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Driving Guide Canyon Hills” where, they prayed for health for their leader, and for all the Latter Day Saints who would follow them one day along the trail, and for their wives and children left behind in Winter Quarters. By 1857, the Mormon way of life was threatened by fear of an impending “Utah War.” Spring Creek was established by General Wells as a commissary for the Mormon troops. It was operated by members of the territorial militia. Supplies were not forwarded but the commissary was used as a place where Mormon troops could stop and get re-supplied of have a hot meal. There was a second commissary near present day Echo City called Weber Station and a third one on the Utah- Wyoming border at yellow creek. Remnants of stone erected by the Mormon Militia during the Utah War of 1857-58 still can be seen in the red cliffs of Echo Canyon. And, in 1858, troops of the U.S. Army did indeed arrive to quell what was called the “Mormon Rebellion.” In 1890 polygamy was officially abandoned. And in 1896 Utah became the 45th state of the Union. Echo was settled in 1854 by James E. Bromley. Mr. Bromley was Division Superintendent in charge of the mail and operated the Weber Stage Station. Echo remained a quiet little town until the Union Pacific Railroad was being built, when encampments, saloons, and brothels sprung up everywhere, and the town became a part of the Wild West. When one of the saloon cellars was excavated, seven skeletons were found under it among the whiskey bottles. When the station was demolished, in a wall, were found a love letter to a rider, along with a $5.00 gold piece and a pair of gold rimmed spectacles. The Pony Express, in 1860 and 1861, carried messages preserved and displayed at the Daughters of Utah Pioneers (DUP) cabin and may be seen by appointment. One of the first pioneers William Clayton writes: “There was a very singular echo in this ravine, the rattling of wagons resembled carpenters hammering at board inside the highest rocks. The echo, the high rocks on the north, high mountains on the south, with a narrow ravine for a road, formed a scenery at once romantic and more interesting than I have ever witnessed.” “ An American artist might extract from such scenery as Echo Canyon, a system of architecture as original and as “ An American artist might extract from such scenery as Echo Canyon, a system of architecture as original and as national as Egypt ever borrowed from her sandstone ledges or the North of Europe from the depths of her forests”. — Sir Richard Burton 1860 A W A R D 2 0 0 0 P R E S E R V A T I O N HISTORICAL SOCIETY SUMMIT COUNTY Stand at the mouth of Echo Canyon and shout out your name. You’ll know in an instant why it’s called Echo Canyon. This was one of the foremost paths of the new nation’s Westward Expansion. Pursuing vast herds of bison, Native Americans first traveled the trail through the canyon floor, followed by trappers, explorers and seekers of gold and silver. Pioneers all, used this natural gateway from the towering peaks of Wyoming and Eastern Utah to the flat salt deserts and unknown lands to the West. Soon wagon trains traversed the canyon floor, then the Overland Stage, the first Intercontinental Telegraph, and the Union Pacific Railroad snaked its way through the canyon on its way to meet the Central Pacific at Promontory Point on the Great Salt Lake. Who, in 1846, ever dreamed that the Lincoln Highway and Interstate 80 would one day pass this way, bringing visitors from all over this great land to Echo Canyon? For it was in July, 1846, that the Lienhard and Harlan-Young parties explored the area, driving wagons along the treacherous and virtually impassable Weber River (pronounced “Weeber,” after Captain John Weber of the 1823 Ashley Fur expedition.) The rock-filled river’s edge was so treacherous that the famed Donnor party later that year bypassed the canyon entirely and blazed a new trail West, one