction of the Lost Creek and East Canyon Dams, the Browning Arms Company chose to locate a factory near Mountain Green. The $400,000 building houses both the company headquarters, which had become overcrowded at the Ogden location, and a research and development department (Anonymous n.d.). This plant remains as one of the largest employers in the valley. Despite the opening of the Browning plant, a downward economic and social slide began in 1964. When Interstate 84 was constructed that year, a number of local establishments went out of business, being razed for the building of the road (Ogden Standard Examiner 1991:D1). In 1973, the Lost Creek Reservoir lands and facilities were turned over by the BOR to the State Parks Division for maintenance and recreational management. Shortly thereafter, the town of Devil’s Slide was abandoned and nearly all of the buildings moved to Morgan (Morgan County Historical Society 1989:59).

Business closures continued steadily through the 1970s. Even the completion of the Trappers Loop Highway in 1990 failed to bring much needed revenue to Morgan as commuters use the road as a quick connection between the shopping centers of Ogden and residences in the Huntsville area, rather than as a means of reaching businesses in Morgan City. Today, Morgan Valley’s identity is one of many bedroom communities for the busier Wasatch Front cities. Over 65 percent of the county’s 5,500 residents work outside the county in the urban centers of Ogden and Salt Lake City, the largest percentage of out-of-county workers for any county in the state. The majority of those who do work within the county are employed by either the Ideal Cement Company or the Browning Arms Company, or make their living in agriculture, ranching, or mink farming, a recent development in the area (Roylance 1982:426; Ogden Standard Examiner 1991:D1).

The initial European-American incursion into the current State of Utah occurred in 1776 when members of the Dominguez-Escalante Expedition traveled down the Spanish Fork River and entered Utah Valley. This expedition was led by two Franciscan fathers, and was searching for a favorable route from Santa Fe, New Mexico, to the Spanish mission in Monterey, California. Members of the expedition provided the first detailed account of the Timpanagos Ute Indians they encountered in the area surrounding Utah Lake (Warner 1976:63-65). After the expedition left the area, apparently no European-Americans entered the area until the fur trade sparked interest in the Utah Valley.

The fur trade developed in earnest during the 1820s when entrepreneurs formed companies to exploit the vast supply of beaver in the rivers and streams of the North American West. The Lewis and Clark Expedition of 1804-1806 had revealed in the west an abundance of beaver, an animal in high demand for making fur hats (Bartlett and Goetzmann 1982:26-30). By 1824, the fur trade in present-day Utah had begun from three main sources: 1) traders from Taos and Santa Fe, New Mexico, licensed by the Mexican government; 2) the Canadian Hudson Bay Company with outposts in Oregon; and 3) American interests based in St. Louis (Eldredge and Gowans 1994:209). Jedediah Smith of the St. Louis-based Rocky Mountain Fur Company and Etienne Proust out of Taos were among the first to trap in the Utah Valley during the 1820s (Van Wagoner 1990:2). Smith led a party of trappers though the area in the mid-1820s.

Trappers were the first European-Americans in the Salt Lake Valley, frequenting the area from the 1820s into the early 1840s. The numerous streams emanating from the western slopes of the Wasatch Mountains provided fertile hunting grounds for those attempting to exploit the resources of the valley. Trappers and explorers Jedediah Smith, John Fremont, and Jim Clyman, among others, are known to have traveled in the vicinity of the current project area (Morgan 1973).

The first permanent non-Native American settlers to arrive in the Salt Lake Valley were members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (also known as Mormons or L.D.S.). Mormon pioneers led by Brigham Young entered the Salt Lake Valley through Emigration Canyon in 1847. Young organized each of the arriving companies into groups or “committees” (Arrington 1958:45). These committees were assigned different tasks, such as planting, surveying and laying out city blocks, building a fort wall, constructing cabins, and exploring the surrounding valleys for natural resources. The first homes in the area were simple rectangular-shaped one- or two-story structures constructed with adobe and logs with red sandstone foundations (Angus 1993:53). The construction of canals became an absolute necessity for the new agriculturalists during this period.

As the populations of the various sections of Salt Lake County increased, numerous small markets, groceries, blacksmiths, and butcher shops were established, and by 1850, the population of Salt Lake County rose to 6,157 inhabitants (Powell 1994:432). During this time, Salt Lake City continued to grow in population and importance. The city developed as an important economic hub for the region, as a pioneer religious capitol, and as a center of government.

