Oral History Program Osa Ferguson Interviewed by Dean Anderson 27 February 1971 i Oral History Program Weber State University Stewart Library Ogden, Utah Osa Ferguson Interviewed by Dean Anderson 27 February 1971 Copyright © 2012 by Weber State University, Stewart Library ii Mission Statement The Oral History Program of the Stewart Library was created to preserve the institutional history of Weber State University and the Davis, Ogden and Weber County communities. By conducting carefully researched, recorded, and transcribed interviews, the Oral History Program creates archival oral histories intended for the widest possible use. Interviews are conducted with the goal of eliciting from each participant a full and accurate account of events. The interviews are transcribed, edited for accuracy and clarity, and reviewed by the interviewees (as available), who are encouraged to augment or correct their spoken words. The reviewed and corrected transcripts are indexed, printed, and bound with photographs and illustrative materials as available. Archival copies are placed in University Archives. The Stewart Library also houses the original recording so researchers can gain a sense of the interviewee's voice and intonations. Project Description The Weber State College/University Student Projects have been created by students working with several different professors on the Weber State campus. The topics are varied and based on the student's interest or task for a specific assignment. These oral history assignments were created to help Weber State students learn the value and importance of recording public history and to benefit the expansion of the Weber State oral history collections. ____________________________________ Oral history is a method of collecting historical information through recorded interviews between a narrator with firsthand knowledge of historically significant events and a well-informed interviewer, with the goal of preserving substantive additions to the historical record. Because it is primary material, oral history is not intended to present the final, verified, or complete narrative of events. It is a spoken account. It reflects personal opinion offered by the interviewee in response to questioning, and as such it is partisan, deeply involved, and irreplaceable. ____________________________________ Rights Management All literary rights in the manuscript, including the right to publish, are reserved to the Stewart Library of Weber State University. No part of the manuscript may be published without the written permission of the University Librarian. Requests for permission to publish should be addressed to the Administration Office, Stewart Library, Weber State University, Ogden, Utah, 84408. The request should include identification of the specific item and identification of the user. It is recommended that this oral history be cited as follows: Ferguson, Osa, an oral history by Dean Anderson, 27 February 1971, WSU Stewart Library Oral History Program, University Archives, Stewart Library, Weber State University, Ogden, UT. iii Abstract: The following is an oral history interview with Mrs. James B. Ferguson, also known as Osa Ferguson. The interview was conducted on February 27, 1971, by Dean R. Anderson, in Orem, Utah. Ferguson discusses early incidents in the Provo Canyon area with a history of the Alta Ditch and Canal Company. DA: Today we are talking with Mrs. James B. Ferguson; her maiden name is Osa Orissa Bowlden. She is a native of Utah County born in Springville and presently living at the mouth of Provo Canyon in Orem. She is well acquainted with the Alta Ditch and Canal Company, and she has written the history of the Alta Canal and Ditch Company; and now let’s listen to her read what she has written. OF: History of the Alta Ditch and Canal, Provo, Utah. As our pioneer forefathers came and settled in this fertile valley of Utah County and many others similar, we find it was only natural they would make their permanent abodes where the water was most convenient. This would be mostly up and down or near the rivers or lakes. The small streams at that time were few and far between. Time passed on. Our valley was rapidly being settled. This action was calling for more water for culinary and irrigation use. In the early l860*s, a small rock house was being built in Provo Canyon by a few pioneers such as Ezekiel Kellog, S. B. Moore, R. M. Rogers, Joseph Clark, Jim Smith, and two other men as guard quarter as guards against the Indians. This was later called Guard Quarters as many a skirmish was fought with the Indians. One white man and one Indian were shot and killed. Early in the spring of 1876, the farmers began to feel the need of irrigation water, and someone wanted to start to plant little trees but had to have water first; so this with brave hearts and hands, this group of men interested such as Joseph M. 1 McEwan, Oscar and Elliott Wilkins, Dr. R. M. Rogers, and James Spear set out to find springs in Provo Canyon. They located a few ones running from under the ledge about a 150 feet or more from this guard house