A History of Uintah County

Community services

14 For the Good of All COMMUNITY SERVICES T X he majority of the settlers of Ashley Center (Vernal) were Mormons, and the site where the original fort had been located was owned by church member David lohnstun, who had granted power of attorney to the Mormon church. Church officials held a meeting on 13 September 1884 in which a motion was made that a townsite be located on the old fort site. The motion carried and eight men were placed on a committee to set prices on the city lots. The town-site was surveyed on 7 March 1885.1 The town organization was established in 1893. Four years later, in 1897, after meeting the legal requirements for filing and advertising, a proposition to incorporate Vernal as a third-class city was placed on the ballot. On 2 November the proposal passed, with a vote of 129 for and 15 against. S.M. Browne was elected mayor, defeating S.P. Dillman by a count of 102 to 57 votes, lohn Pope was elected marshal with 153 votes; his opponents, leff Wilcox and William Preece, received one vote each.2 From that point on Vernal operated as a city with a mayor, not as a town with a board 392 COMMUNITY SERVICES 393 of trustees. Incorporation proceedings were signed by the secretary of state on 28 December 1897. For some unknown reason, the city went through the incorpora­tion process again after a petition was signed on 5 August 1907 by more than one hundred real property taxpayers asking that Vernal be incorporated as a city of the third class. All qualifications were met and the commissioners approved and resolved that the matter would be placed on the 5 November ballot.3 It passed, and lohn K. Bullock was elected mayor. The commissioners met on 6 lanuary 1908 and adopted the resolution, and on 20 February 1908 the city was rein­corporated, according to wording on the state record. Through the years county and city governments have accepted responsibility to provide diverse services to the constantly growing and changing population of the county. Many of these public services are examined in this chapter. Uintah County Library Soon after the turn of the century, a move was made to secure a library for Vernal City. In March 1902, after much work by the women's Thalia Club, a petition was signed by county and city offi­cers and sent to national philanthropist Andrew Carnegie, who had helped establish other libraries in the state, asking for a donation of $3,000 to establish a public library in Vernal. The request was turned down, as were numerous subsequent requests. Other clubs began offering assistance to fund a library, however. At a public meeting held in the social hall on 17 March 1908, a library association was formed, with seven people selected to serve as a board of directors. Charles DeMoisy was elected chairman, with Don B. Colton, vice-chairman; Alta Newcomb, secretary, and Frank M. Young, treasurer. Plans were made to purchase books, magazines, and furniture for the library with the donations that had been collected. The library was to be housed in the south wing of a building owned by the Dillman family which was located on the west side of South Vernal Avenue. In April, Mina (Mrs. Leon) Pack was appointed librarian, and the library opened on 15 April with 300 volumes of books, numerous magazines, and various newspapers. Many visitors 394 HISTORY OF UINTAH COUNTY brought donations of books, money, and furniture to the grand opening. The library made many moves before arriving at its present loca­tion. From South Vernal Avenue, the library was moved to the old rock tithing building on North Vernal Avenue in 1909.4 In September of that year Bertha (Mrs. L. N.) Meredith became librarian. By December 1910 it was decided that the city of Vernal would take over the public library and expenses would be paid out of city taxes. As this was a city library, only Vernal City residents were allowed to use it. In 1912 the by-laws were changed so that any person residing out­side Vernal limits could use the library for an annual fee of one dollar. An average of 255 children and seventy-five adults were using the library weekly, and up to 150 books were checked out or mailed out each day. More suitable quarters were needed for the library by 1914, but city revenues were inadequate to pay an increased rent. A number of women began holding a series of teas to raise money for the library. Members from the library board, Thalia Club, Current Topics Club, and the Silver Tea Club were appointed to a committee to find a new location, and in 1915 the library was moved to 54 West Main. The next April the library was again moved, across the street to 81 West Main. Headlines in the 13 lune 1917 Vernal Express read, "Steps Taken to Secure Big $50,000 County Library." A bill made it possible to set a special county mill levy to provide funds which Carnegie grant funds would match-ten dollars to every one dollar raised by Uintah County. Carnegie officials had maintained that there were not enough patrons in Vernal to warrant a library building, so in April 1920 it was decided to change the city library to a county facility. It was believed that a special tax levy of $5,000-when used with Carnegie matching funds-would give the county a splendid library. However, Carnegie funds were not granted. A new library board was selected and Merle Massey became county librarian. In 1932 Elizabeth Manker became librarian. The book collection had grown from 300 to 4,690 volumes. The library was overcrowded, and it was also housing pioneer artifacts which the Daughters of Utah Pioneers had collected. No restroom facilities were available, a cold water tap COMMUNITY SERVICES 395 could only be used during summer months, and lighting was inade­quate for reading. A pool hall was next door and parents were con­cerned about letting their children go to the library. Inebriated persons occasionally staggered into the library by mistake. Through the years continual attempts were made to obtain a bet­ter location for the library. A drive was initiated in 1931 without suc­cess. The city continued to work with the county on the library and the mayor served on the library board. In 1937 the local paper reported a $27,000 city hall would be constructed in the fall as a WPA project, but the project never materialized and the library seemed doomed never to have a permanent home. In 1948 it was decided to move the library to the Central School building. Elizabeth Manker retired in May 1948 and Crystal (Mrs. Charles) Lewis replaced her as librarian. Lewis served for six years, resigning in May 1954. Marge Hislop Eaton replaced her on 1 lune 1954. The library board purchased property for the site of a new library building, but when the county wanted this property for the Golden Age Center, the library was paid for the site and the money was placed in a library fund. LeOra lacobe became the new librarian on 8 August 1956, and two major library building programs were undertaken during the twenty years she served. The library finally achieved its goal of a new building when the second courthouse was begun in 1958. A small library sixty feet by twenty feet connected to the east side of the building was dedicated 30 lune 1959. The library had outgrown this space by 1975, and, through a state library grant, a large addition was