Salt Lake County and northern Utah in general have often been referred to as the Crossroads of the West. In this section of the west, migrations of Eastern peoples dispersed along the various routes and trails leading farther west, as well as south and north. By 1857, a decade after their arrival in the Salt Lake Valley, Mormon settlements were spread out along the valleys and mountains of the Wasatch Front. Their settlements extended from Ogden to Las Vegas and from Fort Bridger to Carson Valley (Wahlquist 1981:92-93).

By the 1860s, with the ongoing arrival or Mormons from Europe and the Eastern United states, agriculture began to expand rapidly. The arrival of the railroad in Salt Lake County in 1870, opened up new markets for crops and livestock produced by local residents. Other factors also contributed to increased agricultural productivity. Successful production of sugar beets was another significant agricultural development during this period. Agricultural and economic success led to increasing populations. From 1860 to 1890, Salt Lake County population rose from 11,295 to 58,457 inhabitants (Powell 1994:432).

Along with the arrival of the steel rails and steam trains to Salt Lake City, came hundreds to thousands of railroad workers. Many of these workers were non-English speaking of various ethnic affiliations, such as Chinese, Japanese, Slavic, Italian, Syrian, Greek, and Hispanic. As with most immigrants from a similar culture, these immigrants formed their own ethnic communities, such as Swedetown, Little Syria, and the Greek Ghetto within the larger towns and cities. With the opening of ethnic restaurants, markets, and groceries, these neighborhoods took on the culture of the residents’ country of origin (Cooper and Roberts 1992:6, 7).

Salt Lake City underwent significant changes during the late 1890s and early 1900s. In 1896, following half a century of conflict over religious freedom and the issue of polygamy, the Utah Territory was granted statehood.

The war-time economy generated by World War I boosted the local metals industries and facilitated the establishment of fabricators and foundries within Salt Lake Valley. Understandably, new warehouses and storage facilities were always a common site in the area (Daughters of Utah Pioneers 1947:125). By the close of the war overseas, the Industrial Zone included several large industrial complexes such as the May Foundry and Machine Shop and the Utah Oil Refining Company. Similarly railroad-related industries continued to provide steadily increasing employment and income for the area until the nationwide depression of the late 1920s and early 1930s.

The strong economic growth that had been enjoyed by local residents for decades came to an abrupt halt with the stock market crash in the east. The loss of jobs by hundreds of local smelter and railroad employees during the Depression plunged the communities into a period of industrial decline which resulted in the closure of several of the smelters as well as numerous other businesses (Grey 1989). Economic conditions for agriculturalists worsened during the 1920s, as the depression was felt across the state and prices for many agricultural products dropped precipitously. Between 1920 and 1921 the price of sugar beets fell from $12.03 to $5.47 per ton (Alexander 1989:466).

A variety of local, state, and federal programs provided some relief to residents. However, full economic recovery from the Great Depression did not come until the massive mobilization effort brought on by American involvement in World War II, when employment in the area dramatically increased due to large federal projects including an increased need for petroleum products and metal industries. Salt Lake City’s population continued to grow during this period from 116,110 in 1920 to 149,934 in 1940 (Powell 1994:437).

Like other counties along the Wasatch Front, Salt Lake County continued to grow in the years following World War II. The development of new residential subdivisions along the I-15 corridor allowed for commuter travel for workers into the city. Midvale, Murray, Bennion, Taylorsville, West Jordan, and South Jordan grew and modernized throughout the Post War Period. With the completion of two major highway systems, Interstate 15 and Interstate 215, they have become “bedroom communities” for the rapidly growing number of people who are employed in Salt Lake City.

With the coming of highways and road systems connecting the area to urban centers, growth promises to continue at a steady rate. The intensive residential and commercial development of the past few decades has served to physically join the various communities in the area, effectively blurring corporate boundary lines. These expanded and melted communities are a stark contrast to the tiny, somewhat isolated settlements of the early pioneer period.

The history of Tooele County is rather unique. The isolation of the county, the presence of the defense industry, and its position on the Nevada border have all contributed to this history.

The first non-Native Americans to pass through the region that would become Tooele County were primarily fur trappers and explorers. In 1827, Jedediah Smith crossed the Salt Flats as he traveled east from California to the mountains of Utah. His was the first known European-American incursion into the imme­diate region (Zier 1984:26). Smith would be followed in 1845 by John C. Fremont on his way west and E.G. Beckwith in 1853 (Wahlquist 1981:80-83).