they had just built. They spent days digging to develop more water, but not finding very much, the men decided to have the place surveyed. Dr. R. M. Rogers, one of the company, did this surveying with a gun barrel and a straight edge. Here to their disappointment, they found the springs were too low to be diverted over the long stretch of rugged hills that lay before them, so this group of men pressed on up the hill about 250 feet looking for something better. To their surprise, they found a larger stream than the first one. They could hear water running behind the rocks as if it might be a cave where plenty of water was being stored for future use. In this spot they developed a fine stream of clear cold water. They worked weeks and weeks tunneling into ledges of rock and earth. Not long a group of men came to lend a helping hand, namely John Wilkins, Domikus Carter (Mink for short), Joseph T. McEwan, S.B. Moore and two other men. With this group a ten foot tunnel was opened up. Here tons and tons of rock and gravel washed down the mountain slop. This was the grand beginning of one of the most wonderful streams of pure cold water ever to flow along the mountain side. It was getting late to work in the canyon as the cold weather was creeping in, so the work was closed for the year of 1876. The next year of 1877, as soon as the spring opened up and the weather would permit, we found Andrew Jack Stewart with his engineering kit surveying for a new ditch. This started above Nunns on the north hill in Provo Canyon a distance of about four and three quarters miles and came down to the falls above our house. This job being done, another one was started. It was necessary now to advise and prepare a way of posting 2 the bills in different places for about thirty days. The breaking of the ground after the pegs were set was done with two oxen of cattle and a span of small ponies. As work progressed, small contracts were let to the ones interested. They paid a dollar per rod for some of the work in these steep rocky ledges. The highest price paid was a dollar and a half, but mostly a dollar per day. No wonder our pioneers looked older than their age. May I pause here long enough now to tell you about Mount Elk and how it received its name? You remember I mentioned guard quarters as being a shelter from the Indians. The first springs took on the name of Guard Quarter Springs. The upper springs came from Mount Elk. Here a tribe of Indians came to hunt and fish in the summer time. This was their summer playground. As we travel up the canyon, not on a smooth highway, but a trail the Indians and animals used, we came to Nunn’s Hill where the first power plant was built in Provo Canyon. Look over on the North Slope quite high up, and you gaze upon large ledges of overhanging rock. Here we see willows, moss, flowers, and ferns growing in an abundance on its steep rocky ledge side. This is where Old Chief Elk with his band of redskins came every summer to have a good time and make trouble for our pioneers. The Indians would ride out on the square ledge where nothing could reach them and see everything below. In behind this large summit, was a stretch of open country. No wonder the Indians liked it up there. They could hunt all the elk, deer and wild game they could find, then come down to the river below and get their fish. Their winter home was in the southern part of the state. It was here in a skirmish with our pioneers Old Chief Elk was mortally wounded. He was taken by his tribe down the canyon across the river and up the eastern mountainside into Rock Canyon where he died and was buried with all his belongings. Few people know very little about this 3 story. This is how Mount Elk received its name. Work on the Ditch moved slowly as deep cuts and fills had to be made to carry the water properly. In 1880 Charles E. Crandall, a young man at the time, did his work on the ditch. Two years later he was chosen superintendent and a heavy stock holder. With cash and work he invested about $25,000, about one-fourth the cost of the Ditch. It was ten years in its construction of hard tedious work. Nobody will ever know but those who worked on it. Oscar Wilkins was the first to irrigate his garden with this costly stream of water. We can little realize the heartfelt thanks and gratitude to those sturdy pioneers for such a wonderful project completed. In 1893 "the name was changed to Guard Quarter Springs to Alta Ditch and Canal Company, Alta meaning high up. It was time now for corporations and papers to be taken out and officers and directors were as follows: Daniel D. Cook - President Joseph T. McEwan - Vice President Charles E. Crandall, Will E. Carry Oscar E. Carry, together with the presidency constituted the board. Since 1893 many improvements have taken place. Tunnels and cuts at the cost of $1500. One thousand feet of iron pipe laid from the top of upper springs at Mount Elk down to the main springs. It was in the construction of one of these tunnels in which John Emmonds came to be nearly being buried alive. Tad Carter and Clifford Barrett rescued him, but as to the wheel barrel and all the rest of the tools, they still' remained covered. Thanks to our Father in heaven for the rescue and many other blessings. At the time the Ditch was completed, it was considered the highest "high line" canal in Utah and one of the oldest canals in the country. It was 6 3/4 miles long with two branches, one to the west and the other to the south. Sixteen farmers at one time owned and irrigated approximately 475 acres with this pure spring mountain water. It was also used as culinary water for many homes 4 along the Ditch. At the time this history was first written, Charles E. Crandall was President aged 76, and Will McEwan was 86 years young. 