At one time there was nothing but teepees and Native Americans all over this valley, and they were hostile to any white man who entered upon their land. Consequently, it created a real challenge for anyone who wanted to live in this valley.

The early trappers were the first white men to come to North Ogden, years before the Mormon Pioneers, because the streams that flowed from the mountains were full of beaver and fur bearing animals that roamed the hills. They came through North Ogden Canyon because Ogden Canyon was a wild, impassable gorge that was a threat even to horses.

In 1850, Jonathon Campbell, a Mormon Pioneer and member of the Mormon Battalion, and his brother, Samuel, were the first to try and establish a white settlement here, but the Natives ran them out! On March 4, 1851 they returned with a company of ten families and claimed it forever from the Natives. They cut trees in the canyons and began building log cabins. They grubbed out the sagebrush and planted grain.

In the fall of that year, Brigham Young, the leader of the Mormon Church, came from Salt Lake City and laid out the town. North Ogden was surveyed into 14 blocks, each block being divided into half-acre lots. A civil government was established with a justice of the peace and a constable.

The little community grew and thrived, with more and more people coming to settle. In the summer of 1852 the men of the settlement hauled logs from the canyons and built the first schoolhouse, which was located on Washington Boulevard near the North Ogden Medical Center today. All church services, school, socials and civic meetings were held there.

This industrious group of pioneers did everything possible to build and develop their town. Not only did they farm, but many businesses were established such as the gristmills, saw mills, cane mills, molasses mills, and blacksmiths, lime kilns and tanneries. In 1856 the North Ogden Canal was started. It was the first and largest of its kind. When completed it cost around $56,000 to build. The women of the town became experts in weaving, spinning and making of homemade carpets. Apostle of the Mormon Church, Wilford Woodruff, described North Ogden as one of the most flourishing settlements in the territory.

However, through all of this prosperity and growth, the pioneers had their troubles too, such as problems with the Natives, crickets, droughts and blizzards that froze cattle in their tracks. Native troubles forced them to build a fort in the middle of the town. It was a rock wall and cost $15,000, but before it was completed, the pioneers made friends with the Natives by feeding them instead of fighting them. The fort wall was later abandoned.

From 1860 on, North Ogden boomed and became quite an industrious center. It had its own mercantile institutions, one of which was Z.C.M.I. and was located on 400 East a little south of where McDonald’s is today. Later that site became the location of a Post Office and Barker’s Service Station. Brick making became a prominent business and furnished bricks for many buildings in North Ogden, as well as bricks for the Eccles Building and the J.C. Penney’s store in Ogden. Through the years, fruit farming became the main commodity and North Ogden became one of Utah’s choice fruit belts with the fruit being shipped throughout the United States.

Today, many businesses are successfully operating in North Ogden with the promise of more to come. It is one of the most beautiful residential areas in Weber County with new homes being built throughout the town. North Ogden, to this day, is a valuable part of the area’s economy and still one of the beauty spots in the West. -Source North Ogden City