constructed to the east and dedicated on 11 September 1975. In February 1961 a contract was signed with the state library commission to provide Bookmobile services to outlying areas in Uintah County. In 1962 the Rotary Club organized a birthday club in which each member pledged five dollars to the library on his birth­day to buy a book of interest to men or boys. The amount was later increased to ten dollars. Over the twenty-year period of this project, about 1,000 books were purchased at a cost of more than $10,000. In 1976 LeOra lacobe retired and Doris Karren Burton was appointed librarian. An ambitious children's program was developed. Story hour grew, with up to 130 children over age six attending in the 396 HISTORY OF UINTAH COUNTY new multipurpose room weekly. Younger children also had a special story hour. Burton arranged and taught art classes and writing semi­nars. Under her leadership, the library became a center for those inter­ested in fine arts, with monthly art shows and poetry meetings. Display cases were filled with local collections. In 1982 Burton opened the Regional History Center. In addition to collecting local histories, newspapers, and photographs, the center and its staff have undertaken significant programs to preserve the history of the region. Shortly after being named county historian in 1982, Burton was replaced as librarian by Creed Kidd. Evan Lewis Baker was appointed librarian later in 1982, and, under Baker's direction, the library com­puter catalog was improved and adult programs were added. In 1990 a 5,600-square-foot expansion was made to the library, providing increased space for the children's section and the Regional History Center. Baker has been able to obtain many grants for the library. The Historic Preservation Program was established by William lolley in 1984 to identify and preserve the many historic sites in the county. Under the direction of Burton with grants received, the Vernal Express from 1891 through 1943 has been indexed by loy and Richard Horton, and the project continues, making the newspaper more accessible to researchers. A third important project in which the Regional Center is involved is the publication of the Outlaw Trail History Journal, first published in 1991. Two permanent collections are on display in the library. The First Lady Doll Collection was a project of the local national-bicentennial committee in 1976; bicentennial chairman was Marguerite Colton and doll-committee chairman was Isobel Batty. The second collec­tion is a group of historic oil paintings collected by David Arnsbrak through a humanities grant obtained by librarian Doris Burton. The Uintah County Library is considered one of the best in the state for its size. Its collection now contains 64,000 items, and the library is in need of more space. Expansion at the present site is infeasible, so res­idents await future developments. Welfare and Public Health Welfare for those in need was begun when the county was estab­lished in 1880 and consisted mainly of medical assistance to the poor, COMMUNITY SERVICES 397 Public Health office about 1919. (UCLRHC, L. C. Thorne collection) pensions for dependent widowed mothers, care of the old, care of indigents, and burial of paupers.5 Federal welfare relief began in the county in 1932 with the organization of an emergency relief com­mittee under President Herbert Hoover's Wagonor Act organizing the Reconstruction Finance Corporation (RFC). Uintah County's emergency relief committee dispersed funds to needy families. It soon became apparent that providing assistance for the needy would be a major endeavor. In May 1933 New Deal programs were created to provide or channel federal money to state relief committees which in turn allocated the funds to the various counties. Local committees retained responsibility for seeing that funds were honestly and effec­tively administered, but workers were employed to investigate the needs of members of the community who applied for help. In 1935 the state legislature provided for the establishment of state and county departments of public welfare to coordinate the welfare func­tions in the counties of the state. A department of public welfare was organized in Uintah County following this legislation. It was charged with administration of all forms of public assistance in the county, including relief for persons in need, old-age assistance, aid to depen­dent children, aid to the blind and otherwise handicapped, care of 398 HISTORY OF UINTAH COUNTY dependent, neglected, delinquent, or handicapped children, and bur­ial of deceased recipients. In 1937 the Uintah County Department of Welfare added child-welfare services to its program. These services were made available through funds appropriated for this purpose by the Social Security Act. In 1940 the county welfare department was licensed to place children in foster homes. In the 1960s administration of public-welfare programs became largely a function of the state Department of Social Services, which has undergone many changes through the years. For a time a local county commissioner sat on the advisory boards, but today commis­sioners have no role in state and federal programs. A small fund is maintained at the local level for indigent transients and others who do not qualify for other programs. A food pantry program which is funded through state and private contributions is operated in Uintah County. Public health is one of the most critical matters addressed by local government; it includes the prevention of epidemics, the con­trol of disease and the promotion of good health. Records of early county involvement in public health are sparse. The county court appointed Doctor Harvey Coe Hullinger as quarantine officer in November 1887 during a measles epidemic, and he was also physi­cian for the poor. Prior to 1887 records indicate that the sheriff on occasion acted as sanitation officer in attempts to keep water unpol­luted. On 8 March 1889 county commissioners passed an ordinance providing for the establishment of sanitary districts and the appoint­ment of health officers. Provisions were made for a county board of health comprised of the county commissioners and designated health officers. This board was to be responsible for supervising sanitary conditions, enforcing quarantine regulations, and managing all other aspects of public health. The Uintah Sanitary District was formed with Dr. Archimedes Rose as its head. As county physician, Rose was also appointed to care for the indigent and enforce quarantine regu­lations. During a diphtheria outbreak in 1897, people of Ashley Valley voiced concern and pointed out the need for a quarantine doctor to serve countywide. COMMUNITY SERVICES 399 A smallpox epidemic broke out in 1902. The disease had been lingering in the valley for several weeks but was so mild it was not recognized until Rose recognized the disease as smallpox. He put out a yellow quarantine flag; but Drs. Albert Bjornson and Harvey Coe Hullinger disagreed, claiming it was only the German measles. To set­tle the dispute, Mayor Browne and the county commissioners tele­phoned for the military post doctor, who arrived and also pronounced it smallpox. Quarantine flags flew all over the county and rigid steps were taken to enforce the quarantine. Schools and public