1936; they being the only survivors. After the death of Charles E. Crandall and McEwan, James B. Ferguson was chosen president and served many years until his death May 14, 1969. This is my continuation of the Alta Ditch history until this time 1961, February 20th. Due to a very wet year and open winter of 1953, a large amount of gravel slipped from the mountain side into the Ditch causing trouble right now. Ernest Tucker just purchased a new large bulldozer, so J. B. Ferguson asked Ernest to take the new off the dozer and make history by taking it on the Ditch. He agreed and this was in the middle of the winter. The menfolk all remarked how unusual it looked to see a new bulldozer at the foot of Mt. Timp working in the winter time. Ernest cleaned about 10 or 12 rods of thick mire of gravel at a cost of $240.00. Later in April 1954 Ernest again took his bulldozer on the Ditch to work 3 days more. He made a road to the top so cars could make it up. This was another improvement to be the first. Cecil Ferguson, Mike Peterson and Eugene Crandall each one drove their cars to the top. All the older men have passed on and the younger ones have taken their places. Some have even sold out and moved away while new ones have taken their place. In 1957 the farmers all decided to pipe the Ditch where the older members said it couldn't be done. They went to the head and piped all the water into one settling basin, then made a large cement cover (a tight one) to protect all the water from pollution, then put it into a large concrete pipe and into a tight settling basin. It never sees daylight until it comes from the tap. This was done at a cost of $68,536.05. This work was done through the Metropolitan Water District and the Alta Ditch and Canal Co. The canal Co. has to make its payments each year until it’s all 5 paid. This past year, 1969, the Ditch Co. made another improvement by cementing the rest of the irrigation ditch to save water. Cecil was supervisor and water master. In 1970 the following officers were chosen to manage the affairs of the Ditch Company: Val Gene Crandall – President J. Cecil Ferguson - V. President and water master Horace Crandall - C. P. A. man. Elizabeth F. Palfreyman, Mrs. Harold L. Smith, and Vivian Taylor as Secretary and Treasurer. All these constituted the board mentioned. Done this February 26, 1961 by Osa B. Ferguson DA: Thank you. Has this ever been published? OF: No. I received a lot of my information from Charles Crandall before he passed away. DA: Is that right? You mentioned, I didn't catch the year when your husband James Ferguson was President, first became President, this was probably-- OF: Well, I haven't got it. I never found out when Charles Crandall passed away, but after he passed away, Dad took the Presidency. DA: And he was President up until-- OF: Up until he passed away. That was many, many years. DA: This old Guard House, is there anything left it? OF: No, the Guard House has been torn down. DA: You can't even find a trace-- OF: I'll tell you, it's across the river close by Wick Bartlett, just a little above Wick Bartlett's. DA: Wick Bartlett’s? And that's by Nunn’s? OF: Oh no, this side of Nunn’s. 6 DA: The Ditch then you said on the North Slope above Nunn’s where it originates? OF: Yes, it’s on the north slope as you are going, when you strike Nunn’s power plant, part of it is still there in the canyon. You can see when you make the incline. DA: You can still see where the trees are where the— OF: It says Nunn’s, and there it is. DA: How do you spell Mount Elk, is that E-l-k? OF: Yes, E-l-k. DA: I suppose your property here is the first property at the head of the Ditch? OF: Yes, our property is at the head of the Ditch. DA: This other 475 acres is-- OF: Two Nunn boys owned it. We bought the property from two Nunn boys, and at the time we bought it there was 80 acres. DA: What year was this? OF: 1918. DA: Mrs. Ferguson, I mentioned before that you had been long associated with the Daughters of the Utah Pioneers, how long was that? OF: How many years I've been associated with the Daughters of the Pioneers? DA: When did you first start working, you said you started at the Utah State Capitol Building. OF: Yes, but I was in the Daughter of the Pioneers long before then. DA: Long before then? 7 OF: Yes. In 1934 I joined the Daughter of the Pioneers, and at first we were down in Pleasant View Camp. Our Camp hadn't been organized. 