Wood River times. [volume] (Hailey, Idaho) 1882-1915, 1884-06-09
CREIGHTON AND SOLDIER.
Inc Experience Of Bellevue and HALEY
About To be Repeated on Small Scale
on CamaS Prairie.


About To be Repeated Oh a Small Scale
on Camas Prairie.
Two towns have recently been laid
out on Camas Prairie which will be
known to the future historian as Crich
ton and Soldier. AS yet there are
only about half a dozen structures at
the first place and an even lesser num-
Der at the second, and not a house of
new lumber is to be seen at either
place, but the friends of each are full
OF hope, and already talk as excitedly
about their respective favorite as the
bellevueites and Haileyites ever did.
Crlchton is the first town on the
Prairie. 1t is located near the center
OF the very richest soil in that rich val
ley, on the through stage road across
the valley, and on the road to the
Smoky mines, and the two sawmills-
the only industries disconnected with
ranchng that the valley boasts. Its
distance from HALEY is about "a miles,
or just one good days drive with all
ordinary load. To Bellevue the dis
lance is about 80 miles but as it is
the only town between the Prairie and
Wood River, all travellers to and from
this valley by private conveyance will
doubtless make it stopping, place
each way. Like Bellevue, it is ''gate
entrance to the main set
tied portion of Camas and
to the mining districts of
Smoky and others yet to be.
Some eight or ten structures already
mark the townsite of Crichton, in
a store, hotel, livery stable,
three dwelling houses, ETC., and new
hotel, stage, express and postotfice,
drugstore, general merchandise store,
and blacksmith shop are expected to
be in course of construction within
a week. The title to the land, which
IS a United States patent, is owned
by the Crichton Town Company,
which also owns the spring issuing
from the butte against which the
town rests, and which was the onlv
living stream Of water seen on Camas
Prairie, west of Armstrong; last Au-
gust, by Receiver Waters, of tie
Land Office, and others. From
Crichton the Smoky road will take
to the foothills until it reaches Soldier
Creek canyon, where it will enter the
mountains. In all directions around
Crichton the prairie is dotted with
small shanties Which. two years hence,
will be superseded by the stately man
slons of the prosperous ranchers
The road to Crchton is smooth, easy
and hard, at almost all seasons, with
the exception of few spots which
will have to be "corduroyed," before
heavy teams can pass over it at all
seasons.
Soldier was laid out this spring,
but is already covered by a mortgage,
while the land adjoining 1t is still
owned by the government, and the
claim of at least one of the settlers
will be contested. There are one
store and postotlice on the site, and
small pile Of lumber seems to indi-
cate an intention to build on
the part Of somebody. The
Soldier Company cannot, of course,
give any title to the lots,
except subject to the mortgage The
site is, however, nearer the geographical
center of the prairie, though it may
De said to be beyond the black loamy
soil which is tie boast of Camas. But
here are twice as many settlers around
Soldier as there are around Crichton,
md the Smoky road comes down the
canyon to within quarter Of mile
IF the town. The parties interested
ire also talking of stores, hotels, etc,
cut time only will determine how
much of this is pure gas.
Camas Prairie is magnificent and
fertile section, to be sure, and it may
De that, like the Cache valley in Utah,
t will support town every few miles;
out at present it does not seem as if
any town of considerable size would
grow there this year. In new agri-
cultural country it takes time to build
a town-a great deal Of time.