Early-Day Recollections of Antelope Island

EARLY-DAY RECOLLECTIONS OF ANTELOPE ISLAND. BY SOLOMON F. KIMBALL. In early days Antelope Island was considered one of our most desirable pleasure resorts, and many happy hours were spent there by our late President Brigham Young and his most intimate asso- ciates. When he visited the island it was generally for a two-fold purpose, business and pleasure. The first white man that lived on the island, as far as our knowledge goes, was an old mountaineer who was called "Daddy" Stump. After him came Fielding Garr, who had charge of the Church stock. He moved them over there in 1849, and remained in charge of the animals a? long as he lived. He built the old Church house and corral, a part of which remains there until this day. Presidents Young and Kimball moved their horses and'sheep there several years later, placing them in charge of Joseph Toronto and Peter 0. Hanson. Several times they visited the island themselves. In the summer of 1856, they, in company with several of their family, spent two or three days there. The lake was quite high at the time, and both Toronto and Hanson met them at the lake shore with a boat and rowed them over, while the teams forded it. The time was pleasantly spent in driving over the island and in visiting places of interest,—bathing, boat- riding, and inspecting their horses and sheep. Old "Daddy" Stump's mountain home, then deserted, was visited by them. They drove their carriages as near to it as possible, and walked the remainder of the way, a distance of a half mile or more.

EARLY-DAY RECOLLECTIONS OF ANTELOPE ISLAND. 335 Everything was found just as the old man had left it, and a cu- rious congloi^eration of houses, barns, sheds and corrals it was. It was located at the head of a small, open canyon, against a steep mountain. The house was made of cedar posts set upright and covered with a dirt roof. Close to it was a good spring of water. The house and barn formed a part of the corral, and just below it was his orchard and garden. The peach trees were loaded with fruit, no larger than walnuts. The old man, feeling that civilization was encroaching upon his rights, had picked up his duds and driven his horses and cattle to a secluded spot in Cache Valley. The last heard of him was that he had wronged a Lite squaw, and in revenge, she had crept up behind him and cut his throat. The party returned to the Church ranch that evening and drove home the next day. Brother Garr died in 1855, and a year or two later Briant Stringham took charge of the stock on the island. In 1857, quite a romantic episode took place in Salt Lake City, terminating on Antelope Island; it stirred the four hundred of Sflt Lake to the center. Thos. S. Williams, then one of Salt Lake's most prosperous merchants, closed out his business, and had made extensive preparations to go East with his family, where he expected to make his home. He had a beautiful and accomplished daughter, engaged to David P. Kimball; but, on account of their being so young, Mr. Willipms would not consent to their marriage. The young couple were determined not to be thwarted in their plans, and matters became desperate with them as well as with her parents. Her father placed trusted guards over her, and she was carefully watched by them, night and day, until the hour of departure had come. That morning, in an unguarded moment, she darted out of the back door and was out of sight almost instantly. A carriage and four horsemen were in waiting for her, and, before the guards had fairly missed her, she and her intended were hurled over to Judge Elias Smith's office and were made husband and wife for all time. They then jumped into the carriage, drawn by two fiery steeds, and accompanied by four mounted guards, composed of Joseph A. Young, Heber P. Kimball, Quince Knowlton and Brigham Young, Jr., they made a dash for Antelope Island, reaching their destination in less than

336 IMPROVEMENT ERA. three hours. Here the young couple spent their honeymoon remaining there until her father was well on his journey to the East. Not a living soul knew where they were, except those who had aided them in their elopement, until they came out of their hiding place. It was about the year 1860 that President Young, at the head of a select party of prominent men, visited Antelope Island again. He took all of his clerks with him, the majority of whom were good musicians. They formed a splendid string band, led by Horace K. Whitney. The brass band under the leadership of Wm. Pitt, was present also, and many pleasant hours were spent in listening to their sweet music. The party remained there three days enjoying a continued feast of pleasure the whole time. Much of the time was spent in boating, bathing and climbing to the top- most peaks of the island. All places of interest were visited, some riding in carriages, others on horseback, and some going a-foot. Many visited the wreck of the once famous boat. Timely Gull. The heavy winds from the southeast had broken it loose from its moorings at Black Rock, two years before, and had driven it to the south end of the island and thrown it high and dry upon the rocky beach. This was the first boat of consequence that was ever sailed upon the waters of Salt Lake. When the boat was first launched. President Young, with a select party, made several excursions over the lake with it, and it was consid- ered to be quite a novelty in those days. The following is taken from President Young's journal of January 30, 1854: With a small party of friends I witnessed the launching of my boat, just below the city bridge and from the west bank of the Jordan. I christened her the Timely Gull. She is forty-five feet long and designed for a stern wheel to be propelled by horses working a treadmill, and to be used mainly to transport stock between the city and Antelope Island. Every evening a couple of large campfires were made, and young and old alike would unite in having a genuine good time in roasting and eating meat for the evening meal. It was amusing to see the high-toned clerks and members of the Deseret Dramatic Association sitting around these fires broiling teabone and tender- loin steaks, which they had fastened to the ends of long, sharp sticks. Then with bread and butter in one hand and their neat in