meetings were discontinued and mail leaving Vernal was fumi­gated every night. On 16 April 1902 Vernal City followed the county's lead and passed an ordinance to establish a board of health consisting of three people, including a physician, if possible. The city board of health considered vaccination so important it made special arrangements with the city physician to vaccinate all school children within the city limits free of charge. Dr. EC. Buchtel was secured as the city physi­cian and an office was set up in the Cottage Hotel. When the national influenza epidemic broke out locally in 1918-19, city and county boards of health put a notice in the news­paper listing many rules, including every person entering a store or public building had to wear a protective mask over the nose and mouth, and two or more people congregating on the public streets had to wear masks; eight other rules completed the list.6 The epi­demic was so severe that the Red Cross secured the services of regis­tered nurse Stella Sainsbury to care for the ill. She rode a horse from house to house to offer aid. Later Sainsbury became Uintah School District's first nurse. In 1927 the state superintendent of schools demanded that every school district with 1,500 or more students have a school nurse avail­able to monitor children's health. Local physicians gave yearly physi­cal exams to the children. It took a scarlet fever epidemic in 1928 to start up public health nursing again. The local Red Cross gained the services of Dorothy Mc Carrell. In 1933 nurse Grace Lambert called a mass meeting of citizens at the courthouse to reorganize the Health Center Club in Uintah County. In 1934 a medical relief program was authorized-each county was assigned one nurse who was paid from 400 HISTORY OF UINTAH COUNTY state funds. Mary Tess Murphy, R.N., was appointed public nurse for Uintah County, and one of her jobs was to teach people to help themselves. She also organized baby clinics in the outlying areas. Murphy contacted every school in Uintah County and helped doc­tors inoculate the children for typhoid fever. She also provided bed­side nursing to the sick who could not afford regular medical care.7 Recognizing the need to better promote public-health objectives, the Utah State Board of Health, the Uintah County Board of Education, and the Uintah County Board of Commissioners in 1935 employed a second nurse, lane Loftus, to assist in promoting health in Uintah County. These nurses taught hygiene to children and adults, worked through the schools to maintain physical and mental efficiency, made school inspections to educate the children in the control of communicable diseases, and located children with physical defects. The value of good health habits was emphasized. Besides these services, the nurses participated in planning health programs for the schools, the community, and the county. First-aid classes also were taught. In 1939 the Uintah Public Health Department was located in the first courthouse building and employed one public-health nurse, lane Loftus. Naomi Zundell followed; she was succeeded by Ruth Wood and then Nettie Remington. In 1945 the department employed two nurses-Helen Stevens was hired to work with Nettie Remington. Remington retired 23 lune 1952 and Alta Rust took her place. Rust organized the first mental-health clinic and brought in orthopedic surgeons several times a year. Marilyn Thacker took over from Rust and worked with Helen Walker, who replaced Helen Stevens in 1965. When polio vaccine became available in March 1963, the health department held a clinic at the Uintah County Courthouse; 15,918 doses of vaccine were administered. The county's first male nurse, James Brown, took Walker's position in 1974, and Charlene F. Currie came on staff.. In 1978 a new phase of public-health service opened when Uintah Basin Public Health Department was organized to serve three counties-Uintah, Duchesne, and Daggett-with an office in the basement of the new Uintah County Courthouse. At that time Lulu W. Stewart took James Brown's place and Nancy Arnold came on COMMUNITY SERVICES 401 staff. In 1981 Mary Ellen Connor became district nurse supervisor. In 1986 the offices were expanded and new programs were added, including the Children at Risk program and the Women's Health Resource Center. The Uintah Basin Public Health Department cur­rently offers extensive programs, special contract services, and inten­sive personal and professional development courses. A nine-person board of health governs the Uintah Basin Public Health Department; it includes commissioners from the three coun­ties and several doctors and dentists. The department provides four offices-the home office in Vernal and offices in Manila, Duchesne, and Roosevelt. Joseph Shaffer currently is the director and heads thirty employees. A mosquito problem was addressed in the 1970s. Clouds of mos­quitoes had plagued the citizens of Uintah County, its visitors, and long-suffering livestock for years. Massive amounts of mosquito repellent were used and, in parts of the county, veiled hats were com­monplace. The vast geographic area of the county supported exten­sive mosquito breeding grounds. In 1974 a citizens' committee was appointed and spearheaded by Wiley E. Stewart, a Jensen cattle rancher, and Vaughn Hunsaker, county extension agent. Petitions were circulated and a successful appeal made to the Uintah County commissioners. The Uintah County Mosquito Abatement District was created by order of the commissioners on 5 August 1974. Organized mosquito-control procedures were commenced for the first time in Uintah County on 14 May 1975 under the direction of Dr. Steven Romney, an entomologist who had been employed as district director. Along with Romney, the Uintah County Mosquito Abatement District commenced its first operations with four sea­sonal employees. Cumulative field work and comprehensive mapping of aquatic mosquito sources throughout the county eventually iden­tified mosquito-infested areas totaling 1,000 square miles. The cur­rent (1994) resources of the district which are now employed in countywide mosquito control include Director Romney, assistant director Randel Sessions, and ten highly trained seasonal field tech­nicians. The district has expanded the scope of its program to encompass the local control of other economically and medically important insects in addition to mosquitoes. 