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Show Volume XXX Issue IX The Ogden Valley News Page 9 December 15, 2023 How Ogden Trappers and Pioneers Celebrated Christmas By Richard Markosian, Utah Stories Beginning in the 1820s, mountain men were lured to northern Utah by promises of wealth in the lucrative beaver pelt trade. Frontier trappers were the first inhabitants who kept records of events in the Ogden Valley. This was before there were trails through the mountains. The beauty of the wilderness was immaculate, but there was hardness and danger in that beauty. The threat of death was persistent. Darwinian survival skills separated the men from the tourists. Victims of the wild were buried in shallow graves or left for scavenger feed. Many died attempting to ford rivers. Many more died in Indian attacks. Still, the allure of frontier life and the promise of wealth attracted dozens of hardy men to the region. The city of Ogden is named after one of these—fur trader Peter Skene Ogden. Politician and mountain man Osborne Russell kept a journal from 1834 to 1892, which offers insights into Ogden’s first recorded Christmas gathering. Russell recounts in his diary: “The principal topic which was discussed was the political affairs of the Rocky Mountains, the state of governments among the different tribes, and the personal characters of the most distinguished warrior chiefs.” Ogden Valley was a famous rendezvous point where Indians and trappers traded tobacco, whiskey, fur, food, and wares. Trappers preferred bear meat to the more abundant beaver, squirrel, or bobcat. Their Christmas dinner was likely comprised of dried venison, moose, or perhaps fresh bear meat, roasted slowly on a spit over an open fire. Indians dried wild berries and harvested pine nuts. Some trappers carried a bag of grains to bake basic biscuits, but grains were scarce, and due to the need to travel light, they were only available if a nearby wagon train was carrying supplies and was willing to sell or trade them. The closest wagon trail in the 1830s was the Oregon Trail, which ran fifty miles North of Ogden. Miles Goodyear [located in Ogden on the Weber River at Fort Buenaventura] was the first trapper to build a permanent residence in the region, and in 1845 he welcomed early settlers to establish themselves away from his settlement on the Weber River, or to purchase his trading post and expensive property and animals. They chose the latter, and Goodyear left his cabin, which still stands today, after he sold his live- If I Was the Devil Compiled by Shanna Francis For most people in Ogden Valley, the name Brenn Hill is well known. Brenn, a country singer-songwriter, recently put to music words that began as a poem written by his cousin Keith Hill of Eden. Keith, who lives near the proposed high-density Eden Crossing development, says that he has had some sleepless nights of late because of the proposed development, which will greatly impact his property, and not for the better. As a result, one sleepless night he sat down and wrote out a poem called, “If I Was the Devil.” Keith shared the poem with his cousin Brenn, who made a few changes, then put the words to music and made a recording of the new song by the same title. Below are the song’s lyrics and, at the end, a link to Brenn’s new recording. If I was the devil, this is what I’d do. I’d become a developer and buy farm ground from you. I’d o昀昀er such high prices you couldn’t turn away. Cause problems for other families that’s trying to stay. I’d sell and transfer building rights to rich folks all around. And move ‘em to the farmland of this little mountain town. I’d scar up the west hills, cut roads through the trees. Build your summer cabins just as big as you please. Ya, if I was the devil, this is what I’d do. I’d do to everybody what you’d never do to you. You’d be gone forever, long before I’d be through, If I was the devil, this is what I’d do. I’d scatter homes and condos all across this Valley. Pave all in between, for my grand 昀椀nale. I’d build stores and commerce and tear down all the barns. And chase o昀昀 all the common folk who used to work these farms. And when I’ve made all that money, and all the new construction, I’ll revel in the sins of greed and permanent destruction. I’ll move on to a new and pristine humble mountain valley. And buy it piece by piece before the mountain folk can rally. Ya, If I was the devil, this is what I’d do. I’d do to everybody what you’d never do to you. You’d be gone forever, long before I’d be through, If I was the devil, this is what I’d do. Do it all before they see what’s happening all around, Before they see the changes in their little mountain town. Before they count the “Sale” signs and see my dozer tracks. Before they feel my 昀椀ngers digging deep down in their backs. Before they learn that riches lie within every living soil Before they can remember the years of sweat and toil Before their children long for simpler lives and simpler ways Before they start to ask about the lost and good ol’ days. Ya, if I was the devil, this is what I’d do. I’d do to everybody what you’d never do to you. You’d be gone forever, long