1935 our Camp was organized, and we called it Edgemont Camp. We had about fifteen to twenty members and everybody was interested. Of course we wrote all of our own histories and tried to get all histories we possibly could of all of our pioneers; that was our expectations. We had a real nice camp, and I have been an officer ever since in our camp. DA: You're still associated with them? OF: Oh, yes I'm still associated with the Daughters of Pioneers. I spent eight years with the county. I was President of the county for eight years, which I enjoyed very much, but my health didn't permit me to go on, so I had to discontinue; but I've held a job in the Daughters of Pioneers in my Camp ever since, I've never been without one. DA: I know you wrote a history of William Ferguson who operated a way station, I guess you'd call it, up Provo Canyon? OF: Yes, that was my husband's grandfather. DA: Could you tell us maybe a little bit about him now even though you don't have his history in front of you? OF: I don't have any history in front of me, I couldn't give you days and dates, and history is not complete without days and dates. He came from Scotland. He was a regular short heavyweight Scotsman and a very good looking fellow. He was a very good entertainer. There was one thing about him, he could cook and was a fine cook and did lots of cooking and catering for weddings. He was a good entertainer, he could sing and dance and he went out to many weddings and entertained. Oh, he was a fine little fellow. Then 8 he went up the Canyon and stayed up there for many years and he was a half-wayman. He stayed up and ran the half-way place, halfway between the Canyon and Heber City. DA: This was before there was even a road or anything up in that Canyon? OF: Oh, yes, this was before there was a road, heavens yes they had what they called, oh what did they call that? They had to pay to go over the road, to travel the road. DA: A toll? OF: A toll road, yes a toll road, and if anyone took sheep or cattle or anything, they had to pay their toll going back and forth, and he collected the toll, and handed it into the county. DA: Is that right. Where is this located now, do you know where the location of this half-way was? OF: This half-way place was where the Bridal Veil Falls is. Right to this day there is a gift shop and it’s on the south side of the road in Provo Canyon and as you stop at the gift shop you can see that there's nothing that remains there to tell you that he lived there outside of a fountain. DA: A fountain? OF: A fountain. DA: There was a spring there I suppose. 9 OF: It was a spring and he put it into a fountain. In this half-way place, he took care of people's horses or anything that they had. He cooked for them if they want to stay all night and go on. DA: I think it’s interesting how the story about how this place was destroyed. OF: All right, I haven't any days and dates before me, but in 1896 or 97, it was in the middle of the winter and they had a big heavy snow storm and a fellow came down through the canyon and grandpa Ferguson wanted the fellow to stay all night with him and he teased and coaxed for him to stay but the fellow said he could feel that he was wanted home, so he said I'll take supper with you Billy, but I think I'd better go on home, so he hitched up his horses and came on home after supper» And in the middle of the night this big snow slide came down the opposite side of the canyon. Billy's house was on the opposite side of the river and it came down through the river, crossed on the other side of the mountain and as if came back why it covered his house, and everything dropped and they found Billy the next morning covered in the snow slide. His dog was at the side of his bed sound asleep, and the only thing that they found alive in the house was four little black kittens and they were hidden behind a flour bin, and that's the only thing they found alive. DA: You say this place was right next to the gift shop, or right where the gift shop is now? OF: Yes, right where the gift shop is now. DA: It's on the north side of the river then. OF: Yes, it's on the north side of the river, but the south side of the road. The two Nunn brothers were well to do men; you might say at that time that they were rich men. One 10 was L. L. Nunn and the other was T. N. Nunn and they were interested in power, developing power in the Provo Canyon and they could see the river and they figured that would be a good idea to take the water from the river and make power. Have you ever seen water after the power is taken out of it? DA: No, is there any difference? OF: It's the funniest looking water you ever saw. DA: Is that—oh you're kidding me now. OF: Well anyway, they put their first power plant in the Canyon and found out it was a lot too small a plant and so they came down later on and put a plant in the mouth of Provo Canyon over where over where they call it Utah Power and Light Plant over here just across over the hill from us. DA: Thanks very much Mrs. Ferguson, I sure appreciate you taking time out today to talk to me. Thank you very much again. 11