that took them 21 days to travel the 36 miles to Salt Lake City. Then a year later, in 1847, Brigham Young led his Mormon immigrants over the Echo Canyon trail to Salt Lake City Valley. In the next twenty years, 80,000 of the Mormon faithful traveled Echo Canyon, by wagon, handcart and on foot. Echo Canyon became an important Mormon Trail. Utah became a Territory in 1850, with Brigham Young as its first Governor. When Young and members of his party fell ill in camp, four members of the Brigham Young Quorum and six other brethren scaled the high and steep “Supplication Brigham Young Supplication Hills above Temple Camp Echo Dam from Salt Lake City to New York City, ten words for $5.00 ($85.00 today, when a picture post card cost 26 cents and takes a small fraction of the time to get there.) In addition to Echo, the Pony Express, whenever its riders survived the precarious journey, made stops at Dixie Hollow, Weber, Hanging Rock, and Castle Rock, the latter two featuring spectacular sandstone cliffs which overhang the highway today. In Castle Rock, ambitious settlers, attracted by the hope of trade with others traveling the canyon, homesteaded the land and built a town which soon boasted a railroad depot, section house for rail workers, a water-driven mill, and a school house. Echo Church, built under towering conglomerate cliffs, had brick walls, a belfry steeple and a wooden entry. It was a public school from 1880 until 1913, then a Mormon chapel for the next fifty years. It is now a meeting hall and museum, alongside the Echo cemetery. Henefer is a farming community where the trail leaves the Weber River. In 1859, the first homes were built from adobe brick, packed mud floors, dirt roofs and windows barred by shutters for protection from the Indian attack, then still a fact of life in the West. Early settlers raised grain and cattle, but many things we take for granted, like yeast for baking, needles for sewing, and matches for fire, were scarce indeed. These and countless other pioneer artifacts are A pair of reckless young men set off on the outlaw trail. As usual, the trouble started over something trivial, a few boxes of berries, but the repercussions were devastating. The killing of Echo City Constable Thomas A. Stagg and former Evanston City Marshal Edward N. Dawes on July 30, 1895, precipitated one of the largest man hunts Utah has ever known. Echo Church Steamboat Rocks Poster not authentic This is Echo Canyon, a name and a place which still resounds in the hearts and minds of the Mormon people of Utah and people everywhere. Photo by A.J. Russel 1868 Courtesy of the Union Pacific Historical Collection Echo Canyon final 2009:Layout 1 4/28/11 10:16 AM Page 1 ---PAGE BREAK--- Coalville Henefer Echo Reservoir Echo Evanston, WY 7 mi. Ogden 33 mi. Echo Canyon 80 65 Mormon Trail/ Pony Express Lincoln Hwy 17 7 6 9 15 23 10 5 11 12 13 20 21 22 24 19 4 14 8 29 30 2 3 16 84 18 1 ECHO CANYON 1. Echo Junction. (Exit 169) Echo Canyon Road. 2. Monument Rock. Is a prominent and unusual rock formation and can be seen in a side canyon to the right of the road. 3. Echo Roller Mills. Built as a gristmill in 1871. One of the original millstones is displayed at the (DUP) cabin in Henefer 4. Red Rock Dam. A red sandstone wall, about 100 feet long. It was built on the northwest bank of Echo Canyon Creek, just above Steamboat Rock and extended southwest from the railroad track to the creek. This wall’s original historic significance is not known. 1.6 miles east from I-80/Echo underpass along Echo Canyon Rd. 5. Death’s Rock. As a result of the Utah War, in 1858, the only Mormon to die was accidentally shot from the top of the bluff. 