Show BEAR LAKE VALLEY famor editor deseret near of the twenty seven wards one only a branch comprising the bear lake stake of zion fourteen are situated in bear lake county idaho which together have a total membership of divided into families a little in ex cess of three fifths of the entire mew mem barship of the stake bear lake county embraces the extreme south east corner of the state of idaho and Is ia one of the smallest but most thickly populated counties of the state its area is about square miles and its population according to the united stites states census in 1890 the greater portion of the county consists of mountains mountain covered in many places with a heavy growth of pine timberland tim berand the lower hills bills with nutritious grasses affording excellent facilities for pasturage while the settled part to is confined to the famous bear lake valley extends north and south through gli nearly the entire length of the cou uty with an average width of about six miles the entire valley in chiding that part pare thereof lying in rich aich county utah is nearly fifty miles long and varies in width from oue one to eight allus miles the surface of chevalley the valley is somewhat uneven in many places which makes irrigation rather difficult in some of the settlements but the soil is generally very rich and productive and water wherewith to irrigate it mple ample bear lake county is divided into six just Justices icesS precincts thirteen voting precincts and twenty school districts the renowned bear lake nt nestles astles in the south end of the valley and covers coven an area of upwards of one hundred square milles miles it is twenty miles long with an aa average width of five miles its widest part from the mouth of snow creek on the west went side to eden on the eastside east side near the boundary line between idaho and utah is seven and one half miles this is one of the finest sheets beets of water in the icky mountains and abounds in fish of various kinds such as several kinds of trout salmon trout silver trout speckled trout and mountain brook trout also mullet and white fish as well as chub the lake is fed by several mountain streams and these also alao abound in fish it has an outlet emptying into bear river in the north 4 the shores of the lake are mostly sandy aandy and gravelly in some places rocky thus aft affording a clem cleb and easy approach the water is shallow for some distance out when it gradually deepens to an extent not as yet determined the water is very clear affording a view of the bottom at a depth of ten or fifteen feet paris the headquarters of the bear lake stake and ana the county seat of bear lake county is the largest settlement in bear lake valley it is beautifully situated on the north bank of paris creek near the base of the mountains on the side bide of the v valley ey ten en m miles es aou southwest 8 of montpelier the nearest dearest railway station and eight miles iles northwest of the north end of the lake paris can boast of a large number of fine brick buildings and among its public structures the fine stake tabernacle towers up high above everything else in the town it is one of the finest stake houses owned by the latter day saints saint and is built of a species of granite and red sandstone hauled a distance of sixteen miles from the place where they were quarried on the east side of the lake paris has also a fine two iwo story court house two word ward houses ot 01 e school house two stores a first class roller mill a number dumber of shops etc the town is divided into two wards of which william west vre presides sides as bishop over the south or first ward and robert price over the north dorth or second ward the former has a total membership of or 76 families and the latter members or 88 famine families paris ws first settled by apostle charles C rich and many others in the fall 1863 and Is in the oldest settlement in bear lake valley bloomington one prose berous settlements in the valley lies two miles south of parts paris on a beautiful stream of water and surrounded by some gome of the best beat farming land in the county besides raising all kinds of small grain suitable to the alimae bloomington also produces fruits of various kinds and it to is estimated that one ode hundred bushels of choice apples were raised there this year besides large quantities of plums and cherries and a few pears pear this place may almost be called a suburb of paris being so adjacent thereto william hulme is the bishop the place was first settled in the spring of 1864 saint charles thus named in honor of charles C rich to is a flourishing settlement and second to paris in size situated about six miles south of bloomington or eight miles south of parts paris and a mile and a half west of the north end of bear lake like paris and bloomington it nestles fit at the foot of the mountains which separates bear lake from cache valley and is in surrounded by fertile lands and and well cultivated farms A large number of the inhabitants are scandinavians nav ians mostly swedish john A hunt to is the bishop the ward numbers souls or families and is consequently the second largest ward in the bear lake stake was settled in the spring of 1864 fish hayen ward embraces the village of that name and the settlers living on their farms north and south of the village along the shores of the lake the village is most beautifully situated an the west bank of the lake jake and commands a very excellent view of the whole surface of the sane same as aa well as of nearly the entire valley in the summer season it is visited by hundreds of tourists who come to enjoy the beautiful scenery the fresh air a bath in and a boat ride on the lake fish hav haven en claims to raise the best fruit in the valley and as good grain as any of the other settlements but some farming land is uneven and rolling lying as it does on the tops and the slopes slope of the foothills as the narrow strip of land ladd on which the village is built is only half a mile wide the lake being on the east anti anil the foot foothills hillson on the west side fish haven ward contains members or 30 families over whom john stock an elderly man presides as bishop the place was first settled in 1864 ovid is a scattered settlement lying north of paris the centre of the ward where the town used to stand is four and a half miles north of that place and six miles SOU southeast of montpelier the majority of the people have moved out on their farms and ranches which extend for