Moroni Fort and Bastion

When the Black Hawk War reached Sanpete in 1865, Moroni built walls and a watchtower. On General Wells's order the settlers threw up a fort with twelve-foot rock walls, cabins backed against them along the inside, covering what is now the City Hall block and westward. Its bastion — a tower whose thick walls were pierced with portholes — commanded a view of the whole valley, a lookout against raids. In 1866 the danger grew enough that nearby settlers were ordered inside: Fountain Green's people took the northeast section, Wales's the west, and Moroni's the rest.

What the plaque says

Erected in 1865 on order of General D.H. Wells to protect the settlers during the Black Hawk War. The fort covered the present City Hall Block and westward with 12 ft. rock walls supporting cabins along the inside. The bastion stood on the Lincoln School Lots. Its walls 3 x 16 ft. held port holes which gave a view of the entire valley. In 1866, when near-by settlers were ordered to move into the fort, Fountain Green occupied the N.E. section; Wales, the West side; and Moroni, the remainder.

Where it stands

Worth the stop nearby

• Spring City — 5.8 mi
  An entire pioneer town preserved on the National Register
• Mount Pleasant — 7.2 mi
  A National Register Main Street and Utah's oldest boarding school
• Fairview — 11 mi
  The north gate of the Heritage Highway, home to a near-complete Ice Age mammoth
• Ephraim Co-op — 11 mi
  The 1871 cooperative store that outlived the economy it was built to replace

More markers nearby

• ZCMI Co-Op Building — 0.2 mi
• First Coal Mine in Utah — 3.6 mi
• Spring City — 5.8 mi
• Spring City Pioneer Cemetery — 5.8 mi