SETTLEMENTS TRANSPORTATION & MINING Chapter 9 Utah Studies

HUNTSVILLE-1860  Seven families led by Jefferson Hunt established Huntsville in  They found Shoshone living in the Ogden Valley and paid a tax of cattle, flour and vegetables.  They followed the pattern of building homes, laying out a town, and planting crops.  In 1864 a large group of Danish Immigrants settled in what used to be called “Ogden’s Hole.”

Ogden Valley-This is where Jefferson Hunt established Huntsville in 1860.

THE COTTON MISSION-1861  “Utah’s Dixie” in Southern Utah was settled to help in the effort to make Utah self-sufficient.  The families called to settle this area were to supply the Territory with cotton, sugar, grapes, figs and olive oil.  A large caravan of 300 men and their families reached their new home along the Virgin River.  They named the place St. George after their leader, George A. Smith

St. George, Utah This area was called “Dixie” because it had a warmer climate and could grow cotton like the Southern United States which was also called “Dixie”.

TRANSPORTATION  Moving supplies and mail was a problem all over the West, and Utah was not an exception.  A system called freighting was used to carry food and manufactured goods to towns and army and mining camps.  They biggest company that did this was called Russel, Majors and Waddel.  They use heavy wagons pulled by mules.  There were many dangers involved in freighting.

A Freighting Company A Freighting Company Route through Utah

STAGECOACHES  This was another method used to move people to the Western United States.  Stagecoaches were a system designed to make the travel west easier on the passengers than coming in a wagon train.  There were stations set up along the way so drivers could get fresh horses.  Sometimes the passengers would even get a hot meal.

A Stagecoach The Stagecoach route through Utah followed the same route used by the Pony Express

GOSHUTE WAR-1860  The stagecoach line ran through Goshute lands in the western part of Utah.  Sometimes when the Goshutes were desperate for food they would attack the stagecoach stations.  U.S. Army troops attempted to restore order along the trail.  Sixteen whites and over a hundred Indians were eventually killed.  Seven stations were destroyed and the route was closed for a long time.

Simpson Springs Station- Where the Goshute War Started Pony Express / Stagecoach Route through Utah

THE PONY EXPRESS  In March of 1860 western newspapers ran the following ad: WANTED-YOUNG, SKINNY, WIRY FELLOWS Not over 18. Must be expert riders, willing to risk death daily. Orphans preferred. WAGES $25 per week.  The Pony Express had a bold plan to carry mail from Missouri to California in 10 days.  Before the Pony Express came along it took months to get mail to the West by ship or stagecoach.

THE PONY EXPRESS  The Pony Express built relay stations about every 10 miles along the route.  At each station the rider jumped off of his weary pony and mounted a fresh one.  They were given two minutes to drink water and eat a slice of bread.  After changing horses eight times, the rider tossed the bag to a new rider.

The Pony Express Route followed the California Trail that had been established by Wagon trains 14 years earlier.

This map shows the many stations that were built along the Pony Express Trail.

THE TELEGRAPH ENDS THE PONY EXPRESS  From April 1860 to October 1861 the Pony Express ran every week.  The Pony Express died quickly when the telegraph came along.  Telegraph companies hired men to cut down trees and place tall strong wooden poles from Omaha, Nebraska to San Francisco, California.  Two companies raced to complete the task.  One went east and the other went west.  The telegraph lines met in Salt Lake City in October  Messages were flashed in seconds across plains and mountains.

Telegraph Machine This drawing presents a contrast between the older and newer ways of communicating in the West.

CAMP DOUGLAS  About a year after Johnston’s Army left to go fight in the Civil War, about 750 soldiers from California and Nevada came to Utah.  They were given the duty of protecting the mail and telegraph lines from Indian attack.  The men built Camp Douglas in the foothills above Salt Lake City.  They were led by Colonel Patrick Edward Connor.  He would become an enemy to the Mormons and the Indians.

Camp Douglas Patrick Edward Connor

A CONTINUED CLASH OF CULTURES  In 1861, Abraham Lincoln had been elected President of the United States.  Most of his energy was devoted to trying to end the Civil War.  However he did get involved in some Indian problems in the West.  Abraham Lincoln established the Uintah Valley Reservation that Utes were moved to.  This land was only about 9 percent of their original homeland.

THE BEAR RIVER MASSACRE  The Oregon Trail ran through Southern Idaho, and there had been a lot of conflicts between the Shoshone and travelers on the trail.  There had also been some conflicts between the Shoshone and Mormon pioneers living in Cache Valley.  Both of these situations created tension.  The Mormons had requested some help with defense against the Indians.  They did not want a battle or a fight with the Indians.

