Grass Creek, Utah
Encyclopedia
Grass Creek is a ghost town
in Summit County
, Utah
, United States
. Lying some 8 miles (12.9 km) northeast of Coalville
, it was once an important coal mining
town. Grass Creek was inhabited about 1860–1940.
was discovered along the Weber River
and the town of Coalville founded in 1859, Brigham Young
sent more searchers in 1860 to explore further. They discovered other coal beds 10 feet (3 m) thick just north over the hill, in Grass Valley Canyon. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints soon opened a coal mine in the canyon. A few miners' families settled around the mine, calling their settlement Grass Creek.
The silver mining
boom in the Park City
area in the 1870s created a sudden demand for coal. Non-Mormon
investors quickly moved in to develop the canyon's mines. The Grass Creek Fuel Company established its own company town
at Grass Creek. The company built homes on the north side of the canyon, with the business district on the south. As the population grew, Grass Creek added numerous buildings, from miners' shacks to fine stone homes for mine owners. There was even a Chinatown
.
Until 1873 the coal was hauled by ox
teams through Parley's Canyon
into Salt Lake City. In that year a narrow gauge railway called the Summit County Railroad was built from the Union Pacific Railroad
line at Echo
through Coalville to Grass Creek. Despite high Union Pacific freight charges, the railroad was still a more efficient way to ship the coal. Then in 1881 the Union Pacific built the standard gauge
Echo and Park City Railroad, which paralleled the Summit County Railroad between Echo and Coalville. The branch line
from Coalville to Grass Creek became dual gauge
, with three rails to carry trains of both gauges. The Union Pacific even operated its own Grass Creek coal mine from 1880–1887. The increasing involvement of the Union Pacific Railroad in the area was troubling to many residents, who saw the company as a predatory monopoly
. Grass Creek was completely dependent on its coal mines, which were at the mercy of the railroad. It was commonly believed that the Union Pacific deliberately raised shipping rates and limited the number of coal cars leaving Coalville, in favor of the company's own coal mines in Rock Springs, Wyoming
.
Despite its precarious dependence on a single industry, Grass Creek continued to grow through the end of the 19th century. The canyon's activity peaked about 1881–1910. By 1904 there was a school and post office
in town, and in 1907 Ogden
millionaire David Eccles
bought up more than 1000 acre (4 km²; 1.6 sq mi) of the Grass Creek Coal Company's coal fields and established the Union Fuel Company. The population of Grass Creek was recorded as 190 in the 1910 United States Census, after which it dropped off considerably.
s. The cost and risk of mining coal here made it hard to compete with safer mines that yielded better quality coal. By 1921 only two mines remained in operation, but they were still producing about 200 short tons (178.6 LT) per day. By 1931 the only remaining buyer of Grass Creek coal was the cement
plant at Croydon
. That year the cement plant shut down, and in 1932 the Union Pacific asked permission to abandon the Grass Creek spur line. The coal mines continued a few more years when the cement plant won a contract to supply the construction of Boulder Dam, but the Grass Creek mines and railroad were permanently closed by 1940.
All of Grass Valley Canyon is now privately owned and closed to the public.
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 Summit County
Summit County, Utah
Summit County is a county located in the U.S. state of Utah, occupying a rugged and mountainous area. In 2010 its population was 36,324. It is part of the Salt Lake City Metropolitan Statistical Area as well as the Salt Lake City–Ogden–Clearfield Combined Statistical Area. The county is...
, Utah
Utah
Utah is a state in the Western United States. It was the 45th state to join the Union, on January 4, 1896. Approximately 80% of Utah's 2,763,885 people live along the Wasatch Front, centering on Salt Lake City. This leaves vast expanses of the state nearly uninhabited, making the population the...
, United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. Lying some 8 miles (12.9 km) northeast of Coalville
Coalville, Utah
Coalville is a city in Summit County, Utah, United States. It is part of the Salt Lake City, Utah Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 1,382 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Summit County...