402 HISTORY OF UINTAH COUNTY Pharamacies and Druggists Druggists had an important role in the development of health programs in Uintah county and were looked upon with high esteem, many being social and political leaders. Peter Dillman owned the first drug store, which opened in 1886 on South Vernal Avenue. In 1888 Dillman built a larger drug and merchandise store, and in 1892 he sold the drug store to Dr. W.H. Parks, who changed the name to Pioneer Drug. The City Drug Store was opened in 1893 by Will Britt and Edward F. Harmston in a little building on Main Street. In 1896 Harmston sold his share in that company and opened the Harmston Drug Store. The same year W.S. Ashton, lames Shaffer, and A.C. Emert bought out Harmston's inventory and began the Vernal Drug Store, staying in the same building until 1897 when it was moved to a new two-story brick building at 4 West Main. Vernal Drug Store was incorporated in 1907 and moved to the Calder Building. Its next move was into a new building next to the new Uintah State Bank in 1917. The Vernal Drug store had been in operation longer than any other county drug store when it ceased operation in October 1991. R.C. Cooper, one of its owners, served as mayor from 1926 to 1929. He was again elected in 1932, serving until 1941. A LaPoint drug store was operated by L.A Holdridge and later purchased by Pete Harrison. In recent years large chain stores includ­ing Skaggs (Osco), IGA, Smiths, Wal Mart, and K-Mart have moved to Vernal and opened pharmacies, resulting in the demise of the smaller, independent drug stores.8 Dentists Before Uintah County had professional dentists, Vernal black­smith Curt Hadlock removed teeth. The first area dentist was Dr. Nancy Haws, who came in 1889. Doctor Charles E. Hirth arrived in 1900 and was Vernal's main dentist until 1939. A local man, Wallace S. Calder, practiced in Vernal from 1932 to 1941. Other long-time dentists were J. W. Stevens and Lloyd Shimmins, who practiced thirty-four and forty years respectively. Shimmins's son, lohn, became a dentist in 1950 and still practices in 1995, making him the longest practicing dentist. Dan Q. Price practiced for thirty-four COMMUNITY SERVICES 403 Doctor Sawtell, first Indian Service doctor in Ouray and one of the first in Whiterocks (UCLRHC collection) years. Many dentists now practice in Vernal; a complete list is on file in the Uintah County Library Regional History Center. Doctors and Hospitals Doctors and hospitals were slow in coming to Ashley Valley. Wilbur Carlton Britt, one of the first settlers arriving in 1873, had attended medical school for one year and helped in emergencies as town doctor, dentist, and druggist. A physician was stationed at 404 HISTORY OF UINTAH COUNTY Whiterocks at the Uintah Indian Agency in 1883.9 In 1886 Pete Dillman, who operated the Dillman Drug Store, realized how badly a doctor was needed, and on his next trip to Salt Lake City to pur­chase drugs he inquired if the salesman knew a doctor who might be willing to come to Vernal and set up a practice. The salesman sug­gested a Dr. Gardner, stating, "He likes whiskey but if he can be kept away from it, he's a fine physician." Dillman looked up the doctor, who was willing to come to Ashley Valley. Gardner was only in Ashley a couple of years before his old habit of drinking became uncontrol­lable and he returned to Salt Lake; however, he had taught Dillman much about drugs and Dillman continued to provide medicine for the sick.10 The second doctor, W.H. Parks, mysteriously appeared in Vernal in 1888. He set up office in Dillman's Drug Store, which he bought a year later. According to Dillman's life history, Parks was not only a doctor but a detective who was sent to Vernal to investigate the death of a young man named Seymour who was murdered near the settle­ment. 11 Dr. P.H. Butler came to Vernal in 1891 and opened an office in the dental parlor of Nancy Haws; however, in September 1892 Butler committed suicide. The same month news was received that Dr. Harvey Coe Hullinger was building a house and planning to practice in Vernal. He began his practice in Vernal in October 1893. Dr. Hullinger practiced medicine in Vernal for thirty-three years, until just a few months before his death in lanuary 1926 at 101 years of age. Dr. Manfred R. Martin set up practice in 1908, and in 1909 he was joined by Dr. G. Bowers. Martin later moved his office to a house at 163 North Vernal Avenue which he built in 1912. He remained in Vernal until his death of a heart ailment in 1916. Dr. John H. Clark came to Vernal in 1935 and practiced there until he left for military service in February 1941. He was discharged a lieutenant colonel in 1945, having been awarded the Purple Heart. He never returned to Vernal, but many of his old patients went to him when he set up a practice in Salt Lake City. Dr. Weldon Bullock was the first local to become a doctor and to practice in Vernal. He was the son of J.K. Bullock, a prominent businessman. The Uintah COMMUNITY SERVICES 405 Pioneer Doctor Harvey Coe Hullinger seated at his typewriter in front of medicine cabinet still practicing medicine at 100 years of age (UCLRHC col­lection) Railway and the Gilson-Asphaltum companies retained doctors at Dragon, Utah, and the Indian agency at Whiterocks provided a doc­tor. 406 HISTORY OF UINTAH COUNTY In 1950 Dr. lane Fowler, the only woman doctor besides Maude Garrett-O'Donnell to practice in Vernal, arrived with her husband, Dr. Herbert Fowler. She always dressed well, making the statement that just because she worked in a man's world did not mean she had to look like one. Dr. Bruce Christan came to Vernal and set up prac­tice about 1954. In 1977 four physicians practiced in the community-lames Allen, Tyrrell Seager, Paul Stringham, and Ray Spendlove. Dr. Spendlove practiced in Vernal for forty years, from 1946 to 1986, longer than any other doctor at the present time, and was known as the singing doctor because he sang in the hospital while he worked and at numerous church and civic functions. Dr. Seager, who prac­ticed in Vernal for thirty years, was gruff-mannered but one of the best physicians and surgeons in the state. Allen arrived in the Uinta Basin in 1970 to work for the Indian Health Service. In 1972 he set up a practice in Vernal and continues to serve the residents of the basin. Raised in Fort Duchesne, he has won many awards for calf rop­ing and other events in professional rodeos. Dr. Stringham is another local who became a doctor and returned to treat the people of his hometown. Stringham began his practice in Roosevelt in 1950 and moved to Vernal in 1962, practicing in the basin for thirty-nine years. In 1984 Dr. Stringham received the A.H. Robbins Award for Community Service awarded by the Utah State Medical Association. He retired in 1989, at which time his nephew Karl Breitenbach took over his practice. Another local who set up a practice in Vernal is Rodney Anderson, who works with Breitenbach. Many doctors have served Uintah County through the years. Some are mentioned in the following stories. Expanded stories and a complete list of all the doctors known to have practiced in the county can be found in the Uintah County Library Regional History Center. The early doctors arriving in Uintah County dealt with many hardships. It was necessary to travel great distances on poor wagon roads. Epidemics of diphtheria, scarlet fever, and typhoid fever occurred which many of the doctors did not recognize or know how to treat other than to quarantine the homes. Medical equipment was minimal and doctors had to work with makeshift tools. The flu epi­demic of 1918-19 took the lives of dentist Edwin Tolhurst and COMMUNITY SERVICES 407 undertaker Elmer Dillman. No hospitals existed and doctors were forced to provide operating rooms in their offices. A smallpox epidemic broke out on the Indian reservation in 1902. Almost every family was affected, and as many as three in one family died in one day. With local doctors unable to cope with the sit­uation, a call was made to Denver for help, guaranteeing the expenses of a doctor with medical knowledge. Dr. EC. Buchtel, who had just graduated from Denver University, accepted the challenge. No anti­toxin was available to the local medical