The Tooele Valley was the first area of the county to be occupied by white men when Captain Howard Stansbury ordered the construction of an adobe house built in 1849. The residence was used by Stansbury to shelter his herders caring for US Army mules and livestock. This structure was constructed at the north end of the Valley on E. T. Hill. Soon after the arrival of Stansbury, the settlers of the Salt Lake Valley came to Tooele looking for herding and grazing land for their livestock (Barlow and Tipps 1988:9). Thus, the Army was soon followed by settlers, who arrived in September of the same year. Led by Ezra Taft Benson, they constructed a fort and sawmill at the mouth of Big Creek Canyon. On June 19, 1853, Tooele City, covering a nine square mile area, was incorporated as a city (Blanthorn 1994:558-9).

Tooele Valley almost immediately developed into an important agricultural and ranching area in the state. After the discovery of gold and silver ores in the 1860s, the valley became a significant mining center as well (Mercer 1961). By 1850, Grantsville (west of Tooele City) had been settled by 30 families. Both communities were based on ranching and farming but were also supported by mining in the nearby Oquirrh Mountains.

In 1854, Colonel E. J. Steptoe and his command entered Rush Valley, south of the city of Tooele. Steptoe had been sent by President Franklin Pierce to establish a military road through the territory from Salt Lake City to southern California and to capture the murderers of a Lt. Gunnison and his men (Poll et al. 1978; Mercer 1961). The military detachment under Steptoe’s command included 85 mounted dragoons, an artillery company and 136 teamsters. Due to the large number of animals, 450 mules, 300 horses and an unspecified number of cattle, an adequate supply of water and grass was required by Steptoe to maintain this detail. The area around Rush Lake met these needs and Steptoe order the construction of barracks and other military facilities on the east side of the lake. By 1856, Steptoe, with increasing tensions between the military and the Mormons, moved his command to Benecia, California (Mercer 1961).

Upon the abandonment of the post in Rush Valley, Brigham Young ordered the occupation of the post by a company of settlers. The area was used by the Mormons to raise cattle. In 1858, a second army under the command of Albert S. Johnston arrived in Cedar Valley (to the east of Rush Valley) and built Camp Floyd. Johnston commanded an army of 3,500 men which required water and forage for large herds of cattle, mules and horses. Johnston has the herds spread out over a wide area, including Rush and Skull Valleys (located west of Rush Valley). By 1861, the soldiers abandoned Camp Floyd and returned to the east in order to participate in the Civil War.

Johnston’s command was replaced in 1862 by a volunteer army from California led by Colonel Patrick Connor. Connor selected Fort Douglas in Salt Lake City as the site for his post. However, like the commanders before him, he sent a small detachment to Rush Valley to graze and water some of his animals. These men constructed a small post at the present site of Stockton, called Camp Relief (Mercer 1961).

Many of Connor’s men were recruited from the California gold fields, and they were encouraged by Connor to spend time exploring the hills for mineral deposits. They established the first mining districts in the state around Stockton in Rush Valley. On August 6, 1870, the Rush Valley Mining District was filed (Mercer 1961). By the end of the Civil War, the military forces were cut back at Fort Douglas and Connor withdrew form Rush Valley and the camp was taken over by civilian settlers and miners.

The continued discovery of rich mineral deposits in the Oquirrhs and the Salt Flats of Tooele County during the late 1800s caused the economic base of the area to shift from one centered around agriculture to one based on mineral exploitation. In 1864, the Rush Valley Mining District was established and by the 1870s communities such as Ophir and Mercur were boasting of populations of well over 6,000 residents (Utah State Historical Society [USHS] 1988:26). In 1909, the Tooele Valley Railroad was constructed to serve the mines and smelters of the area (Grady 1983:2-49). This rail line helped to boost the economy of the valley by providing a faster and more cost effective means of transporting the ore from the mines to the smelters and then on to outside markets.

The Bonneville Salt Flats also attracted the attention of automobile speed racers, when the hard, dry surface of the salt flats was discovered to be an ideal racing surface. By 1914, the flats were popular with automobile speed racers (Anderson n.d.:22). But it was not until 1925 that the surface of the Bonneville Salt Flats became popular with speed racers from all over the world. In that year, racer Ab Jenkins beat an excursion train by ten minutes in a race across the salt flats (Hallaran 1994:48). Since then, the salt flats have been the site of numerous land speed records.

In 1918 the Lincoln Memorial Highway, the first coast-to-coast automobile road in the United States, was built through Tooele County. Known as the Wendover Cutoff, the highway headed directly west from Salt Lake City to Wendover (Zier 1984:29).