, it was once an important coal mining
Coal mining
The goal of coal mining is to obtain coal from the ground. Coal is valued for its energy content, and since the 1880s has been widely used to generate electricity. Steel and cement industries use coal as a fuel for extraction of iron from iron ore and for cement production. In the United States,...
town. Grass Creek was inhabited about 1860–1940.
History
After coalCoal
Coal is a combustible black or brownish-black sedimentary rock usually occurring in rock strata in layers or veins called coal beds or coal seams. The harder forms, such as anthracite coal, can be regarded as metamorphic rock because of later exposure to elevated temperature and pressure...
was discovered along the Weber River
Weber River
The Weber River is a c. long river of northern Utah, USA. It begins in the northwest of the Uinta Mountains and empties into the Great Salt Lake. The Weber River was named for American fur trapper John Henry Weber.-Weber River:...
and the town of Coalville founded in 1859, Brigham Young
Brigham Young
Brigham Young was an American leader in the Latter Day Saint movement and a settler of the Western United States. He was the President of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints from 1847 until his death in 1877, he founded Salt Lake City, and he served as the first governor of the Utah...
sent more searchers in 1860 to explore further. They discovered other coal beds 10 feet (3 m) thick just north over the hill, in Grass Valley Canyon. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints soon opened a coal mine in the canyon. A few miners' families settled around the mine, calling their settlement Grass Creek.
The silver mining
Silver mining
Silver mining refers to the resource extraction of the precious metal element silver by mining.-History:Silver has been known since ancient times. It is mentioned in the Book of Genesis, and slag heaps found in Asia Minor and on the islands of the Aegean Sea indicate that silver was being separated...
boom in the Park City
Park City, Utah
Park City is a town in Summit and Wasatch counties in the U.S. state of Utah. It is considered to be part of the Wasatch Back. The city is southeast of downtown Salt Lake City and from Salt Lake City's east edge of Sugar House along Interstate 80. The population was 7,558 at the 2010 census...
area in the 1870s created a sudden demand for coal. Non-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...
investors quickly moved in to develop the canyon's mines. The Grass Creek Fuel Company established its own company town
Company town
A company town is a town or city in which much or all real estate, buildings , utilities, hospitals, small businesses such as grocery stores and gas stations, and other necessities or luxuries of life within its borders are owned by a single company...
at Grass Creek. The company built homes on the north side of the canyon, with the business district on the south. As the population grew, Grass Creek added numerous buildings, from miners' shacks to fine stone homes for mine owners. There was even a Chinatown
Chinatown
A Chinatown is an ethnic enclave of overseas Chinese people, although it is often generalized to include various Southeast Asian people. Chinatowns exist throughout the world, including East Asia, Southeast Asia, the Americas, Australasia, and Europe. Binondo's Chinatown located in Manila,...
.
Until 1873 the coal was hauled by ox
Ox
An ox , also known as a bullock in Australia, New Zealand and India, is a bovine trained as a draft animal. Oxen are commonly castrated adult male cattle; castration makes the animals more tractable...
teams through Parley's Canyon
Parley's Canyon
Parley's Canyon is a canyon located in the U.S. state of Utah. The canyon provides the route of Interstate 80 up the western slope of the Wasatch Mountains and is a relatively wide, straight canyon. The lower part of the canyon, however, is relatively twisty and had to be dynamited to make way for...
into Salt Lake City. In that year a narrow gauge railway called the Summit County Railroad was built from 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....
line at Echo
Echo, Utah
Echo is a census-designated place located in Summit County, Utah, United States. The population was 56 at the 2010 census. Although Echo has never had a sizable population, the town is historically significant.-History:...
through Coalville to Grass Creek. Despite high Union Pacific freight charges, the railroad was still a more efficient way to ship the coal. Then in 1881 the Union Pacific built the standard gauge
Standard gauge
The standard gauge is a widely-used track gauge . Approximately 60% of the world's existing railway lines are built to this gauge...
