IN MEMORY OF THE TRAPPER COLD WAR Photo-Margaret Warner Ranson Mountain Green - Deserter Point about 1825 You'd never guess it now but the beautiful settlement of Mountain Green was once the scene of a confrontation between American and British fur trappers which might have had international repercussions. In the 1820' s Dame Fashion decreed that to be in style the well dressed Amer¬ican and European male must wear tall hats made of beaver fur. This fashionably capricious trend resulted in a rush by American and British trappers to supply the fashion world with the highly popular pelts. At that time two British companies, Hudson's Bay and North West companies, merged under the name of the Hudson Bay Company. Their aim was to force the Amer¬ican fur trappers out of business in the Pacific Northwest, a territory rich in beavers. Peter Skeen Ogden was in charge of the Company's campaign to oust the Americans. For over 50 years before the Mormon Pioneers settled in the Great Salt Lake Valley, trappers and explorers had traveled the trails and mountain passes which became the major highways to the west. The mountain men were the first experts in Utah geography. In an effort to discourage American trappers from plying their trade in the northwest territory, Governor George Simpson, Hudson Bay Company's ranking officer 35