Guide to the Westminster College settlement agreement and purchase records regarding the Hoodes property

Sheldon Jackson College, Salt Lake City, Utah (1895-1901): In late March, 1892, the Presbytery of Utah, in planning for a possible college in Utah, elected a Board of Trustees for the proposed college, consisting of five ministers (Rev. S.E. Wishard of Ogden, Rev. G.W. Martin of Manti, Rev. Josiah McClain of Nephi, Rev. C.M. Shepherd of Springville, and Rev. R.G. McNiece of Salt Lake City) and four laymen (Col. W.M. Ferry of Park City, F.E. Gregg and Frank E. Pierce of Salt Lake City, and W.I. Brown of Nephi). Robert G. McNiece was named President (Chairman) of the Board, Rev. McClain, Secretary, and Gill S. Peyton was appointed Treasurer. A committee was formed to begin drafting by-laws and a constitution for the proposed college.

In August, 1892 the Board proposed the name "Salt Lake College". The Board examined four locations proposed for the campus during April and May 1893; Ogden was considered especially attractive, but further study returned the Board to its original resolution to locate in Salt Lake City, and this was confirmed. The new college was chartered in 1895.

By August 1896, with support from Sheldon Jackson (a prominent Protestant missionary and educator in the West), the new college was named "Sheldon Jackson College" and the Board of Trustees under this name held its first meeting in Salt Lake City. The first order of business was to elect a President, and General John Eaton of Washington City was chosen. Sheldon Jackson College opened 1897 on the Salt Lake Collegiate Institute campus in Salt Lake City, Utah. In a letter dated May 1898 to Mrs. Jeanette H. Ferry, Robert G. McNiece mentions the plan to consolidate Sheldon Jackson College and the Salt Lake Collegiate Institute and informs Ferry that both Dr. Eaton and Dr. Jackson have given their approval. The one and only Sheldon Jackson College commencement was held on June 4, 1901. The Board of Trustees approved a name change to "Westminster College" on Feb. 6, 1902. Sheldon Jackson and his wife signed an agreement to the name change on April 25, 1902. This same year William Montague Ferry (1824-1905), a trustee of Sheldon Jackson College/Westminster College, would step in and provide the college with the funding it desperately needed, buying the property that the campus currently occupies in the Sugar House area of Salt Lake City.

Westminster College, Salt Lake City, Utah (1901- ): Westminster College in Salt Lake City, Utah came into official existence as an educational institution when the Board of Trustees approved a name change on Feb. 6, 1902 from the earlier name, Sheldon Jackson College. For a few years, the letterhead on Westminster College stationery included the notation "formerly Sheldon Jackson College". The college moved from downtown to the present campus in the Sugar House area in 1911, granting high school diplomas and junior college associate degrees. College classes were suspended 1909-1913 but resumed in 1914. By the mid-1940s a four-year baccaulaureate program was in place. Ties with the Presbyterian Church were officially ended in 1974, as was also true at many other Presbyterian church-related colleges across the United States at the time. Without financial backing from the Church, Westminster's stability was in jeopardy and in 1983, in order to save the school, Westminster College was closed, opening then next day as a new institution named Westminster College of Salt Lake City. In 1998, the name was changed back to "Westminster College". Westminster College is the only private, independent college in Utah, making it unique in the state's higher educational system.

In 2005, in order to implement expansion plans for the campus, Westminster College negotiated and purchased the nearby Hoodes Property. The college subsequently built the Dolores Doré Eccles Health, Wellness, and Athletic Center and Dumke Field and Parking Structure on the site.

Stephen R. Morgan: Steven Morgan earned a B.A. in accounting from the University of Utah and is a certified public accountant (CPA). As Executive Vice President and Treasurer at Westminster College, he managed the college's finances through a period of 25 years and oversaw the growth of the endowment. He directed 17 campus construction and renovation projects, including Giovale Library, the Bill and Vieve Gore School of Business, and the Dolores Doré Eccles Health, Wellness, and Athletic Center. In 2007 Morgan was named Vice President for Institutional Advancement, and in July 2015 became Westminster College's 18th president.

