The Salt Lake tribune. [volume] (Salt Lake City, Utah) 1890-current, 1912-12-29

best friends the Indians had
in the old days, for it was
from tbc Mormous the Indians
learned to make their first steps to-
ward n civilized condition; vet, by
reason of the fighting blood in few
scattering Indian chiefs, An almost con
tinual warfare was carried on from
the summer the pioneers arrived until
after the coming of the railroad.
Tne fighting Of the Mormon people
was not aggressive, but purely for
protection, and was done from i'm
provised barrica6cs at first, aud later
behind more or less pretcDtious stone
wall enclosures, or forts, located in the
midst Of each settlement.
Most Of the forts were constructed
of small unbroken moraine rocks laid
III adobe clay, but in some settlements
they were built of properly shaped
stone, laid in good lime mortar, de-
peudng on the materials available !;
all We're large enough TO accommodate
the entire population of the commun
jty, at the time of erection.
These forts are practically all gone
now. Square dealing did away with the
need for them. Prosperity in nearly
all cases has replaced them by modern
residences and business blocks, In
some cases today, the walls Of the forts
still stand in. or near, the villages or
towns, but many wide gatcways make
of them tithing yards or stock corrals
instead Of refugees in times Of Indian
uprislngs,
made his memorable trip 10 "Dixie !"
rd I.1l t,,ct
close Of the civil war, his party was
dangerously exposed to Indians, and
especially when camping out on the
broad unsheltered plains on the long,
louelv strength of road. unmarked by
human habitatiou, between Fillmore
and Beaver, Utah.
The towns are two days journey
apart, and for this reason, President
Young ordered a fort built on Cove
crcek-Cove fort-near the Millard
Beaver county line In Millsrd county
on the old southwest route" to the
California gold fields, and at the cross
ing of the trail from San Pete valley
through Clear creek TO the Nevada
camps.
Pioneer travelling WAS always rea
sonably safe, as Il rule. where settle
ments could be reached at night. and
in all the roads Of old, wide spreading
Utah, the Mormon settlements were
nowhere moro than an easy days Jour
ney apart, except in this ono instance,
so when President Young directed
Bishop Ira n Hincklcy to build the
fort, which was done in 1867, he did
so with view to protecting not only
his own travelling people from the Iu-
dians, but to protecting the constant
stream OF California cmigrants from
troubles with the Indians within tho
Mormon demcsuc.
President Young himself had the
advantage OF the protection afforded
by r stop over night at Cove fort i'll
April 1869, whilc going again 10 the
more when returning to Salt LAKE City
that same month, Elder Wilford Wood
ruff. later President of the Latter-day
Saints church. accompanied President
Young Oh both these trips, and in his
journal. under date Of April, 1869, he
gives this description Of Cove fort;
This fort is q very substantial
building. think It Is the best IN the
territory, II Is built of volcanic rock
laid In with mortar. Each OF The
four walls is hundred feet long OF
tho outside and eighteen feet high
from the foundation. On the east
side is a gateway fourteen feet Wide.
with substantial arch six feet deep.
and three inches thick. set inside.
Above this preparations are being
made for lookout and telegraph
office. On the west side Is u gate
way eight hy four feet with prolec-
tions inside ten and one-halt feet wide
aud ten feet nigh. The fort contains
twelve rooms six on the north and
six on the south side. ten OF which
arc sixteen Icy fourteen feet. and two
are sixteen by seventeen feet. and.
nine feet and four inches high. There