Show w v J MOAB MOAB- MOAB t Regardless of the Name Nome Its Impact Is Bs Great Greet By Maxine Newell The actual date of founding and naming Moab Is debatable among the historian set The TheOld TheOld TheOld Old Spanish Trail was blazed as far back as 1761 by JuanMaria Juan JuanMaria JuanMaria Maria and Father Escalante Esca Esca- lante Jante rode pretty close to the Ute valley vattey In 1776 A couple of lost trappers dropped in about 1809 and Kit Carson trapped beaver here in the In 1855 the Elk Mountain Mission made an attempt at settling the valley but finally gave it back to the Indians But If It their attempt to colonize was short lived their tall taU tales about the fertile green valley weren't They circulated for 20 years A few adventurous explorers and home seeking pioneers pioneers pi pi- came looking for the phantom valley only to retreat for various reasons reasons 0 hunger anger ger homesickness but but mostly Indian Indian Indian In In- dian troubles It took a group of sturdy cattlemen n to stick sUck it out long enough to to establish a apost apost apost post office and look about for fora a name It was called caned many things The Jumping 0 Off f f Place Mormon Fort Grand Valley VaHey and finally Moab Just where the Ute name Moab originated is another debatable story Some say It came from froman an Indian word meaning meanIng meaning mean mean- ing mosquitoes which prior to DDT days was a possibility Actually Actually Actually Ac Ac- the most likely story Is that It was named by W. W A. A PeIrce a pioneer bible student who tio dubbed It after a biblical term meaning The Far Coun Coun- try At any rate rote Moab it remained remain remain- ed and a synopsis of Its history reads like a Paul Bunyon tale Near here we have had the biggest biggest biggest big big- gest collection of renegades and outlaws in western history here some of the biggest Indian wars were fought Here once were grown three and rind one half inch grapes and Bartlett pears weighIng weighing weighing weigh weigh- ing a pound Here farmers produced produced produced pro pro- fourteen ounce peaches and twenty-five twenty ounce apples Moab Valley VaHey was the Ute scene of or the biggest uranium boom Inthe Inthe in inthe the history of the Ute US U.S. the big big- gest Best potash find and lies in the Ute Middle of one of ot the biggest potential potential potential po po- oil fields In the west And wo now we are being scheduled scheduled scheduled for one of the largest national parks In the nation So whatever the name Moab means It ft has hM certainly certainty had Its impact on Utah history A lot has happened In the past hundred hundred hundred hun hun- dred years a years a lot Jot is happening right now now now-a a lot will wilt happen In Inthe Inthe the too future Were We're glad you are here to help It along |