men, but Dr. Buchtel brought a large supply with him and soon had the epidemic under control. He set up his office in the Cottage Hotel on the corner of 100 North and Vernal Avenue. The first woman physician to arrive in Vernal was Dr. Maude A. Garrett from Denver. Dr. Buchtel's practice had increased to the point he could not handle it alone. He had attended school with Maude Garrett and invited her to join his practice. Dr. Garrett married a local attorney, Thomas O'Donnell. She owned the area's first x-ray machine and practiced in Vernal for twenty-four years. She was a petite woman and not physically strong, and she seemed to have more trouble and excitement than many when it came to horses, wagons, and early automobiles. Many stories are told of her adven­tures. Dr. Homer E. Rich came to practice medicine in Vernal in August 1911.1nl912a tragedy occurred when he was called to perform an operation at Roosevelt and lost his way. He rode around all night try­ing to reach Roosevelt. When day finally broke, he rushed to Roosevelt only to reach his destination two hours after the patient had passed away12 In 1918 four area doctors-Green, Christy, Rich, and Cruikshank-were called to enter the military service in World War I. Dr. Jacob Marion Francke was asked to come to Vernal as a replace­ment. When Dr. Francke cleaned out Green's desk, he found the fol­lowing written on a prescription pad, revealing the makeshift tools and operating conditions of the early doctors: Upon a recent call to the mountains I found a boy nine years old who had been kicked in the head by a horse behind the right 408 HISTORY OF UINTAH COUNTY ear. Blood oozing from the ears and mouth. The cranial bones of right side of back of head a crushed mass. Pulse slow and irregu­lar, breathing stertorous, everything looked black for the little fel­low. My surgical kit consisted of hemostat, scalpel, scissors, probe, one small saw, one envelope cat gut and linners sutures. Bone instruments must be improvised for we were thirty miles from assistance. Fortunately Mr. Hardy found for me 1 cold chissel [sic], 1 monkey wrench, screw driver and Mr. P. Dodds furnished 1 pair of heavy pliers. I arrived at the place one of Uncle Sam's forest stations at 11 P.M. I put the instruments off to steralize [sic] and sat down for refreshments after which real work commenced. With Mrs. Dodds as anesthetist and Mrs. Hardy as my assistant, we had our little patient's skull elavated [sic] and dressed and had him resting in bed at 1 A.M. Drs. Francke and Garrett-O'Donnell and nurse Stella Sansbury took care of the needs of Vernal and most of the surrounding areas during this time, undergoing many hardships. Francke had played professional football to finance his medical studies. Dr. George H. Christy had arrived in Vernal in February 1907, beginning a thirty-year practice. In luly he became associated with Dr. Maude Garrett-O'Donnell. About this time differences between the various doctors in Vernal arose and two medical contingents emerged. Drs. Christy and Garrett-O'Donnell practiced on the north side of the street, supporting the Vernal Drug in which they owned stock. Drs. Bowers and Martin practiced on the south, supporting the Walter Lloyd Drug Company (later the Uintah Drug). Eventually the physicians of Vernal gave up their rivalry and formed the Uintah County Medical Society, which received its charter on 24 September 1912. A uniform price list was compiled and a monthly meeting was planned to discuss difficult cases and matters of mutual concern. The city passed an ordinance establishing the salary of the city physician at $120 per annum. Cost for an office call was set at two dollars, although payment was most often made with hay, grain, or other commodities. In October 1911, after Dr. Homer Rich had arrived, he joined with other doctors in trying to get community support for a hospital. COMMUNITY SERVICES 409 Little support was received, however. Probably one reason the two factions resolved their differences and joined together in the medical society in 1912 was to gather community support. Local government support for a county hospital was long in coming. The state legisla­ture passed a bill in 1917 permitting a board of county commission­ers to levy a tax to establish a public hospital upon receiving petitions signed by 20 percent of the resident taxpayers. The issue could then be put on a special election ballot. A movement to hold such an elec­tion in the county was unsuccessful. Most medical care was provided in the patient's home before hospitals, and the first so-called hospitals were established in homes. Out-of-town patients were housed in hotels. Individuals with a spare bedroom were often called upon to donate the space to make an operating room for some emergency. The first known hospital in the county was in Glines. Nancy Jane Hamilton had married Joseph S. Nielsen, and an elegant new home was built. After the couple divorced on 6 May 1904, Hamilton moved into a cabin behind the new home, turned the big house into a hospital, and began her career of nursing. The hospital was named the Vernal Hospital, and the par­lor with its fancy stained glass window became the operating room. Hamilton had no professional training, but Dr. Maude Garrett- O'Donnell trained her. She was given a license to administer shots to patients, deliver babies, and care for the mothers. She married George William Summers on 11 October 1904 and left Vernal for a while. In 1909 she returned and placed an ad in the newspaper, under the name N.J. Summers, stating she would have the hospital open on 3 December. She continued to run the hospital until 1911, when she sold the property.13 The Uintah County Medical Society continued to work for a hos­pital in Vernal and in 1913 the medical society was successful in con­verting the second floor of the lohnson Building into a hospital. It consisted of an operating room, a sterilizing room, laboratory, two private rooms, a kitchen, an emergency bedroom, and a ward. These hospital facilities were for the use of all area physicians. The walls of the operating room were hung with white oilcloth up to five feet high and sealed with glazed paper. The chairs and other furniture were 410 HISTORY OF UINTAH COUNTY painted with hard white enamel to make everything as clean and san­itary as possible. It is uncertain how long this hospital functioned. In 1914 doctors Christy and Rich opened a hospital. Frank Watkins owned the cement-block building. One long operating room was made. The hospital was discontinued in 1917, although Frank Watkin's wife, Isabel, used the two north rooms to care for new mothers. In January 1916 Mr. and Mrs. A.O. Marshall opened a hospital at a home at 163 North 500 West; it also took the name of the Vernal Hospital. Others later took over the hospital. Emma Beach then ran the hospital until March 1919 when she closed it. In February 1917 doctors Rich, Christy, and Garrett-O'Donnell moved into the new Uintah State Bank building. In 1916 and 1917 additions were made, including in a suite of rooms a laboratory, x-ray room, supply room, and reception rooms and private consulta­tion rooms for each of the three doctors. The suite also included an operating room and was used as a hospital under the auspices of the medical association. When the