This small collection consists of records created and/or collected from 2005-2006 by the Executive Vice President's Office of Westminster College, relating to the purchase of property owned by Peter and Leslie Hoodes. The property, consisting of a house and undeveloped land, is located at 1173 E. Garfield Ave., Salt Lake City, Utah. Stephen R. Morgan, as the college's Executive Vice President during this period, was the primary negotiator of the sale and signator of legal documents on behalf of Westminster College.

The collection consists entirely of photocopied materials originally in a 3-hole punch binder. The location of the originals and binder is unknown.

Contributors to the materials in this collection include:

• Westminster College (buyer)
• Stephen R. Morgan (Exec. Vice President, Westminster College)
• Peter and Leslie Hoodes (sellers)
• Thomas A. Ellison (attorney, Stoel Rives LLP, and legal counsel to Westminster College)
• D. Bradford Petersen and Scott McNeil (McNeil Engineering & Land Survey)
• Douglas L. Wheelright, Brent B. Wilde, Janice Lew (Deputy and Associate Planning Directors, Salt Lake City Corporation, Community Development, Planning and Zoning Division)
• Thomas Bennett (Ballard Spahr Andrews & Ingersoll LLP)
• Bill Roeder (Integrated Title Services, Midvale, Utah)
• Landmark Title Company

The Purchase sales agreement (Box 1, Folder 1) dated March 14, 2005 has 6 attached exhibits:

• Exhibit A. Legal description of the Main Parcel (developed land including the house)
• Exhibit B. Legal description of the Out Parcel (undeveloped land)
• Exhibit C. Permitted exceptions
• Exhibit D. Special warranty deed
• Exhibit E. Quit claim deed
• Exhibit F. Seller's property condition disclosure

The Settlement agreement (Box 1, Folder 2) dated March 14, 2005 has 7 attached exhibits:

• Exhibit A. Map of the unplatted Lot 8 land (2 copies)
• Exhibit B. Description of the Hoodes Property (2 copies)
• Exhibit C. Description of the Westminster unplatted Lot 8 land (2 copies)
• Exhibit D. Drawing showing the Westminster/Hoodes boundary (2 copies)
• Exhibit E. New description for the Perimeter boundary to the overall Westminster property (2 copies)
• Exhibit F. Boundary agreement
• Exhibit G. (Purchase and Sale Agreement)

The Boundary agreement (Box 1, Folder 3) includes copies of the agreement, as signed April 21, 2005, and a cover letter from Thomas A. Ellison to Steve Morgan dated April 29, 2005. There is also a letter dated April 21, 2005 from Douglas L. Wheelwright (City Deputy Planning Director) to Thomas A. Ellison regarding the Boundary adjustment and subdivision amendment for Westminster College stating "The City Planning Division is pleased that an agreement between private property owners was reached" and mentioning the "College's expansion plans for the wellness center building and the new parking lot/raised sports field facility".

Closing (Box 1, Folder 4) contains copies of all closing documents from April 21, 2005.

City meetings (Box 1, Folder 5). The earliest document in this file, dated February 17, 2004 is a copy of a Salt Lake City Planning Commission approval of Westminster College's petition requesting rezoning of 1182 and 1184 East Blaine Avenue from "single family residential" to "Institutional". A letter dated February 27, 2004 from Janice Lew (Associate Planner, Salt Lake City) to Steve Morgan states the Planning Commission's action. Another letter dated June 24, 2004 from Brent Wilde (Deputy Planning Director, Salt Lake City) to Steve Morgan addresses a process for amendment of the "Perkins 1st Grand View Addition Subdivision". An April 8, 2005 letter to Doug Wheelwright (Salt Lake City Planning Department) from Thomas Ellison (legal counsel to Westminster College) summarizes a meeting held earlier in the week about the proposed Westminster College purchase of the Hoodes property.

Meetings, conversations, and e-mails file (Box 1, Folder 6). This file contains materials dating from March 4, 2005 to January 21, 2006. Included are letters to Steve Morgan from various people and agencies involved in the negations for the Hoodes Property sale, notes made by Morgan during phone calls, and early drafts of some of the legal documents.

Information on the home file (Box 1, Folder 7) is comprised of notes made by Steven Morgan during a March 11 2005 tour of Peter Hoodes' home, and copy of a blank seller's property condition disclosure form, and notes of an April 18, 2005 follow-up meeting with Peter Hoodes.

