In 1845 legendary explorers Kit Carson and John C. Fremont became the first non-Indians to explore the island, where they glimpsed herds of antelope and gave the island its name. Taking advantage of several springs of fresh water, Mormon settlers began grazing animals on the island in 1848, when it became known as Church Island. In that same year, Fielding Garr and his family moved to Antelope Island. A skilled mason, Garr built an adobe ranch house for his family. This house, which still stands, is the oldest continually inhabited home in Utah built by non-Indians.
Visitors can tour the house on selected days.
For more than 100 years the island was used mainly as a pasture of sheep, horses, bison and cows. The state of Utah began acquiring the island in 1960s, and in 1981 the entire island became a state park. Wildlife A major attraction of Antelope Island is the abundance and diversity of wildlife. The American bison are perhaps the best-known residents. Before the Indian Wars of 1860 to 1880, during which the U.S. Army starved the Native Americans into submission by slaughtering the buffalo, the herd in America numbered from 50 million to 60 million animals.