terrible flu epidemic broke out in 1918, an emergency hospital was opened in St. Paul's Lodge for treatment of influenza cases. This hospital was operated with the help of volunteers and school teachers acting as nurses. By the end of the year the epidemic had subsided to the point that it was no longer necessary to operate the emergency hospital. However, the flu flared up again in 1919, resulting in the death of sixty-two Indians and forty-five white people. Some Indians believed jumping into the cold river would pre­vent them from dying of the flu; some drowned and others died of pneumonia In luly 1919 a movement was again started to build a hospital for Uintah County. Vernal was one of the few cities in the state without a county hospital and local doctors banded together to support the idea. In 1919 articles were placed in the newspaper stating that x-ray machines and other equipment which would keep patients alive were not affordable and that a hospital was desperately needed. With the success of the emergency hospital during the flu epidemic, the doc­tors felt everyone would be willing to work for a county hospital; however, the county commissioners still ignored their demands. COMMUNITY SERVICES 411 Samuel loseph and Sadie Campbell opened the first licensed hos­pital about 1920. It also was called the Vernal Hospital. Sadie was the daughter of loseph Tolliver, early Vernal marshal. She had always been interested in becoming a nurse, and during her early married life she worked as a midwife and helped with the nursing care of sick people. She worked first with doctors Garrett-O'Donnell and Cruikshank and later with doctors J.M. Francke and George H. Christy, who encouraged her to take nurses' training. She entered the Chicago School of Nursing and became a registered nurse. She and her husband then opened a hospital in their home at 191 North 500 East. The hospital was moved to St. Paul's Lodge in 1928, where it remained until 1931 when a new hospital was built with living quar­ters on 500 East. The hospital was operated at that location until 1937 when the Campbells retired and moved to Salt Lake. In 1925 Nettie Richens also opened a hospital with an operating room on Main Street. In 1924, after the chamber of commerce held a mass meeting to secure support for a county hospital, the commissioners discussed the matter. The issue was placed on the ballot that year, but the pro­posal to bond for $40,000 for the construction of a hospital was defeated. The Lion's Club tried in 1934 to secure government funds for a hospital but had no success. After the Campbells moved out of St. Paul's Lodge, Ashley Valley Hospital occupied the building under the direction of nurse Sarah B. Pumfrey On 5 August 1934 nurse lane Murray took charge of the hospital and changed the name to the Valley Hospital. Murray pur­chased the equipment from Pumfrey and added six rooms upstairs to the hospital. In the early days of the hospital the nursery bassinets were on shelves on either side of a small closet that was fitted with a glass door. Up to thirteen babies occupied the shelves which rose from waist level toward the ceiling. Until shortly after World War II mothers stayed in the hospital for a ten day rest after giving birth. In the spring of 1936 Dr. Farley Gilbert Eskelson purchased the Valley Hospital and with extensive remodeling equipped it into a model hospital known as the Valley Hospital and Clinic. X-ray and other equipment became available to all the doctors in Vernal for the first time. The upstairs patients' rooms were accessed by a very steep 412 HISTORY OF UINTAH COUNTY ramp. A patient was securely strapped on a stretcher and pushed up the ramp. A large person required six to eight people to accomplish the task. Eskelson began practicing medicine in Vernal in 1932 and built a house to the east of the hospital which he connected to the men's ward. Among the nurses duties was canning fruit and vegeta­bles donated by people or gathered in payment of bills. Dr. J.L. Hansen of Mt. Pleasant became associated with the hos­pital when he came to Vernal in 1936. He practiced in Vernal for fourteen years before he was killed in a fall from a horse. He was serv­ing as Vernal's mayor at the time of his death. Also in 1936 doctors lohn H. Clark and Weldon K. Bullock opened a modern hospital on the upper floor of the Uintah State Bank Building. Doctors J.M. Francke, H.E. Rich, and Victor Prioletti were on the hospital staff along with Clark and Bullock. The following month Bullock received a call to report for military duty, and Dr. Clark purchased his share of the hospital. In 1939 the two local hospitals were combined when Dr. Clark moved in with Dr. Eskelson. When Clark was called into active duty for the army in 1941, he had to terminate his interest in the hospital. Statements had been made repeatedly in the newspaper through the 1920s that local doctors could no longer serve the poor without com­pensation and that doctors needed help with expensive new equip­ment. The 1930s brought changes. Previously, many private individuals and doctors financed and provided their own hospitals; but the county finally came to realize that adequate care could not be provided for residents under these conditions. In March 1941 the county purchased the Eskelson Hospital and changed the name to Uintah County Hospital. With the oil boom in the mid-1940s, area growth placed a heavy burden on the small hospital. Soon after the end of the war, a cam­paign was launched to raise funds for a new hospital facility. Because of the farsightedness and generosity of Chinese merchant Wong Sing, a nucleus of a hospital fund was already available. He had left $500 in a trust fund to be used toward building a new hospital. By 1943 this fund had increased to $6,400, largely through the efforts of the Vernal lunior Chamber of Commerce. The chamber had obtained unofficial sanction from city officials to place thirty-seven illegal slot COMMUNITY SERVICES 413 machines into selected businesses, with the proceeds to go toward building a hospital. These machines were located in the Vernal busi­nesses for two years despite complaints from some neighboring towns. Law-enforcement officials looked the other way until protests mounted, at which time the slot machines were removed. However, the money they raised helped to finally get a new county hospital built.14 The LDS church donated a site for the building. Other churches, businesses, and social and service clubs also contributed toward the hospital. Construction began in late 1947 and was com­pleted in August 1949. The new facility was approximately 28,000 square feet and was built at a cost of nearly $357,000. A bond election was held in 1977 to allow the issuance of $2.5 million in general obligation bonds to renovate the hospital. The bond was approved by a wide margin. To help make up the difference between the bond money and the actual cost of the facility, county funds and donations from community organizations, businesses, and individuals raised nearly $110,000 for the new facility. The structure was connected to the west of the existing hospital and was dedicated in July 1980. It added approximately 13,000 square feet to the hospi­tal and allowed the hospital to expand services and offer a better environment. During construction, Hospital