Settlement statement and payments (Box 1, Folder 8) is comprised of a letter dated April 20, 2005 from Thomas A. Ellison to Bill Roeder at Integrated Title Insurance Services (with copies to Steve Morgan and Tom Bennett) in regards to the purchase of the Hoodes Property and Integrated Title Insurance Services' title insurance commitment issued January 25, 2005, with a copy of the Settlement statement and charges to the buyer at closing.

Warranty deed and Quit claim deed (Box 1, Folder 9). This file contains 2 copies of the Special Warranty Deed, with permitted exceptions (Exhibit A) and the Quit Claim deed, with legal description of the property, signed by Peter and Leslie Hoodes on April 21, 2005.

Title policy (Box 1, Folder 10). This file contains a copy of the Owner's policy of title insurance issued by United General Title Insurance Company and accompanying documentation for the policy.

Property taxes 2005 for the Hoodes Property (Box 1, Folder 11). This file includes the 2005 tax notice for 1173 E. Garfield Ave. sent from Salt Lake County to Westminster College in October, 2005.

Restrictions on Access:

Access to this collection is restricted under provisions of state or federal law. The Settlement Agreement contains a confidentiality clause which can only be reversed by court order. Use of this collection requires the permission of the Westminster College President's Office.

Restrictions on Use:

It is the responsibility of the researcher to obtain any necessary copyright clearances.

Permission to publish material must be obtained from the Westminster College President's Office.

Preferred Citation:

Westminster College settlement agreement and purchase records regarding the Hoodes property, 2004-2006, ACC-194 Giovale Library Archives, Westminster College, Salt Lake City, Utah.

Arrangement:

Arranged into two series:

• Legal documents (Purchase sale agreement, Settlement agreement, Boundary agreement, Closing documents)
• Related materials (Meetings and conversations, City meetings, Information on the home, Settlement statements and payments, Title policy, Warranty deed and Quit claim deeds, 2005 Property taxes for the Hoodes Property)

Processing Note:

The collection was processed August 2016 by Sarah J. Shaw. All materials were loose sheets of photocopied materials and appeared to have come from a 3-hold punch binder. The photocopies were divided by blue and orange sheets bearing handwritten titles. These titles have been retained as file titles in the finding aid. All legal documents were at the end of the arrangement as accessioned, but have been moved to become Series 1 of the collection to be given more prominence. All the informal, non-legal documents and notes (and in some cases copies or earlier drafts of the legal documents) have been moved to the end of the collection as Series 2 and arranged in approximately chronological order.

Creator:

Westminster College (Salt Lake City, Utah : 1902-1983). Executive Vice President's Office

Language:

Collection materials are in English.

Quantity:

0.2 linear feet

Language of the Finding Aid:

English.

Author of the Finding Aid:

Finding aid written in August 2016 by Sarah Shaw.

EAD Creation Date:

2016 August 18 by Sarah Shaw

Standard:

Describing Archives : A Content Standard (DACS)

Subarea:

Related Material:

Related photographs in Giovale Library Archives:

• Photograph of Dumke Field dedication soccer game
• Photograph of Dumke Field dedication, with President Bassis and mascot "Griff"

Corporate Names:

Ballard, Spahr, Andrews & Ingersoll
Integrated Title Services
Landmark Title Company
McNeil Engineering
Salt Lake City Corporation. Community Development. Planning and Zoning Division
Stoel Rives LLP
Westminster College (Salt Lake City, Utah : 1998- )--Buildings
Westminster College (Salt Lake City, Utah : 1998- )--Planning
Westminster College (Salt Lake City, Utah : 1998- )--History--Sources
Westminster College (Salt Lake City, Utah : 1998- ). Executive Vice President's Office--Archives

Subject Terms:

Campus planning--Utah--Salt Lake City
Universities and colleges--Utah--Salt Lake City

Form or Genre Terms:

Agreements
Cadastral maps
Correspondence
Deeds
Insurance policies
Legal documents
Maps (documents)
Property records

Personal Names:

Bennett, Thomas G.
Ellison, Thomas A.
Hoodes, Leslie
Hoodes, Peter
McNeil, Scott
Morgan, Stephen R.
Petersen, D. Bradford
Roeder, Bill
Wheelright, Douglas L.
Wilde, Brent B.

Geographical Names:

Salt Lake City (Utah)--History--Sources
Sugar House (Salt Lake City, Utah)--History--Sources