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Hebron, Utah
Hebron was located a few miles up Shoal Creek from where Enterprise now stands. It was situated in a
small valley at the junction of the south
and west forks of the creek in the northwest part of the county at an altitude of 5475 ft.
Hebron was settled about 1865 by several families who were sent there to produce cattle and to engage in
dairying. Their was limited water
and land in the little settlement so there was little inducement for the children of the first settlers to remain there.
At one time there were about a dozen families living there, and they had some fine brick buildings. There
was one main street running east
and west. Shoal Creek is formed by numerous mountain springs so they had good water into town - a lot of towns in the county
had a hard time
obtaining good water.
Hebron was first settled by John and Charles Pulsipher. These brothers had charge of the St. George stock,
they found the location when
looking for better herd grounds. This area had good water and plenty of food, they decided it would be a good place for the animals.
They named
Shoal Creek. The men later located their families there and others moved there, too. There was
a band of Paiute Indians camped near the site
and the settlers entered into an agreement with them. The Indians were willing to have the settlers live near
them. The men and their families
arrived at Shoal Creek in April 1862, they built homes that fall.
On May 6, 1866 at a conference held at St. George, the Hebron ward was formed. It included those living
in the mountain districts of Pine
Valley, Pinto, Mountain Meadows, and Shoal Creek. Later in 1866 some small settlements had to be vacated because of
Indian troubles and the
people of Shoal Creek built a fort on the present site of Hebron. In 1868, President
Erastus Snow visited them and had them survey a town site
which they called Hebron. Soon after the land was laid out, most of the people moved onto their
lots. Dudley Leavitt presided at Hebron until
November 1869, when the people were organized into a ward, with George H. Crosby as Bishop. Thomas S. Terry
succeeded him in 1877, then
he was succeeded by Zera B. Terry. In 1894 George A. Holt succeeded Bp. Terry. Bishop Holt served until most of the people left Hebron
and
moved down to the edge of the desert where they helped found Enterprise. In 1905 the two towns were
organized into the Enterprise ward.
The earthquake that struck the area on November 17, 1902 really hit hard at Hebron, all the brick and rock
buildings were badly damaged.
There was also a drought in the area and discouragement had set in. Water was scarce, it had to be hauled in barrels on
stick sleds, sage and rabbit brush were taking over their gardens, floods had cut washes through their
limited land, and then their homes were damaged by the
earthquake. Church officials recommended that the people of Hebron sell out, so most sold their water
stock to the Enterprise Reservoir and
Canal Company and moved into Enterprise. And Hebron became a ghost town. A deep wash now runs through the main
street of what was once
the town of Hebron.
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