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Show Parowan Valley Gets "Fair Salute" BT DON APPLEGATE. Publicity Chairman Each year a special section of Iron County is featured at the Fair with special emphasis given giv-en to the history and tradition of that section. This year a salute is given to Parowan Valley and to the residents resi-dents of this area and they will be featured in activities of the Iron County Fair to be staged at Parowan Sept. 3, 4 and 5. A SALUTE j In December, 18-19, an exploring explor-ing party under the leadership of Pailey P. Pratt entered the val-, ley of the Little Salt Lake. Never before had the fertile! margins of the Hurricane Fault received such close inspection. Those observations were not made through the eye of the explorer, ex-plorer, trapper or trader, but through the eyes of Parley P. Pratt, the colonizer. That he was most favorably Impressed Is made clear through his statements state-ments about the valley. Ho Judged the land as being rich in meadows and black soil, beautifully beauti-fully undulating with a fall to the west, well calculated for watering. wa-tering. He saw the foothills black with inexhaustible supplies of Cedar and scrub pines. Besides the supply of good water, fuel and timber it was one of the most lovely places In the Great Basin. As a result of this report, on Dec. 7, 1860, George A. Smith, with a company of his own selection selec-tion began the journey south to settle the valley. His little band made the Jour-nev Jour-nev in 36 days, and arrived in Litle Salt Lake Valley Jan. 13, 1851. This was the beginning of the settlement known today as Parowan, Par-owan, the first community in tin? Parowan Valley. The other communities are Summit to the south and Paragonah on the north. Parowan, right from the first days of settlement was self-sustaining in industry. That first group consisted of farmers, surveyors, sur-veyors, blacksmiths, millwrights and others. Women turned their homes Into workshops where they carded, wove and spun mar terials. Hospitality and friendliness were always a big part of Parowan. Paro-wan. Because of Parowan's be-inc be-inc the mother town of southern Utah this spirit still radiates to all who visit -ier. The beautiful setting of Parowan, Paro-wan, her clean, tree lined streets, well kept homes and industrious peopla help make Parowan well liked. For a glimpse Into yesteryear all are cordially invited to visit the pioneer musem, 'The Old Rock Church." The best pre-historlc Indian writing to be seen in the West is found in the Parowan Gap. It is a geological wonder. For a cool refreshing evening, picnics and beautiful scenery, the Vermilion Castle recreation and campgrounds are awaiting you. A limit of fish or a mule deer taken from the Yankee Meadow is an enjoyable experience for fishermen and sportsmen. Summit, being conveniently located lo-cated between Parowan and Cedar Ce-dar City was first known as Center Cen-ter Creek. It offered a camping place for weary travelers as they moved slowly from the chief settlement, set-tlement, Parowan, to the Iron Works. There was need for some protection pro-tection from the Indians, so a small adobe fort was built. Part of this fort is still standing. Among the first permanent settlers set-tlers were the Dal leys, Hulets, Stokers and Smiths. After they (had the "Big Field" fenced and the water allocated it was decided decid-ed to invite more families to come, so a letter was sent to Brlgham Young advising him to send six families who would be given an. area of the field and all of the water on Friday. This land and water is still known as The Friday." Today Summit Is a community of 120 souls extending along each side of Highway 91 for three blocks with a beautiful chapel conveniently located In the center cen-ter of town. Summit is known for its clear sparkling air and fine drinking water. Paragonah, called by the natives na-tives Paragoonah, an Indian name meAning water holes or many springs, has become a name familiar to the world of archaeologists. Primarily an agricultural ag-ricultural and livestock raising area, it is the site of an interesting interest-ing ancient Indian community which flourished from about 900 A. D. to 1150 A. D. Many Califor-nlans Califor-nlans enjoy hunting and fishing in the surrounding mountains and are establishing summer homes in the town. An interesting interest-ing relic of the past stands in front of the chapel, a stone wheel used by the Mormon settlers to press tanlc acid from tree bark to process hides for leather. Lunt Roadside Park, ten miles to the north on Highway 91, invites in-vites travelers to rest a while. Green grass, shade trees, picnic tables, rest rooms and wading pools make this State Highway Park a refreshing stop in the valley. Fields of waving grain, purple blooms of alfalfa and tall corn arc a common sight to the residents resi-dents and visitors to our beautiful beau-tiful valley. Great herds of sheep are owned by people in our valley. Hundreds Hun-dreds of callte are fattened and snipped from our valley to all points west. Agriculture is the leading occupation, oc-cupation, but many of the men supplement their Income by working at the mines, at construction con-struction work and professional work. The potential of Prowan Valley Val-ley is still great. There are deposits de-posits of clay, silica sand and untraveled trails which wouli make us a tourist haven. Thrill at its gigantic County Fair and Parade during the Labor La-bor Day week end. Enjoy Its beauty, its tradition and its hospitality hos-pitality at all times of the year. |