Chesterfield, Idaho
Encyclopedia
Chesterfield is a ghost town
in Caribou County
, Idaho
, United States
. It is located in the Portneuf River Valley
at an elevation of 5446 feet (1,659.9 m). The community includes a cemetery and former buildings of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church) such as a former meeting house
, amusement hall and tithing
house.
Located along a route of the Oregon Trail
, Chesterfield was founded by Mormon
settlers in 1881. After a railroad line was built through Bancroft
to the south, the community lost some of its momentum, and agricultural difficulties led to its desertion by the end of the 1930s. Today, the community is operated as a tourist attraction, with guided tours and a museum.
In 1980, the community was listed on the National Register of Historic Places
as a historic district
and is also on the Mormon Historic Sites Foundation
's Mormon Historic Sites Registry. The historic district includes 41 buildings and eight sites, spread out over an area of 2160 acres (874.1 ha). Some buildings in the district are examples of the Greek Revival
and Queen Anne
architectural styles.
, west of present-day Chesterfield. Unlike typical Mormon settlements, which were founded by settlers sent by LDS Church authorities, the community was founded spontaneously by its first settlers. and not set up in the typical compact, grid patterned townsite. Also in 1881, the Union Pacific Railroad
started to construct the Oregon Short Line Railroad
to the south of Chesterfield, running through present-day Bancroft
. The new settlers sold logs and railroad ties to the railroad, raising much needed cash.
In 1883, LDS Church authorities visited the area to establish a branch. While there, the visiting leaders asked their members to organize into a central village, away from the Portneuf River flood plain. The current Chesterfield townsite was chosen up along the foothills. As in traditional Mormon towns, Chesterfield was laid out in a grid pattern, consisting of thirty-five ten-acre blocks. By 1890, the LDS meetinghouse and a store were the only buildings on the townsite as a mistake in the government survey kept the land off the market for a time.
The LDS Chesterfield Ward was established in 1884 consisting of 136 people in 24 families. By 1900, the population had steadily grown to 73 families containing 418 people in the Chesterfield Ward and 150 people in the recently split off Hatch Ward. Between the years of 1898 and 1900, the area suffered through very cold winters and a drought. This caused a considerable exodus to occur in 1901. The 1907 Panic
, and another bad winter, caused another exodus. By 1908, fewer than 400 people were left in the area and only 208 people in the Chesterfield Ward. The population then steadily grew with a peak of just under 700 people in the Chesterfield area by 1920. The series of recessions in the 1920s and nationwide agricultural problems started the death knell for Chesterfield. Just over 425 people were left in the area by 1928, and the buildings of the Chesterfield town site were mostly deserted before 1941 when the school closed. The general store closed in 1958. By 1970, less than 200 people lived in the area and only 20 people lived in historic Chesterfield.
The original Amusement Hall was erected in 1895, next door to the LDS Meetinghouse. The building was the center for social activities for Chesterfield. It consisted of a large room with a hardwood dance floor and a stage. Over time, the building was reduced to ruins. The Amusement Hall was restored between 1999 and 2003.
LDS members pay tithing
to the Church. Few members could pay cash around 1900, so grains, vegetables, eggs and farm animals were instead paid "in kind." The Tithing Office and the Tithing Granary were constructed in 1900. Grain donations were stored in the Tithing Granary. The Tithing Office was where members came to pay their tithing and the goods were dispensed to those in need; the facility acted as a sort of a warehouse and general store.
The Nathan Barlow House, built about 1900, was the home of the postmaster and owner of the general store. After the Panic of 1907
and the harsh winter of 1907-1908, Nathan Barlow lost all of his money and moved out of the community. The home was restored in 2009, with descendants of Nathan Barlow contributing the furnishings.
The Ira Call cabin is a saltbox
style home. It contained two polygamous families for a short time.
Aunt Ruth Call David's cabin built of red pine logs with a dirt floor in 1881 and 1882. Aunt Ruth was a Native American who was adopted by Chester Call's parents in the 1860s. As the town's midwife, she delivered most of the babies.
Ghost town
A ghost town is an abandoned town or city. A town often becomes a ghost town because the economic activity that supported it has failed, or due to natural or human-caused disasters such as floods, government actions, uncontrolled lawlessness, war, or nuclear disasters...
in Caribou County
Caribou County, Idaho
Caribou County is a county located in the U.S. state of Idaho. As of the 2010 Census the county had a population of 6,963. The county seat and largest city is Soda Springs, followed by Grace and Bancroft.- History :...