several miles west and north from the centre philemon lindsay is the bishop the ward has 31 families or members and a large proportion of the people is s ot of danish origin also this place was wag settled in the spring of 1864 liberty ward embraces the scattered settlers residing on liberty creek and north creek including the village of that name situated in the forks of the two streams mentioned about four miles northwest of ovid and eight miles northwest of parts paris the settlers live along the creeks and their houses and farms extend for a distance of about miles and this was the place where the bear lake valley pioneers of 1863 first entered but passed oil on to where paris now nta ds de before they made a location edwin N austin is bishop of the liberty ward which consists af members or forty nine families the place was first settled in the spring of 1864 berne is a small email ward lying ovid and consists chiefly of swiss saints who live by ranching and dairying the place is noted for its excellent quality of cheese the centre of the ward or the place where the meetings are generally held is about four miles northeast of ovid of eight and a half northeast from paris and four and a half balf northwest of mont pelier pel ier the whole strength of the ward consists of nine families or seventy souls who live in a scattered condition on springs gushing forth along foothills foot hills bills on the west side of bear river the ward extends north and south for a distance of about five miles john kunz is bishop montpelier the railway town of bear lake valley lies two miles east of bear river at the mouth of a canyon and near the base of the mountains bordering the east side of the valley since the completion of the oregon short line montpelier has been the headquarters of gentile influences in this part of the country and a anew new town lyl lying 9 immediately west of the original mormon 12 settlement has been founded which today is principally inhabited by non mormons cormons Mor mons 1 I while the old town founded by the saints in 1864 1 continues principally as a mormon town this place owing to its iti exposure to the winds from the northis reckoned to be the coldest place in bear la lake valley its altitude is feet abo above the level of the sea no fruit to speak of is raised here montpelier list iu the largest town and warn ward in the bear bea lake stake it numbered members member of the church or families famili eP and the non mormon population exceed this considerably wm L rich a son of the late apostle chap C rich il is the bishop 11 preston reston ward embraces that distri district of country lying south of Mout pelie and north of bear river the th townsite which is occupied by about dozen families out of the seventeen families fam i lie or eighty eight souls which constitutes the ward lies near dear thie the or ore gon short line track five miles L louth t east of montpelier and three nail miles Dor north thweat west of the mouth of the canyon through which bear river enters rear bear lake valley from the east charles Q G keetch a young man called from st charles for the purpose of greald preside ing ine is the bishop of preston which was first settled in the fall of 1866 by preston thomas after whom the place has derived its name dame dingle ward lies opposite the river from preston and consists of thirty nine families of saints or 22 adz part of whom reside on the townsite 0 afi dingle situated immediately south 0 ol 01 the celebrated peg leg island I 1 in bear river aj miles southeast ol 01 PrO preston eight miles southeast of mo mont pelier peli erand and seven miles in a straight line due east of paris the place U quite windy but less leas subject to fr frost than any part of bear lake valle valley and the snowfall snow fall is also lighter T th farming ian laar is good but part of it h broken and rolling ramuel hu humphreys is bishop of the dingle W warda the place was first settled in the sprit sprint i of 1871 but long before the haink came to utah a WRO man widely known un an peg leg smith had a hut or tra trad ing post on the island which bears h hu name to this day bennington pelier and embra embraces ees a large tract c country lying east of bear river riler I 1 in eluding the village of BenDing bennington Benning too to which to ie situ ateAn an elevated pie of ground abo about u tak miles northwest 0 montpelier surrounding The farming land is go goo and productive but water is scarce an the place subject to early and ia y roeta which has caused the lose 0 crops repeatedly only about half i dozen families reside on the townsite downsi thereat the rest live on their respective far farm and homesteads the place w as 8 fin settled in the spring of 1864 and t tb present bishop Is amos B R W rl right gh the numerical strength of the ward r d fi fifty two families or souls georgetown ward embraces th saints ie residing siding on twin creek in t extreme north end of bear lake v val ley including the village of georg george town which is located on the lowlands low landt skirting twin creek about a mile e cart of the point where that stream empty into bear river seven and a half mil northwest of bennington twelve rmel northwest of montpelier and awen twenty two miles north of paris the f farm r ing land along the creek and riv river N good and where the locations aej sheltered against the cold winds frood ro the north by the hills the hard barald fruits are raised henry A lewis JJ A t the bishop of georgetown which has a mormon population of souls I 1 divided into 35 families the place was 8 first rat settled in the spring of 1871 nounan bounan is the name of a little valley lying west of George georgetown and separated from the north end of bear lake valley by a low spur of mountains through which the water of lounh nounan creek has cut a channel to find RU an outlet into bear river the bality is about eight miles long from north to south mouth and has an average width of 0 something less than two miles the mountains on the west which separates the valley from gentile valley lare are quite lofty and Sher shermana shermans mans peak standing out boldly immediately back of skinners skinner a dairy hay ham an altitude ot of about feet abu above sea level leve there tare are five dairies twelve families or seventy one souls in nounan bounan valley which constitute the nounan bounan branen branch over which john skinner presides the ploce place was first settled in 1875 ANDREW JENSON GDoRGE georgetown TowN bear lake co idaho oct |