EARLY-DAY RECOLLECTIONS OF ANTELOPE ISLAND. 337 the other, with plenty of good milk on the side, they ate their suppers with a relish that would have made the kings and noblemen of the earth look on with envy. Another important feature connected with this pleasure trip that made all who were not acquainted with western life look on with amazement was the display of horsemanship. There were up- wards of one thousand horses on the island, the majority of them being almost as wild as deer. Briant Stringham, who was in charge, made it a point to corral every horse on the island at least once a year. At such times they were branded, handled and looked after in a general way. President Young had invited some of the most noted horse- men in the territory to be present on this particular occasion. They came there mounted on the best of horses to take part in the yearly round up, and they were all ready and anxious for the fray. Among them were such men as Lot Smith, Judson ' Stoddard, Brigham Young, Jr., Len Rice, Stephen Taylor, Ezra Clark, Heber P. Kimball, and the Ashby and Garr boys, and others, every one of whom knew the island from A to izzard- There was not one of them but could ride a bucking horse bareback, or lariat the wild- est mustang on the range. President Young was not long in giv- ing them the word to go, and there was "something doing" for the next three days. The boys left the ranch early that morning in bunches of three, and about two hours apart. They crossed the island to the west side, and rode leisurely along until they reached the north end, scaring up wild bands of horses as they went, and head- ing them that way. By that time their horses were pretty well "gaunted," and ready for the fifteen-mile dash that lay before them. They were island-raised, long-winded, swift-footed, and their speed on a long run was something wonderful. They had been picked from the best on the island, and their worth could only be estimated by the class of men who owned them. The moment one of these wild bands of island horses were started up, they must be kept on the run until they reached their destination, or they would scatter and run in every direction. No set of men could corral one of these bands unless they were expert horsemen,

338 ' IMPROVEMENT ERA. and acquainted with all the surroundings and conditions, and mounted on the best of horses. About ten o'clock on the morning of the round up, a dust was seen near the north end of the island. It had the appearance of a whirlwind, moving southward at the rate of about twenty miles an hour. Nothing could be seen but dust, until it had reached within about two miles of the house. T. B. H, Stenhouse, and other journalists, had climbed to the top of the house in order to get a full view of the approaching band. Everybody was on tiptoe, and the excitement was intense. Here th^y came, the speediest ani- mals in the lead, and all of them white with foam, panting like lizards. There were about seventy-five of them in all, and some of them as fine animals as could be found in any country on earth. Those present from the old countries who had never witnessed such a scene before, stood almost paralyzed with excitement. The enthusiasm manifested by the onlookers was so great that it almost lifted them from their feet. Before they had fairly got- ten their breath and recovered from the shock another exhibition of horsemanship presented itself before them which almost left the first one in the shade. Four of the largest horsemen of them all, led by Lot Smith and Judson Stoddard, mounted four large and beautiful island horses, and entered the corral where the wild horses stood snorting like so many elk. Lot led the chase with his part- ner close behind him, followed by Judson Stoddard and his part- ner. While these wild animals were on the run around the large corral, Lot threw his lariat over the front foot of one of them, and at the same moment his partner had lassoed the same animal around the neck, and, with their lariats around the horns of their saddles, had in less than a half minute thrown the horse and dragged it over the soft and smooth surface of the corral, a distance of sev- eral rods, to a place where the fire and branding irons were, and in another half minute the horse was branded and turned loose. They had no mere than gotten out of the way before Judson Stod- dard and his partner had another horse ready for the finishing touch, and so it continued, until the band had been disposed of and turned loose on the range to make room for the next one that was expected at any moment. The valuable saddle horses ridden by these expert horsemen, were selected from the wild bands, while