Corporation of America (HCA) took over management of the Uintah County Hospital and retained Ronald Perry as administrator. In lune 1981 HCA purchased the Uintah County Hospital from the county and renamed the facil­ity Ashley Valley Medical Center. Eventually the facility was staffed with full-time doctors, including doctors Norman Nielson and Larry Wilcken. Some doctors flew in from Salt Lake City on weekends. In 1985 another 14,000-square-foot addition was made to the hospital; it included a medical office building. Again in 1993 the Ashley Valley Medical Center expanded its facility to meet the med­ical needs of the community with a 10,000-square-foot addition to the medical office building on the east side of the existing hospital. Today Ashley Valley Medical Center provides excellent medical care to residents and is one of Vernal's largest employers, with approxi­mately 200 employees. In the summer of 1996 the center merged with Columbia Health Services. Fort Duchesne Hospital first began in the 1880s. Many good doc- 414 HISTORY OF UINTAH COUNTY tors practiced there and Vernal people often underwent surgery at that location, including the wife of outlaw and later lawman Matt Warner, who had her leg amputated in 1891. The hospital closed when the soldiers were moved out in 1912. In 1914a move was initi­ated to start a hospital for Indians and whites connected to the gov­ernment, and it was decided that the old fort hospital could be fixed up and used. Dr. Henry P. Lloyd worked there until 1921. In 1937 a modern Indian hospital was built at Fort Duchesne at a cost of $86,000 as a WPA project. It was comprised of three buildings on a hill overlooking the agency; on either side of the twenty-four-bed hospital were the resident physician's home and the nurse's home. Dr. Charles L. Piper was in charge of this hospital for many years. When Dr. Paul Stringham and his wife arrived in the basin to practice at Roosevelt, he served the hospital as well as his Roosevelt patients. When the government offered public-health service in lieu of army service, the door was opened to many well-trained young physicians who served at the Indian clinic. The Uintah Care Center was built in 1982 and provides a home for elderly and handicapped people. The management of the care cen­ter for the county was provided by a professional management busi­ness out of Salem, Oregon. Thirty to forty people staffed the fifty-bed facility when it opened. The center includes an examination room for physicians who see the patients at the center on a regular basis. The facility features a large dining area and recreation center. Jess Faupel was named the first administrator and Rose Simmons is the present administrator. Dr. Stringham served as medical director from the time the center opened until he retired in 1989; he was succeeded by Dr. Breitenbach. On 1 January 1995 Dr. Ion Hughes became the medical director. A wing for a day care facility was added to the south end of the center in 1992. It provides meals, recreation, and supervision dur­ing the day for patrons who go home at night. It was built with a Utah Community Development block grant that was matched with county funds. The day care center is licensed for twenty people. Cemeteries Cemeteries or graveyards were usually started when a member of a family died and was buried on family property; that site was then COMMUNITY SERVICES 415 set aside as a family cemetery. Gradually family plots grew into or were replaced with more central cemeteries. As they grew, projects and committees were organized to improve them. In 1915 S.D. Colton, Mrs. John N. Davis, and William M. Anderson were chosen to work toward Vernal cemetery improvements. A letter was written to local state senator Don B. Colton, and eventually a law was enacted allowing county commissioners to levy taxes for the care of cemeter­ies. The county began to assume the responsibility of operating area cemeteries in 1935. Hugh Colton, county attorney, pointed out to the commissioners that if Uintah County owned the cemeteries it would be possible for them to levy a tax for their upkeep. By a unanimous vote it was decided to levy a small tax for the upkeep of any cemetery in the county that would properly be deeded to the county. The main problems the county commissioners and cemetery committees had to address were identification of unmarked graves, means of getting water to the cemeteries for beautification, and pro­viding better public access. In 1937 the county commissioners issued an appeal to the public to clean up lots at the cemeteries, and a pro­gram of marking the unidentified graves was undertaken. Of the 1,061 graves in the Vernal cemetery at the time, only 269 had markers with distinguishable names. Post cards were sent to more than one hundred lot owners requesting the cooperation of relatives in sup­plying the names of those buried in these lots in order that the names could be entered in a ground book which Ashley Bartlett was com­piling. Wide disagreement occurred among the informants as to the identity of certain graves. Two hundred and fifty unmarked graves still exist in this cemetery, along with many more in other county cemeteries. The Vernal Cemetery sits on a hill south of town. The first road went into the cemetery from the east and was just a rough road with a gate so the property owner, Winfield S. Hullinger, could bring his cows in and out. A north entrance was built into the cemetery from Vernal Avenue. The road then went up a twenty-foot dugway to the northwest corner of the cemetery. After entering the cemetery at this point, it continued south to meet the east road. It was almost impos­sible to get up this dugway in the winter, so in 1936 the present road 416 HISTORY OF UINTAH COUNTY was built up the south side of the cemetery hill and the north entrance was closed. When the LaPoint cemetery was laid out, a twelve-foot drive­way was left between the blocks. This was sufficient in horse-and-buggy days but had to be enlarged for automobiles. The outside graves had to be moved eighteen feet to allow for a thirty-foot road­way County cemetery roads have all been improved and most are now paved. Most of the cemeteries were located in dry, desolate places, and residents had to haul water in buckets to water plants on their family graves. In 1938 the commissioners sponsored a $7,000 WPA project to bring water to the county cemeteries. Cast-iron pipe was laid to convey water to the Vernal city cemetery. Also, the county piped water into several of the cemeteries. A well was drilled for the Dry Fork cemetery but was abandoned. Water is now only available from a faucet on an irrigation pipe when there is irrigation water available. With the addition of water, most of the cemeteries have been planted with grass. Trees and shrubs have been placed in some of the ceme­teries, while others disallow anything but grass. Cemeteries now existing in the county include Vernal City Memorial Park, Rock Point Cemetery, Maeser Fairview Cemetery, Dry Fork Cemetery, lensen Cemetery, LaPoint Cemetery, Tridell Cemetery, Avalon Cemetery, Gusher Cemetery, Hayden Cemetery, and Leota Cemetery. The Gibson Cemetery was covered by Steinaker Reservoir. The eight graves in this cemetery were exhumed and moved to the Vernal cemetery. Most of the bodies