Mining and ranching continued as the primary economy of Tooele County until the start of World War II. With the advent of hostilities overseas, the federal government established numerous military installations in the Tooele Valley for the purposes of bomber training, supply storage, repair of equipment, and chemical and biological warfare testing (USHS 1988:26). By the close of the war, Wendover Air Base, Dugway Proving Ground, and the Tooele Army Depot employed more than 22,000 military personnel and civilians.

In the 1970s, a controversy arose regarding the effects of hazardous waste created by chemical testing at Dugway. The issue of this hazardous material is still being debated. In March of 1993, the BRAC Commission recommended the elimination of the maintenance and supply divisions at the Tooele Army Depot North Area, leaving the main function of the installation as munitions and chemical storage (U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Mobile District 1995:1-1). Following Congressional approval of the recommendation of this action in the fall of 1993, the realignment began with the reduction or transfer of the depot’s maintenance and supply functions. The realignment was officially completed at the close of the federal fiscal year 1995 (September 30, 1995), although small tasks such as the movement of equipment occurred after this (Walden 1995). A 1,684 acre parcel of land in the North Area was excessed, although some of the buildings within this area were retained by the Tooele Army Depot or other agencies to support their missions (U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Mobile District 1995: 2-4). A local redevelopment authority has established an office in the excessed area to facilitate reuse of the buildings.

These military installations remain as Tooele Valley’s largest employers despite the recent cutbacks in defense spending. Ranching, farming, and mining operations still exist in the area, but on a much smaller scale, since most of the land in Tooele County is reserved for military use (USHS 1988:26).

General information in the following brief summary of the history of Weber County comes primarily from Roberts and Sadler (1985) and Terry (1988) unless otherwise noted. The occupation of Weber County by Euro-American began during the early 1840s when Miles Goodyear, a fur trapper and trader, established Fort Buenaventura on the western bank of the Weber River. The fort, constructed in 1844, was less than one mile northwest of the western portion of the current project area.

In 1847 and 1848, shortly after the arrival of the Mormon pioneers to the Salt Lake Valley, a group of settlers under the direction of Captain James Brown explored the Ogden area and purchased the fort from Goodyear (Daughters of Utah Pioneers [DUP] 1944:58). They renamed the fort and the small settlement that soon grew up around it, Brown’s Fort or Brownsville, in honor of Captain Brown. During the spring of the following two years, floodwaters from the Weber River inundated the settlement. This flooding instigated a move of the “town site” to higher ground, east side of the river. They built a new fort at approximately 29th Street and Pacific Avenue (Terry 1988:99). Around that time, the settlement received its current name, Ogden City. The next year, in 1851, Henry G. Sherwood officially surveyed the Ogden area and established a grid for the town site. Ogden grew rapidly to become the second largest city in Utah. An active commercial center and many residential districts evolved in the city within the first decade of settlement.

Ogden expanded rapidly in population during the mid-1850s, and by 1860, there were 1,463 residents in the community. Brigham Young, president of the Mormon Church, envisioned Ogden becoming the headquarters for all Mormon settlements in the northern portion of the Utah Territory. As a result, he encouraged many settlers to abandon the forts and farmsteads in the outlying areas, and establish permanent homes and businesses within Ogden City (DUP 1944:77). In 1854, the areas to the north and northwest of Ogden City were surveyed to establish definable farming plots. This led to the creation of three new communities or “districts”; Bingham Fort District, Slaterville District, and North Ogden District (DUP 1944:79).

The Union Pacific Railroad arrived in Ogden during in 1868 and had a major impact on the commercial and residential growth of the area. The size and importance of Ogden City changed significantly with the arrival of the transcontinental railroad in 1869. The completion of the transcontinental railroad provided the impetus for seven other railroads, with 56 steam trains daily, which eventually established themselves in Ogden. The presence of these railroads dramatically increased the industrial, commercial, and agricultural base of the city. It also eased the movement of goods, people, and ideas to and from the area.

By 1870, the population rose from 1,463 residents in 1860 to 3,127 residents, and a decade later this number had risen to 6,069, and by 1890, it had more than doubled to 12,889 (Roberts and Sadler 1985:65). An increase in the number of residents was not the only impact the railroad had on the city’s population. Besides increasing its numbers, it increased the population’s diversity. Before the arrival of the railroad, most of Ogden City’s residents were of northern European descent, primarily from Great Britain. This new diversity included railroad workers of Italian, Greek, Chinese, or African descent (Roberts and Sadler 1985:94-96). Many of these individuals, especially the Chinese workers, chose to remain in Ogden after construction work was completed, or stay to work for railroad-related industries in town.