, Idaho
Idaho
Idaho is a state in the Rocky Mountain area of the United States. The state's largest city and capital is Boise. Residents are called "Idahoans". Idaho was admitted to the Union on July 3, 1890, as the 43rd state....
, United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. It is located in the Portneuf River Valley
Portneuf River (Idaho)
The Portneuf River is a tributary of the Snake River in southeastern Idaho in the United States. It drains a ranching and farming valley in the mountains southeast of the Snake River Plain...
at an elevation of 5446 feet (1,659.9 m). The community includes a cemetery and former buildings of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church) such as a former meeting house
Meeting house
A meeting house describes a building where a public meeting takes place. This includes secular buildings which function like a town or city hall, and buildings used for religious meetings, particularly of some non-conformist Christian denominations....
, amusement hall and tithing
Tithe
A tithe is a one-tenth part of something, paid as a contribution to a religious organization or compulsory tax to government. Today, tithes are normally voluntary and paid in cash, cheques, or stocks, whereas historically tithes were required and paid in kind, such as agricultural products...
house.
Located along a route of the Oregon Trail
Oregon Trail
The Oregon Trail is a historic east-west wagon route that connected the Missouri River to valleys in Oregon and locations in between.After 1840 steam-powered riverboats and steamboats traversing up and down the Ohio, Mississippi and Missouri rivers sped settlement and development in the flat...
, Chesterfield was founded by Mormon
Mormon
The term Mormon most commonly denotes an adherent, practitioner, follower, or constituent of Mormonism, which is the largest branch of the Latter Day Saint movement in restorationist Christianity...
settlers in 1881. After a railroad line was built through Bancroft
Bancroft, Idaho
Bancroft is a city in the Gem Valley of Caribou County, Idaho, United States. The population was 382 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Bancroft is located at , in the Portneuf Valley. It is a railroad town and lies on the historic route of old U.S. Highway 30...
to the south, the community lost some of its momentum, and agricultural difficulties led to its desertion by the end of the 1930s. Today, the community is operated as a tourist attraction, with guided tours and a museum.
In 1980, the community was listed on the National Register of Historic Places
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places is the United States government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation...
as a historic district
Historic district (United States)
In the United States, a historic district is a group of buildings, properties, or sites that have been designated by one of several entities on different levels as historically or architecturally significant. Buildings, structures, objects and sites within a historic district are normally divided...
and is also on the Mormon Historic Sites Foundation
Mormon Historic Sites Foundation
The Mormon Historic Sites Foundation is an independent organization that seeks to contribute to the memorialization of sites important to the history of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints...
's Mormon Historic Sites Registry. The historic district includes 41 buildings and eight sites, spread out over an area of 2160 acres (874.1 ha). Some buildings in the district are examples of the Greek Revival
Greek Revival architecture
The Greek Revival was an architectural movement of the late 18th and early 19th centuries, predominantly in Northern Europe and the United States. A product of Hellenism, it may be looked upon as the last phase in the development of Neoclassical architecture...
and Queen Anne
Queen Anne Style architecture
The Queen Anne Style in Britain means either the English Baroque architectural style roughly of the reign of Queen Anne , or a revived form that was popular in the last quarter of the 19th century and the early decades of the 20th century...
architectural styles.
History
In 1879, Chester Call and his niece’s husband, Christian Nelson, established a horse ranch in the area. Thinking this might be a good area in which to live, Chester Call told his family and friends about the area and they decided to come and settle in 1881 and 1882. Chesterfield's first settlers built their homes in the river bottom of the Portneuf RiverPortneuf River (Idaho)
The Portneuf River is a tributary of the Snake River in southeastern Idaho in the United States. It drains a ranching and farming valley in the mountains southeast of the Snake River Plain...
, west of present-day Chesterfield. Unlike typical Mormon settlements, which were founded by settlers sent by LDS Church authorities, the community was founded spontaneously by its first settlers. and not set up in the typical compact, grid patterned townsite. Also in 1881, the Union Pacific Railroad
Union Pacific Railroad
The Union Pacific Railroad , headquartered in Omaha, Nebraska, is the largest railroad network in the United States. James R. Young is president, CEO and Chairman....
started to construct the Oregon Short Line Railroad
Oregon Short Line Railroad
The Oregon Short Line Railroad was a railroad in the U.S. states of Wyoming, Idaho, Utah, Montana and Oregon. The line was as organized the Oregon Short Line Railway in 1881 as a subsidiary of Union Pacific Railway. Union Pacific intended the line to be the shortest route from Wyoming to Oregon...
to the south of Chesterfield, running through present-day Bancroft
Bancroft, Idaho
Bancroft is a city in the Gem Valley of Caribou County, Idaho, United States. The population was 382 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Bancroft is located at , in the Portneuf Valley. It is a railroad town and lies on the historic route of old U.S. Highway 30...