before I’d be through, If I was the devil, this is what I’d do…. If I was the devil, this is what I’d do. To listen to Brenn perform “If I Were the Devil,” visit dropbox.com/scl/fi/08fh3k5kwws2f3xhfkbfj/ IF-I-WAS-THE-DEVIL-MIX-V3.wav?rlkey=d29 ztxvuzwgvn2tp5q7n9kz9w&dl=0 stock and land to Brigham Young for $1,700. Old-timer D.O. Newton, who was one of the original Pioneer settlers, recounted her first Christmas in the Ogden Valley in an Ogden Standard-Examiner article written by Dorothy Porter many years later. “We celebrated all the holidays which are nowadays, but in a different manner. For instance, on Christmas we never had a tree, and we did not receive so many beautiful gifts; it was just the spirit of the day that made everything so nice.” By the 1870s, settlers had to be self-sufficient. Pioneers often attempted to prepare specialty foods from their countries of origin, so the predominantly Scandinavian and English Pioneers likely enjoyed favorites such as Yorkshire pudding with brown gravy, savory meat pies, and honey rolls. An 1869 editorial in the Juvenile Instructor (an early publication from The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints) recorded that “[the winter] holidays provided long evenings for social gatherings and parties with pleasant fireside intercourse, and in no country, and among no people, are they more valued than in our territory and by the Saints who reside here.” In another account we learn that “One hundred fifty guests celebrated with a large feast comprised of locally grown foodstuffs, and dancing occupied the visitors until a late hour.” Though sweets were a luxury during most of the year, by the Saints’ second Christmas, a sufficient supply of molasses had been stored— enough to make candy canes for the children. Honey, taffy and animal-shaped cookies made from sweet dough filled the stockings of the more fortunate children on that frosty Christmas morning. Pioneer children would jump up and down in delight over sweet dough and molasses candies in their stockings. Simple pleasures no longer entice us, and today, if Santa doesn’t provide kids with the video game of their desires, parents plan for a tantrum. The world is a much different place. Note: This article, written by Richard Markosian for Utah Stories, was 昀椀rst printed December 22, 2016 and being reprinted by permission. For more information, visit utahstories.com/2016/12/how-ogden-trappersand-pioneers-celebrated-christmas/. From The Past . . . Photo courtesy of Lindsay Deamer, Ogden, Utah Glory Days Facebook page. Photo thought to have come from a 1946 issue of “The Ogden Standard-Examiner.” A Quick Reminder to Drivers: Slow Down & Be Patient with Others! By Shanna Francis Most of us seem never to have enough time to accomplish all the things on our to-do list, especially during the holidays. This can create annoyances and even irritation when we zoom off to complete our errands in the midst of a time crunch, only to catch up to a driver who seems to be in no hurry at all. In fact, the speed at which they’re traveling seems to indicate that they have all the time in the world to get to where they’re going! I should know, this was my life for so many years. I remember the time I sped into high gear to pass four vehicles on the straight-away near the Yacht Club many years ago, only to find, as I approached the slow white truck holding us all up, that it was an on-duty Weber County Sheriff! Yep… I was rightly pulled over! Yikes! Since cases of road rage seem to be on the rise, this Christmas season is a good time to take a deep breath and remember that a little bit of patience can go a long way in making the world a better place. It might even save a life. Here are a few suggestions, some found on social media, that you may want to consider next time your heart rate and blood pressure begin to shoot upwards when you get behind, what seems to be, the world’s slowest driver as you maneuver up and down Ogden Canyon, around and about Pineview Reservoir, or up and over the North Ogden Divide with little opportunity to safely pass that “annoying” slow driver. 1. The driver could be a 16- or 17-year-old new driver experiencing the canyon or a slick road for the first time. Or, perhaps, they’re still inexperienced and they’re just doing their best to make it home safely from work or school. I have much more patience with new drivers now that I see the trepidation some of my own DRIVERS cont. on page 14 Christmas Eve Mass Dec. 24th at 6:00 p.m. Christmas Day Mass Dec. 25th at 9:00 a.m. Wednesday Night Saturday Night Sunday Morning First Friday 5:30 p.m. 6:00 p.m. 9:00 a.m. 8:30 a m. Fr. Joshua Marie Santos 801-399-5627 FrJoshuaS.Stambrose@gmail.com Saturday 5:30 p.m Sunday 8:00 a.m. or by appt. Saint Joseph Catholic Elementary, Middle School, and High School Providing a challenging, college-focused education in the proven tradition of Catholic schools, for the families of the Ogden Valley. We want to teach your children! For information on our program, financial assistance, tours, or application, please call 801-393-6051 or 801-394-1515. 2668 Grant Avenue, Suite #104A, Ogden, UT 801-612-9299 |