The completion of the railroad also created many changes in Ogden City’s business landscape. Hundreds of travelers per week made their way into or through Ogden via the many passenger trains servicing the town. New businesses including hotels and restaurants were established to accommodate these travelers. The railroads also provided a valuable service to farmers and ranchers in the farmlands outside of the city. In the late 1800s, the Ogden Livestock Yards were established and thousands of cattle, sheep, and pigs were shipped out of the Ogden area each year. Eight railroads eventually established themselves in Ogden, and as the area grew into a nationally recognized livestock center, the industry grew in importance in the area. An increased commercialization of both the livestock industry and the canning industry mark the period after the arrival of the railroad. As a junction city, Ogden became a center of livestock trade and of canning and export. The strong economic base and the employment opportunities created by the flourishing livestock and canning industries drew many new residents to the area. This provided the impetus for the development of several new residential subdivisions with the city, starting in the 1910s.

Eventually the canning industry grew to be even bigger than the livestock industry, being one of the largest employers in the Ogden area during this time. Although a few small canning factories had been established in Ogden and the surrounding areas (i.e., Roy and Hooper) before the turn of the century, full-scale development of the industry did not begin until the early 1900s. By 1919, more than 46 canneries were in the area (Roberts and Sadler 1985:88-89). Many of these were within Ogden City proper, while others were in the surrounding rural communities. Besides the canning factories, support facilities such as can manufacturing plants and paper box companies also developed around this time.

The economy of the County was definitely looking up in the 1920s. However, the impact of the stock market crash at the end of the decade on Weber County was substantial. As a whole, Utah was one of the states most affected by the Great Depression. At the time of the Great Depression, the economy of Ogden City was largely dependent on the agriculture (livestock and canning included) and railroad industries. As the value of agricultural products plunged, residents began to suffer hardships. The railroad companies could no longer afford to ship locally-produced goods to outside markets. As a result, not only did the farmers, ranchers, and cannery workers have no outlet for their products, but the railroad companies began laying off their own workers. Several canning factories, and many other local business, closed down during the Depression. Some reopened during or after World War II, but many others never did.

In an attempt to boost the economy by providing employment to local residents, many agencies, both private charity and government sponsored, developed public works projects in the mid-1930s. Federal programs such as the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC), the Federal Emergency Relief Administration (FERA), the National Youth Administration (NYA), the Public Works Administration (PWA), and the Works Progress Administration (WPA) provided employment and assistance to Weber County residents. Relief programs such as these helped to stay residents of Weber County through the Great Depression until the activities of World War II provided a permanent economic recovery.

The establishment of several government installations in Weber County in preparation for World War II also helped the struggling County economy. The establishment of these facilities provided new jobs for thousands of residents left unemployed by the Great Depression. Several new military installations were built in the Ogden area during this time including the Utah General Depot (now the Defense Depot Ogden), the Ogden Arsenal, and Hill Material Air Base (now Hill Air Force Base).

Although in north Davis County, Hill Material Air Base became one of the largest employers for Weber County residents both during and after its construction. Opened in 1939, the WPA constructed the base (Roberts and Sadler 1985:130). In addition to the growth from the new military installations, Ogden increased in importance as a regional railroad junction and freight clearinghouse. Because of its value as a hub of railroad activity, warehousing increased as did commercial activity. In fact, Ogden eventually came to possess the largest warehouse district in Utah (Polk 1989:9).

The post-war period is marked by rapid residential growth in the Ogden area, as a whole. Federal employment continued to play an important role in the economy of the Ogden area throughout the mid-1950s. The establishment of an IRS district office, the Western Internal Revenue Center, at the Defense Depot in late 1956 provided jobs for more than 360 local residents. By 1970, the work load of the center had outgrown the confines of the building at the Depot. As major industries, such as Thiokol Corporation (manufacturer of rocket motors), Kimberly-Clark, Iomega, and Morton International continue to locate in or near Ogden, the area attracts more residents.

The expansion of the population of Ogden and surrounding communities was directly reflected in the creation of new subdivisions and plats. In part, actual construction within the subdivisions was probably spurred by the strong economic growth of the Ogden area between the World Wars and the construction of the Ogden Arsenal in Sunset in 1920 (Roberts and Sadler 1985:114). During and after World War II, the growth of the nearby military establishments of Hill Air Force Base, Defense Depot Ogden and the Clearfield Naval Supply Depot spurred the growth of the newer subdivisions in Weber County.

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