Echo and Park City Railroad, which paralleled the Summit County Railroad between Echo and Coalville. The branch line
Branch line
A branch line is a secondary railway line which branches off a more important through route, usually a main line. A very short branch line may be called a spur line...
from Coalville to Grass Creek became dual gauge
Dual gauge
A dual-gauge or mixed-gauge railway has railway track that allows trains of different gauges to use the same track. Generally, a dual-gauge railway consists of three rails, rather than the standard two rails. The two outer rails give the wider gauge, while one of the outer rails and the inner rail...
, with three rails to carry trains of both gauges. The Union Pacific even operated its own Grass Creek coal mine from 1880–1887. The increasing involvement of the Union Pacific Railroad in the area was troubling to many residents, who saw the company as a predatory monopoly
Monopoly
A monopoly exists when a specific person or enterprise is the only supplier of a particular commodity...
. Grass Creek was completely dependent on its coal mines, which were at the mercy of the railroad. It was commonly believed that the Union Pacific deliberately raised shipping rates and limited the number of coal cars leaving Coalville, in favor of the company's own coal mines in Rock Springs, Wyoming
Rock Springs, Wyoming
Rock Springs is a city in Sweetwater County, Wyoming, United States. The population was 18,708 at the 2000 census. Rock Springs is the principal city of the Rock Springs micropolitan statistical area, which has a population of 37,975....
.
Despite its precarious dependence on a single industry, Grass Creek continued to grow through the end of the 19th century. The canyon's activity peaked about 1881–1910. By 1904 there was a school and post office
Post office
A post office is a facility forming part of a postal system for the posting, receipt, sorting, handling, transmission or delivery of mail.Post offices offer mail-related services such as post office boxes, postage and packaging supplies...
in town, and in 1907 Ogden
Ogden, Utah
Ogden is a city in Weber County, Utah, United States. Ogden serves as the county seat of Weber County. The population was 82,825 according to the 2010 Census. The city served as a major railway hub through much of its history, and still handles a great deal of freight rail traffic which makes it a...
millionaire David Eccles
David Eccles (businessman)
David Eccles was an American businessman and industrialist who founded many businesses throughout the western United States and became Utah's first multimillionaire.-Biography:...
bought up more than 1000 acre (4 km²; 1.6 sq mi) of the Grass Creek Coal Company's coal fields and established the Union Fuel Company. The population of Grass Creek was recorded as 190 in the 1910 United States Census, after which it dropped off considerably.
Decline
Grass Creek's coal was found in soft clay, and the mines began to fill with water, causing dangerous cave-inCave-in
A cave-in is a collapse of a geologic formation, mine or structure which typically occurs during mining or tunneling. Geologic structures prone to cave-ins include alvar, tsingy and other limestone formations, but can also include lava tubes and a variety of other subsurface rock formations.In...
s. The cost and risk of mining coal here made it hard to compete with safer mines that yielded better quality coal. By 1921 only two mines remained in operation, but they were still producing about 200 short tons (178.6 LT) per day. By 1931 the only remaining buyer of Grass Creek coal was the cement
Cement
In the most general sense of the word, a cement is a binder, a substance that sets and hardens independently, and can bind other materials together. The word "cement" traces to the Romans, who used the term opus caementicium to describe masonry resembling modern concrete that was made from crushed...
plant at Croydon
Croydon, Utah
Croydon is a small unincorporated community in northeastern Morgan County, Utah, United States. It is part of the Ogden–Clearfield, Utah Metropolitan Statistical Area. Accessible from Interstate 84, it is home to Holcim's Devil's Slide Cement Plant and several hundred residents...
. That year the cement plant shut down, and in 1932 the Union Pacific asked permission to abandon the Grass Creek spur line. The coal mines continued a few more years when the cement plant won a contract to supply the construction of Boulder Dam, but the Grass Creek mines and railroad were permanently closed by 1940.
All of Grass Valley Canyon is now privately owned and closed to the public.
External links
- History of Summit County at Summit County Historical Society