6. Stone Breastworks. Top of the cliff shows remnants of stone.Erected by the Mormon Militia during the “Utah War” of 1857-58 3.6 miles east of Echo I-80 underpass along Echo Canyon Rd. 7. Billboard Bluff. The completion of the Pacific Railroad brought opportunity for inventive advertising. Plantation Bitters (painted on rock), was an early billboard for a new medicine active ingredient was 33% Santa Cruz rum. 8. Jack in the Pulpit. “As if expounding the law and gospel to his scattering auditors”. Approximately 1.5 miles from Hanging Rock. 9. Hanging Rock. A Stage Station. Pioneer names can still be found on the rocks. 10. Winged Rock. On their way to Salt Lake City in 1858, the United States Army camped at the base of this formation. Monument Rock Hanging Rock Names of Pioneers Echo Post Office Echo Junction. (Exit 169) Echo Canyon Road Please visit Echo rest area and information. (Exit 170) Letter carried by the Pony Express Stone Breastworks (fortifications) Red Rock Dam Gristmill marker The first known law enforcement officer to give his life in the line of duty was Sheriff Rodney Badger, one of the original pioneers. He drowned in 1853 in the Weber River while assisting pioneers who were fording the river. Death’s Rock Billboard Bluff (Early advertisements) Jack in the Pulpit Winged Rock 20. Echo Post Office. 21. Echo School. (Nat. Reg.) Built 1914. Continuous use since 1928. 22. Temple Camp and Supplication Hills. 1 mile north of Echo on Highway 30 23. The Witches. Natural pinnacles. Described as figures in kirtles and steeple-hats or bonnets, or witch-like. 1.3 miles west of Echo. 24. Weber River Crossing. HENEFER 25. Weber Canyon Explorers Trail Monument. I-80 Exit. 26. Mormon Pioneer National Historical Trail Monument. Hwy 65. 27. Henefer Pony Express Monument. 100 North. 28. Daughters of the Utah Pioneers Cabin. Echo Gristmill Monument and Mormon Trail Monument 40 Center. 29. Pratts Pass. The emigrants crossed the Weber River upstream from Henefer and camped. The trail follows the Donner-Reed route up SR 65 30. Hogsback Summit or Heartbreak Ridge. At this point pioneers were elated at the prospect of journey’s end, but dismayed by the rugged terrain. Faint ruts are still barely visible a few yards west (right) of the road. 11. Castle Rock. exit #185 Below this large crag was a popular emigrant campsite, where Brigham Young’s party camped July 15, 1847. Site of Pony Express Station. For a slower and more intimate look at the trail, leave I-80 at exit #178, signed Emory, and drive down the frontage road for 8 miles to the fortifications. 12. Brigham’s Monument. Left of Castle on the Mountain stands this formation. It was called by many names including, Sentinel Rock, Chimney Rock, Tower on the Castle Rock and Brigham’s Monument. 13. The Devils Post office. Underneath stood the 1861 Stage Station 14. Cache Cave. (limited access by appointment) 15. Wahsatch. The 1916 railroad tunnel’s east portal can be seen 200 yards west of siting. I-80 Exit 193. 16. Water Tank at Wahsatch. During the winter of 1868-1869 Wahsatch was the headquarters for the Union Pacific track layers. Population 1500. ECHO 17. Pony Express (Weber). Stagecoach Ranch and site of Pony Express. 18. Echo Church. (Nat. Reg.) Built 1876. Head of Temple Lane. 19. Echo Cemetery. Adjacent to Echo Church (Thomas Stagg.) Canyon A W A R D 2 0 0 0 P R E S E R V A T I O N HISTORICAL SOCIETY SUMMIT COUNTY Weber Pony Express Marker The Witches Rocks The Devils Post Office, Castle Rock Water Tank at Wahsatch 86 65 65 84 65 300 North St. 200 No rth St. 100 North 100 South 200 South Main St. W e be r R i ver Center St. 28 27 26 25 Old Mormon Trail marker located at the Henefer DUP Museum. The Daughters of the Pioneers (DUP) Please visit our HISTORICAL SOCIETY MUSEUM 60 NORTH MAIN COALVILLE, UTAH www.summitcounty.org/history Summit County Courthouse, George Beard Collection, courtesy L. Tom Perry Special Collections, Harold B. Lee Library, Brigham Young University, Provo, Utah Funded through Park City Chamber and Visitors Bureau Photo courtesy Utah State Historical Society Photo courtesy Marguerite J. Wright Brochure design by T Squared Studios © 2008 Summit County Historical Society HENEFER Echo Canyon final 2009:Layout 1 4/28/11 10:17 AM Page 2