. The new settlers sold logs and railroad ties to the railroad, raising much needed cash.
In 1883, LDS Church authorities visited the area to establish a branch. While there, the visiting leaders asked their members to organize into a central village, away from the Portneuf River flood plain. The current Chesterfield townsite was chosen up along the foothills. As in traditional Mormon towns, Chesterfield was laid out in a grid pattern, consisting of thirty-five ten-acre blocks. By 1890, the LDS meetinghouse and a store were the only buildings on the townsite as a mistake in the government survey kept the land off the market for a time.
The LDS Chesterfield Ward was established in 1884 consisting of 136 people in 24 families. By 1900, the population had steadily grown to 73 families containing 418 people in the Chesterfield Ward and 150 people in the recently split off Hatch Ward. Between the years of 1898 and 1900, the area suffered through very cold winters and a drought. This caused a considerable exodus to occur in 1901. The 1907 Panic
Panic of 1907
The Panic of 1907, also known as the 1907 Bankers' Panic, was a financial crisis that occurred in the United States when the New York Stock Exchange fell almost 50% from its peak the previous year. Panic occurred, as this was during a time of economic recession, and there were numerous runs on...
, and another bad winter, caused another exodus. By 1908, fewer than 400 people were left in the area and only 208 people in the Chesterfield Ward. The population then steadily grew with a peak of just under 700 people in the Chesterfield area by 1920. The series of recessions in the 1920s and nationwide agricultural problems started the death knell for Chesterfield. Just over 425 people were left in the area by 1928, and the buildings of the Chesterfield town site were mostly deserted before 1941 when the school closed. The general store closed in 1958. By 1970, less than 200 people lived in the area and only 20 people lived in historic Chesterfield.
Historical buildings
The LDS Meetinghouse is the most prominent and best preserved building in Chesterfield. It was built between 1887 and 1892.The original Amusement Hall was erected in 1895, next door to the LDS Meetinghouse. The building was the center for social activities for Chesterfield. It consisted of a large room with a hardwood dance floor and a stage. Over time, the building was reduced to ruins. The Amusement Hall was restored between 1999 and 2003.
LDS members pay tithing
Tithe
A tithe is a one-tenth part of something, paid as a contribution to a religious organization or compulsory tax to government. Today, tithes are normally voluntary and paid in cash, cheques, or stocks, whereas historically tithes were required and paid in kind, such as agricultural products...
to the Church. Few members could pay cash around 1900, so grains, vegetables, eggs and farm animals were instead paid "in kind." The Tithing Office and the Tithing Granary were constructed in 1900. Grain donations were stored in the Tithing Granary. The Tithing Office was where members came to pay their tithing and the goods were dispensed to those in need; the facility acted as a sort of a warehouse and general store.
The Nathan Barlow House, built about 1900, was the home of the postmaster and owner of the general store. After the Panic of 1907
Panic of 1907
The Panic of 1907, also known as the 1907 Bankers' Panic, was a financial crisis that occurred in the United States when the New York Stock Exchange fell almost 50% from its peak the previous year. Panic occurred, as this was during a time of economic recession, and there were numerous runs on...
and the harsh winter of 1907-1908, Nathan Barlow lost all of his money and moved out of the community. The home was restored in 2009, with descendants of Nathan Barlow contributing the furnishings.
The Ira Call cabin is a saltbox
Saltbox
A saltbox is a building with a long, pitched roof that slopes down to the back, generally a wooden frame house. A saltbox has just one story in the back and two stories in the front...
style home. It contained two polygamous families for a short time.
Aunt Ruth Call David's cabin built of red pine logs with a dirt floor in 1881 and 1882. Aunt Ruth was a Native American who was adopted by Chester Call's parents in the 1860s. As the town's midwife, she delivered most of the babies.
Further reading
- Anderson, Lavina FieldingLavina Fielding AndersonLavina Fielding Anderson is a Latter Day Saint scholar, writer, editor, and feminist. Anderson holds a Ph.D. in English from the University of Washington...
(ed.) (1993). Chesterfield: Mormon Outpost in Idaho. Bancroft, ID: The Chesterfield Foundation. .