THE BEAR RIVER MASSACRE  Captain Patrick Edward Connor, who was in charge of Army troops in Salt Lake City was eager to respond to the call for help.  Connor was disliked by the Mormons and the Indians, and the feeling was mutual.  The reasons that Connor decided to come up to Cache Valley were not entirely clear, but it was probably for two reasons.  Some Shoshones had been attacking people on the Oregon Trail.  Connor wanted some glory for himself.

BEAR RIVER MASSACRE  In January of 1863 Connor marched his troops through the snow up to Cache Valley.  When they reached Franklin, Idaho (my hometown) they talked with Mormon settlers.  Connor had already determined what he would do before he talked to the Mormons.  Early in the morning of January 29, 1863 Connor and his men went to the edge of a bluff overlooking the Bear River where the Shoshone had made their winter camp.

Bear River Massacre Site This is a Map of Southern Idaho and Northern Utah. This circled area is Cache Valley Franklin, Idaho Massacre Site

BEAR RIVER MASSACRE  Connor placed his artillery on the bluff, and had his infantry cross the river to the Shoshone camp. The Shoshone were still asleep.  Connor had his men attack, and by the time the Shoshone realized what was happening it was already a slaughter.  The Shoshone did fight back, but ran out of bullets within two hours.  After that the soldiers searched through the willows and killed all the Native Americans they found including women and children.

BEAR RIVER MASSACRE  After the massacre was over, some soldiers went back through raping Indian women and bashing in the heads of Indian children.  The soldiers then carried their dead and wounded out of the battlefield and back to Salt Lake City.  The Shoshone bodies were left to be consumed by wolves and crows.  Chief Bear Hunter and Chief Lehi were both killed.  Connor reported that there had been a battle and that Indians had provoked him.  It was not until 70 to 80 years later that the truth came out and the result was that it has been called a massacre, where before it had been called the Battle of Bear River.

BEAR RIVER MASSACRE  Connor was promoted to Colonel because of this. It was thought that he was a hero.  Mormons who came to the site to help the Shoshone were sickened by the scene.  Over 300 people died including over 250 Shoshone men, women, and children.  This was not well known because it happened during the Civil War.

THE BLACK HAWK WAR  As more and more Mormons moved into Utah, the Indians lost more and more land.  Brigham Young and a government agent convinced Indians to sign a treaty that would require them to give up their land and move to a reservation.  In return, the government would pay the Indians money and provide animals, shelter, clothing, food and training in agriculture.  This treaty was taken to Washington D.C. to be approved.  It was ignored for a long time, then rejected.

THE BLACK HAWK WAR  While this approval process was going on, the Indian agent began forcing Utes, including men, women and young children to walk to the Uinta Basin during the winter.  On the journey, the Utes suffered and there were many deaths from starvation and cold.  Black Hawk, who was the son of Sanpitch, a Ute Indian Chief, realized his people had failed to get food and money promised by the government.  Black Hawk began attacking Mormon settlements for horses and cattle.  Many Utes, Paiutes, and Navajos united and attacked towns.

THE BLACK HAWK WAR  Most of the attacks were in the Sanpete and Sevier Valleys.  Eventually Sanpitch was killed by the Utah Militia, which made Black Hawk angrier.  The largest massacre of Indians occurred at Circleville when at least 16 unarmed men, women and children were killed.  There was brutality on both sides with settlers and Indians being killed.  Eventually Black Hawk signed a peace treaty, and even toured Utah towns explaining the terrible conditions of his starving people.

Black Hawk Brigham Young Sanpete Valley Sevier Valley

MINING IN THE UTAH TERRITORY  Utah was rich in mineral ore, but most of the deposits lay hidden in the ground for a long time.  When mining became a big industry, there were some mine owners who became rich.  There were also industries that were created from “mining the miners”.  The Bingham Canyon mine had gold, silver and copper in it and was located on the east side of the Oquirrh Mountains.  It did not get mined until soldiers from Camp Douglas started mining there.

MINING TOWNS  General Connor set up a smelter to separate the ore from minerals in the Tooele Valley.  The town of Stockton, which was Utah’s first non- Mormon town was started on the west side of the Oquirrh Mountains as a mining town.  Ore was also found in Alta, where the ski resorts of Alta and Snowbird are today.  Park City had deposits of silver, lead and gold.  People from all over the world came to mine there.

This map shows where minerals have been or are currently located in Utah.

Bingham Canyon Mine Park City Alta Stockton, Utah

BUSINESS AND MANUFACTURING  Farming was still the main occupation in Utah, but as more people moved in other jobs were created to meet the needs of the territory.  Samuel Auerbach opened a grocery store, a banking company and an Auerbach Department Store.  The Mormons started a store called ZCMI (Zion’s Cooperative Mercantile Institution) which manufactured and distributed goods to stores all over the territory.  Brigham Young encouraged members of the LDS Church to do business with LDS cooperatives and stores.

ZCMI Salt Lake City ZCMI Sevier County ZCMI Franklin, IdahoSpanish Fork Co-op