Show PIONEERS pioneer OF BEAVER CIT CITY y hy by E CECIL mcgavin the month of february though tile the shortest of the year has given birth to more of americas leaders than any other mon month th more red numbers are found 0 on n the second sheet of the calendar than on any other single pa page ge yet a very important red read letter dayt day which is omitted 19 of special local interest this is february 6 1866 beavers natal day like tho the uncomely lincoln this city made its enar entrance ance into the world at on an inclement season and in the midst of adversity seventy one years yeara ago that pioneer band of stalwart homo home builders came into this then uninviting valley to begin the long and weary task of transforming it into ii ft flower bed the magic wand of pe perve rence which had redeemed many desert wastes in the great aasin wita was waved 0 ver over this sage bovere covered d land lan landane dand aad its parched paric d soil gave birth almost over night to fruitful orchards well built houses ital and contented people in ili january 1860 1850 a council of tile lending leading men of parowan carowan was called by george A smith at which it was decided to organize a company anti and start aart it a settlement on deaver beaver river the names of those pioneers who conic camo to heaver from iron county between february ath and the oth are simon P F howd willson G horace alexander barney carter james low john M davis jame duke james P ande anderson edward W thompson Char charles left carter joseph goff john kawles 0 beason lewis john Hc and ross R rogers A number of other families joined this vang vanguard mard during the spring and summer of 56 but the serious hardships of founding a settle settlement wore were b born orn by the above named the band seeking ig per permanent manen t domicile in tho the beaver valley departed from parowan february ath they spent the first night at mulo mule point that tl at night writes ana 0 of th the sturdy V trail blazers blazen tile the snow covered mhd ground that was fro frozen zon we built a bon firo fire of sage bago brush and thawed out tho the ground then removed and dug a hole in which ch wo cachedy cac our potatoes anti other provisions spread our blankets thereon after covering it with dirt and slept there for the night t next morning we e op open ed the cache loaded our provisions into tho the wagons and again noved beloved ain on for deliver beaver valley the first location was on tile the south bank of the river near chera the a present state road crosses crosser tile bridge 6 As the number was waa augmented the colonists sought other sites altes for homes and fields the survey of tho the city lots was W As be bc gun avill by J 11 IL martineau Martl neau who was soul sent from carowan parowan for that purpose ITO iio hall had been instructed to 0 o survey eight lots to a block with streets four rods in width tho the residents strenuously objected t to 0 this chis plan E W thompson was appointed to survey tile town according to the wish of tho the people the arrangement of the iho caw city lots was exactly as it la Is today to that first party this valley waa not at nil all inviting situated at an altitude of feet above sen sea level frosty and barren its surface covered in ili parts with sago sage brush and its soil oil impregnated with alkali alkul ft it was at first considered kunfi for occupation the mornion mormon colonists who the first anglo saxons ir in america I 1 tot to tl divert clivert astrea streams ms from their natural channels and develop a system oferl of ir ri gatlon tion were not to bo be discouraged by tho the short season and arid condition of the valley when a large volume of water was access accessible able boliver river was the main ottric ot trac tion ion which draw tho the indomitable sit set tiers and invited their ingenuity to build canals and thereby reclaim the broad valley which had been the rendezvous lendez for the beaver beave rAhe the king of the fur market when viewed 1 I in 14 i I 1 the spring time this stream otrea lm was bascon cori flider ed capable of su supplying applying moro more water than could possibly be used but that though was exter extirpated within a few months when it t was noticed that this arid land drank that dashing spring freshley fresh let until by october thiro thero was not enough water to remove the myriad of fallen leaves from its rock strewn bed among the first buildings in tho valley was the school house in fac the were not content just one school and before ie the corns was three years I 1 old fh there h were several seve iral successful n ap cration era tion every person af pf talent aoa pressed into the pedagogical s service and a school held in the privat li by 1858 the jil settlement took on the dimensions of a real rural town the approach of John johnsons sorN army the P previous year had called to td utah the many mormon sett settlers leri in california many of whim remained in thet the cowna of southern utah then too ther do de predations of blackhawk and other indian braves brave sim impelled PC blied the settlers to va vacate ato Cir circleville cleville ad nearby near by towns town 1 7 1 anti and seek refuge in this balley the prosperous cities of this county are monuments monument sto to the pioneers of 66 it is well that we revere their memory i honor their efforts and continue their achievements |