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    Early San Juan County
    Early San Juan County
    Early San Juan County
    Ebook178 pages38 minutes

    Early San Juan County

    By LaVerne Tate and San Juan County Historical Society

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    About this ebook

    San Juan County was established in 1880 following the famous winter trek and steep descent through the Hole-in-the-Rock Trail to Bluff, Utah. Behind the settlement of this community by the San Juan River is a story of tenacity, determination, and hardship. The Hole-in-the-Rock was a sandstone crevice discovered fortuitously by pioneers when a wild ram escaped its pursuers and descended to the river by that route. After blasting, building up the grade, and lowering by ropes, the wagon train finally emerged through the crevice to the river below and finished the last difficult miles into Bluff. Miner and photographer Charles Goodman documented the early days of San Juan County, from the production of bricks and molasses to the establishment of Bluff Oil Company, and many of his unique images, dating from 1892 to 1913, are included in this volume.
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherArcadia Publishing
    Release dateSep 15, 2008
    ISBN9781439620175
    Early San Juan County
    Author

    LaVerne Tate

    LaVerne Powell Tate grew up in Bluff and is the managing editor of the county�s historical publication, Blue Mountain Shadows. Tate has served on the committee of the San Juan County Historical Society for 23 years, and she has been the chairperson for 14 years. She received a 2004 Outstanding Achievement Award from the Utah State Historical Society and a 2006 Humanities Award from the Utah Humanities Council. Tate has drawn the images in this collection from the San Juan County Archives.

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      Book preview

      Early San Juan County - LaVerne Tate

      publications.

      INTRODUCTION

      No cameras were available to record the slow progress of the worn-out wagons and the dying cattle and pack mules of the San Juan Mission as its members traversed the last difficult miles to San Juan County. They stopped in Bluff, because they were too exhausted to move any farther, and they created the parent community for the entire area. The trek’s details were engraved into the minds of those who made the journey through the Hole-in-the-Rock. Those stories were passed down as sacred tenants of their families’ histories. Some of the group’s members were aware of an abandoned mission called Elk Mountain Mission that entered the northern part of the county in 1855. They tried to settle near Moab, Utah. All but three of the men of the Elk Mountain Mission were massacred by Native Americans and driven off the land.

      In the earliest years, gold was taken out of the sandbars of the lower San Juan River, and before the local people knew what was taking place, a gold rush ensued. Charles Goodman, a professional photographer, was among hundreds of prospectors who descended upon the town. Unlike the scores of prospectors who lost their hard-earned investments, Goodman brought the necessary means to support his interests. He was interested in slickrock canyon infernos and gold camps. He photographed the gold prospects they were seeking while traversing the canyons. He photographed mountain cattle camps, and he attended all community celebrations. His photographs recorded the times, places, and people of that first era, which has given us the history of the excitement starting in the 1890s. Many of the events, landmarks, buildings, and people have faded out of existence, but the vivid, descriptive images of his photographs provide the details. More than 100 of his photographs are included in this volume. San Juan is a large county today, but it was only a territory when it was first occupied. Since Utah became a state in 1896, women have always had the right to vote.

      Scholars have unearthed Spanish exploring forages that went through the northern end of San Juan County, beginning with Rivera’s records of 1785, which mention passing the sierra La Sal’s on the eastern side and viewing the sierra Abajo (Blue) Mountain southwest. In the following two decades, more Spaniards passed on their way to trade with the Yuta Indians farther north.

      Even though prosperous stockmen drove cattle into the grassland of the northern county, they were only interested in their vested ranching endeavors. Most of these groups came from Colorado and Texas to escape state taxes. They fattened their cattle and moved them out to the markets. In 1886 or shortly after, the Bluff settlers organized the Bluff Pool to combine their finances. They began a slow, successful, and organized effort to buy the cattle barons who were using up the grasslands of the county. One of the earliest assets was the San Juan Co-op store in Bluff. It was fortified by the gold-and-oil booms and was initially successful. A Texas outfit cattle drive moved onto the settler’s rangeland on Elk Mountain. After much wrangling on both sides, the co-op bought them out. In 1888, a group of tenacious homesteaders associated with the Thomas Ray family settled in the area called Coyote (now known as La Sal).

      The early settlers’ spirit of industry and building is apparent in the area today, but this book shows the harsh conditions the settlers endured. Their contributions continue to motivate today’s residents.

      This c. 1894 photograph shows the Bluff Swing Tree, where the town’s first church services were held until the log church was built. The site hosted many community affairs and picnics. On an ordinary, balmy summer evening, the young people gathered under its branches to fiddle, play guitars, and dance. Its huge branches offered relief from the hot, arid summers. The tree was later washed away in one of the floods the area experienced.

      One

      THE BLUFF FORT AND EARLY CABINS

      The schoolhouse, built in Bluff by 1884, was constructed of split cottonwood logs. The wide crevices were filled with mud. Rough split-log benches and a few slates with a potbellied stove were the sparse furnishings. All grade levels were taught in one room. Kumen Jones was appointed superintendent in 1880. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints services were held each Sunday in the building where all the community meetings and entertainment activities were held. From left to right in this photograph are the appointed church leaders, Kumen Jones, Platte D. Lyman, Jens Nelson, James B. Decker, and Francis A. Hammond.

      The Wayne Redd cabin in Bluff is a typical example of the gnarled, uneven patterns that these cottonwood logs produced. In 1885, family members dragged logs, notched them, and then chinked the cracks. They hauled buckets full of red dirt for roofing to make it livable. From left to right in this photograph are Louie, Eva, Louisa E., and Frank Redd.

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