Huntsville

The land was the Utes', and the settlers bought it for two ponies. When Jefferson Hunt — a Mormon Battalion captain the town would be named for — brought the first families into this Ogden Valley pocket in 1860, the ground belonged to the Ute people, and the newcomers purchased it for two ponies, with further payments over the next seven years. Scandinavian immigrants arrived in 1864 and helped it grow; by 1880 Huntsville counted more than eight hundred. It is a plain line on the plaque, but it records a transaction most Utah towns never bothered to make.

What the plaque says

Huntsville's first known settlers arrived the fall of 1860. They were Jefferson Hunt, for whom the town was named, his sons Joseph and Hyrum and their families; Charles and Alice Wood; Joseph Wood and his mother, Sarah; Nathan Coffin and his mother, Abigail; the Edward Rushton family; and the James Earl family. Owned by Ute Indians, the land was purchased for two ponies with additional payments made during the succeeding seven years. Arriving in 1864, Scandinavian settlers helped build the community through their thrift and industry. By 1880 Huntsville had grown to a population of over 800.

Where it stands

Worth the stop nearby

• Snowbasin — 5.5 mi
  One of the country's oldest ski areas and a 2002 Olympic downhill venue — world-class terrain that somehow still skis uncrowded.
• Powder Mountain — 8.3 mi
  The largest ski resort in the United States by acreage — a famously uncrowded "PowMow" now remaking itself under Netflix's Reed Hastings.
• Ogden Union Station — 11 mi
  A grand 1924 train depot turned museum complex
• Hill Aerospace Museum — 14 mi
  Over 90 military aircraft displayed indoors and on the tarmac

More markers nearby

• Captain Jefferson Hunt — steps away
• Mary Heathman Smith — steps away
• Eden World War II Memorial — 3.5 mi
• Liberty — 7.0 mi