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A Place Among the Peaks

"The themes that thread their way through Summit County’s recorded history are shared by other communities in Utah and around the West: the first Mormon settlers, eking a living from the land; the rise and demise of a mining boom town; the not-always cozy relationship between members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and gentiles or non-LDS; the impact of railroads and modern highways; the thirst for water to make the desert bloom; the discovery of oil and natural gas; and the modern lure of Rocky Mountain ski resort towns. However, in few places have so many of these themes interacted to define such a small area in such a profound way.¹"

While Euro-American trappers and Native populations traversed the mountains and valleys of what would become Summit County long before the 1840’s, the recorded history of this corner of Utah begins during that decade. Men that left their names as permanent reminders of their visit include John G. Weber, Peter Skene Ogden, and Etienne Provost. While most of the early immigrant trains avoided the area that would become Utah altogether, the unofficial “gateway to Utah,” Echo Canyon, would soon hear the noise of wagon wheels.

By 1846, immigration to the West Coast had increased dramatically and, with it, those men who planned to make a fortune from the trail-weary travelers. Among this lot of men was Lansford Hastings. Hastings published a book of maps and descriptions of the westward trail, including his new “Hastings Cutoff.” This route directed wagon trains down Echo Canyon, through East Canyon, around the southern tip of the Great Salt Lake, and then west across the barren desert and salt flats of the Great Salt Lake Desert. Hastings failed to describe the vastness of the west desert in his book, which led to disaster for some travelers (including the well-known Donner-Reed Party).

Mormon (members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints) settlers first arrived in the Salt Lake Valley in 1847, having traveled through Echo Canyon in what would someday become Summit County. The next 20–30 years would see the greatest settlement in the American West take place in Utah and the surrounding territory settled by Mormon pioneers.

Summit County was first established by the Utah Territorial Legislature in 1854. The original borders were much larger than the present configuration as large swaths of Wyoming and portions of Daggett, Wasatch, and Duchesne Counties were part of Summit. Summit County was named for the high peaks of the Uinta mountains as well as housing the headwaters of four of Utah's major rivers: the Weber, Provo, Bear, and Duchesne. Because the population of the county was so low in 1854, the majority of the administrative duties of the county were fulfilled by Great Salt Lake County. However, in 1861, the territorial legislature passed a law requiring Summit County to provide its own elected leadership.

Like all settlements in the west, the early villages of Summit County arose along the wagon trails, and, more importantly, near rivers and springs that provided fresh water. Not only was water needed for drinking but also to irrigate the crops that were necessary to provide food for man and beast. Echo and Henefer were among the first settlements in the county, and they sprung up along the Pioneer Trail. Both were also located along waterways: the Weber River and Echo Creek and the Weber River and Main Canyon Creek, respectively.

In September 1853, William Gardner would lead a party of men from the mouth of the Weber River to its source in the High Uintas. From there, they followed the Provo River to its mouth. It was from this expedition that most of the communities in Summit County evolved.

Coalville and Hoytsville were settled along the Weber River as well as Chalk Creek — the waterway would lend its name to the settlement of Coalville for many of the early years. The abundance of coal found near Coalville would lead to the name change for the community. Wanship sat at the confluence of Silver Creek and the Weber River, a location that was critically important during the years of the stagecoach, railroad, and wagon freighting.

The Kamas Valley was first seen as a land of abundant grasses suitable for grazing and nearby canyons teeming with timber. The Weber and Provo Rivers bookend the valley on the north and south, flowing from their headwaters high above. Thomas Rhoads, sometimes spelled Rhoades or Rhodes, was the first white settler in the valley, building a cabin just north of present-day Kamas in 1857. Over the next five years, the fledgling settlements of Peoa and Kamas would take root. Settlement would spread throughout the valley, creating the communities of Oakley, Marion, Francis, and Woodland as well.

Parley P. Pratt visited the Snyderville Basin in 1848, remarking on the lush meadow grasses and abundant timber as well as the ten creeks that flowed through the valley. By 1853, Samuel C. Snyder settled in the area and gave his name to the settlement, Snyderville. Snyder is credited with setting up the first gristmill and sawmill in Summit County. Timber and livestock would play an essential role in the economy of Snyderville and the surrounding Parley’s Park areas for several decades.

Discovered by U.S. Army soldiers in the late 1860’s, silver would transform the settlement of Park City and lead to a history of boom-and-bust cycles that saw the city reach the highest highs and lowest of lows. Like nearly every mining town in the west, Park City became a wild and bustling town almost overnight. Boarding houses, mine buildings, saloons, and stores spread up and down the canyons and hillsides. Immigrants from many countries headed to “The Park,” as locals called it, in an attempt to better their lives. This led to Park City becoming among the most diverse towns in Utah. In 1898, a fire swept through much of the city and destroyed an estimated 120 businesses and 140 residences, but the locals soon rebuilt. After the silver and other precious metals were all extracted, Park City suffered a prolonged bust-period. By the 1970’s it was being revitalized, slowly, into the winter sports mecca it would become in modern times.

¹Hampshire, Bradley & Roberts. A History of Summit County. Summit County Commission, 1998, pg. 2.