of the soldiers who had been buried at Fort Duchesne were moved to Santa Fe, New Mexico, with a few going to Fort Douglas in Salt Lake City. Many graves of early pioneers are located on unmarked proper­ties around the county. Eight other cemeteries with graves of Indian and Indian-mixed persons exist on the west side of the county including Ouray Valley Cemetery, Fort Duchesne Cemetery, Red Knoll Cemetery, a cemetery near the old Whiterocks Boarding School, Reed Cemetery on Farm Creek, John Harms Cemetery east of Whiterocks, and Daniels' Cemetery. A few early settlers are buried above Daniels' Ranch in LaPoint. COMMUNITY SERVICES 417 Fire Departments Fire suppression is another important function the county and its cities provide. Talk of organizing a fire department in Vernal began before 1891. Fort Duchesne had a fire engine and fire house, but fire destroyed them in 1896. Numerous fires with lives lost and property destroyed were reported in the early years. In 1897 a building caught fire in the business district; and the townspeople realized that had it not been noticed and put out immediately the whole business sec­tion of wooden buildings would have burned to the ground. An effort was made to secure some fire equipment, with the feeling a hook-and-ladder outfit with plenty of rubber buckets would be bet­ter than nothing. Some local businesses dug wells and purchased pumps and hose. Bucket brigades were formed, but many problems arose. By 1900 the citizens were demanding the city buy a fire engine and other equip­ment. City officers agreed and acquired a horse-drawn fire with 200 feet of hose. The engine could pump 120 gallons of water per minute, and with twelve men working a stream of water could be forced at least fifty feet above any building in town. One story is told of the fire bell ringing and Sheriff Pope racing horseback to the fire cart, throw­ing a rope on it, and racing towards the fire. A second rider raced up and also threw his rope on the "firecart critter," and they sped to the well nearest the fire. The city fire engine was slow and was hampered by a shortage of water. The city council decided a plan was needed to provide a water system for fire protection. An adequate system would cost about $22,000 and did not materialize until 1910. In 1911 the city council decided to organize a volunteer fire department. George Adams was appointed fire chief and instructed to begin a volunteer fire depart­ment. Many men were asked to join the Vernal Hose Cart Company No.l. The hose cart was kept at the Uintah Livery barn in town. The cart was fitted up with shafts, new hoses, and a big alarm gong. In 1915 the city purchased a used Ford car, fixed up with a fire hose on the rear. The car was kept in the Pope-Walker garage, ready to go in minutes. Later the fire department was housed at 25 South Vernal Avenue. Wives of the volunteer firemen organized a local aux- 418 HISTORY OF UINTAH COUNTY Vernal Volunteer firemen, Wendell Pope, Ace York, Mick Batty, Ken Richardson, Henry Millecam, Ralph Alexander, Henry Schaefermeyer and loe Milburn standing by the fire truck about 1940 (UCLRHC collection) iliary of the Utah State Firemen's Auxiliary at the home of Mrs. Henry Millecam, who became the organization's first president on 17 November 1934. In 1949, when the city offices were located in the old Uintah Railway building on Vernal Avenue at First North, the fire sta­tion was relocated to the garage on the north side and a fire alarm was located on top of the building. About 1972 the city provided a fire station at 495 East Main behind the city offices. Four fire trucks were crammed into the small fire station, and this building was condemned by the state fire mar­shal. In 1990 Vernal City secured a no-interest loan of $150,000 for the construction of a new fire station. Uintah County matched the city's funds. The old station and Vernal city offices were razed, and the new fire station was built on the northwest corner of 500 East Main in 1991. A new fire truck was purchased for $180,000, making a fleet of five trucks. Other fire departments recently have been estab­lished at Naples City, lensen, LaPoint, and Tridell. Fire services to the communities are continually being improved.15 The contributions made by the municipal and county govern- COMMUNITY SERVICES 419 Crystal Pool, Vernal's first commercial swimming pool. (UCLRHC, Vernal Express collection) ments have brought improved quality of life to Uintah County resi­dents. Local government has provided such intellectual and cultural services as libraries, health services, and protection for property and life. The county has some of the best roads in the state; law enforce­ment in the area is excellent. The county has an exceptional recre­ation program for young and old alike. Life in Uintah County is much better because of the variety of services provided. The first set­tlers who arrived in this valley in 1873 had a dream and a goal to make the land produce and build a secure future for their families. With determination and courage, those pioneers began the growth of Uintah County. Residents through the years have continued to add to the fruits of their labors. May the challenge and the dream of the early settlers to make Uintah County a better place to live continue to be the dream of future generations who choose to settle in Uintah County. ENDNOTES 1. Vernal Stake Minutes, 13 September 1884, archives, Historical Department, Church of lesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Salt Lake City. See 420 HISTORY OF UINTAH COUNTY also Earlene Allred Smart, A History of the David Johnston Family (Smart, 1987), 27 (lohnston is usually spelled lohnstun), and Iva Gray, unpublished manuscript, copy located in Uintah County Library Regional History Center. 2. Minutes of the Board of Trustees of Vernal, 8 November 1897. 3. See Vernal Express, 27 September 1907. 4. Ibid., 1 lanuary 1909. 5. The minutes of the county selectmen and commissioners from 1880 to 1900 contain many reports of money being spent to care for the indigent. 6. Vernal Express, 17 lanuary 1919. 7. See ibid., 25 lanuary, and 23 August 1934. See also speech given by leanne Stringham to the first graduating class of LPNs in the Uintah Basin in 1976, located in UCL Regional History Center. 8. For more information on Uintah County drug stores, see "Uintah County Manuscript History," in UCL Regional History Center. 9. Elisha Davis to Commissioner Price, 14 August 1883, Reports of the Commisssioner of Indian Affairs, 1883, 141. 10. Simon Peter Dillman, The Life and Times of Peter Dillman (Springville, Utah: Art City Publishing Co., 1954), 76. 11. Ibid. 12. Vernal Express, 15 March 1912. 13. Carma Nielsen Hacking, unpublished manuscript, copy located in the Uintah County Library Regional History Center, folder 1943. See also a historical preservation intensive level survey of the loseph S. and Nancy Nielson Home, UCL Regional History Center, folder 2050. 14. Charles R. Henderson (former hospital drive chairman), telephone conversation with author, 16 lune 1996; see also "Slot Machines to Go," Vernal Express, 4 September 1941. 15. More details of the fire departments in Vernal and outlying areas can be found in Doris Burton's, "Settlement of Uintah County," located in the Uintah County Library Regional History Center.