Croydon Utah/Devil’s Slide Cement Plant photograph collection
Collection
Identifier: P0835
Scope and Contents
The Croydon Utah/Devil’s Slide Cement Plant photograph collection contains materials related to the cement plant and the nearby towns, railroad, and the rock formation after which it was named.
Dates
- 1910-1950
Creator
- Croydon Utah/Devil’s Slide Cement Plant (Organization)
Conditions Governing Access
Twenty-four hour advanced notice encouraged. Materials must be used on-site. Access to parts of this collection may be restricted under provisions of state or federal law.
Conditions Governing Use
The library does not claim to control copyright for all materials in the collection. An individual depicted in a reproduction has privacy rights as outlined in Title 45 CFR, part 46 (Protection of Human Subjects). For further information, please review the J. Willard Marriott Library’s Use Agreement and Reproduction Request forms.
Historical
In 1904 a mountain of limestone was discovered by Aman Moore. Several prominent area men recognized the value of limestone in the production of Portland Cement (an ingredient used in the making of concrete). They formed a corporation named The Union Portland Cement Company for the purpose of quarrying the limestone. A short list of the founders included: Reed Smoot, M.S. Browning, Joseph Scowcroft, and James Pingree, with the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints subscribing $10,000 worth of stock. A Company town soon sprang-up a couple hundred yards down stream from the plant site. The town was named Devil’s Slide after an interesting nearby rock formation.
The Crofutt’s New Overland Tourist Guide, 1878 describes the rock monument as “This slide or two serrated rocks is composed of two ridges of granite rock reaching from the river nearly to the summit of a sloping grass-clad mountain. They are from 50 to 200 feet high, narrow slabs, standing on edge as though forced out oft the mountainside. The two ridges run parallel with each other, about ten feet apart, the space between being covered with grass, wild flowers, and clinging vines.” The town quickly grew with the success of the cement plant.
At one time the population of the tiny village exceeded 250 people. As with many mining towns of the era many of the workers were foreign born. The countries of origin included Italy, Austria, Greece, and Japan. The largest structure of the town was the hotel. This two-story building contained twenty bedrooms on the second level with each room accommodating two men to each room. The first level contained a dining room large enough to seat forty men at mealtime. Other notable buildings located in the town were the combination drug store/ post office, railroad depot, mercantile, two schoolhouses, and a company clubhouse. The company laid cement sidewalks, built a baseball diamond, and planted one hundred trees throughout the village.
As the years passed many people wanted to own homes of their own instead of renting the company owned houses. These men moved to the near-by communities of Henefer, Morgan, and Croydon and commuted to their jobs at the cement plant. During the middle part of the 1980’s only a handful of families remained and by the end of the decade the company decided to close the village altogether. All the families had moved on with the exception of the railroad section foreman who lived in a house owned by the railroad. The railroad demolished this house not long after the town was emptied.
Summery taken from ghosttowns.com
The Crofutt’s New Overland Tourist Guide, 1878 describes the rock monument as “This slide or two serrated rocks is composed of two ridges of granite rock reaching from the river nearly to the summit of a sloping grass-clad mountain. They are from 50 to 200 feet high, narrow slabs, standing on edge as though forced out oft the mountainside. The two ridges run parallel with each other, about ten feet apart, the space between being covered with grass, wild flowers, and clinging vines.” The town quickly grew with the success of the cement plant.
At one time the population of the tiny village exceeded 250 people. As with many mining towns of the era many of the workers were foreign born. The countries of origin included Italy, Austria, Greece, and Japan. The largest structure of the town was the hotel. This two-story building contained twenty bedrooms on the second level with each room accommodating two men to each room. The first level contained a dining room large enough to seat forty men at mealtime. Other notable buildings located in the town were the combination drug store/ post office, railroad depot, mercantile, two schoolhouses, and a company clubhouse. The company laid cement sidewalks, built a baseball diamond, and planted one hundred trees throughout the village.
As the years passed many people wanted to own homes of their own instead of renting the company owned houses. These men moved to the near-by communities of Henefer, Morgan, and Croydon and commuted to their jobs at the cement plant. During the middle part of the 1980’s only a handful of families remained and by the end of the decade the company decided to close the village altogether. All the families had moved on with the exception of the railroad section foreman who lived in a house owned by the railroad. The railroad demolished this house not long after the town was emptied.
Summery taken from ghosttowns.com
Extent
.2 Linear Feet (1 archival box) : 22 images
Language of Materials
English
Abstract
The Croydon Utah/Devil’s Slide Cement Plant photograph collection contains materials related to the cement plant and the nearby towns, railroad, and the rock formation after which it was named.
Arrangement
By folder and subject.
Immediate Source of Acquisition
Purchased in 2000.
Processing Information
Processed by Photo Archives staff.
Creator
- Croydon Utah/Devil’s Slide Cement Plant (Organization)
- Title
- Guide to the Croydon Utah/Devil’s Slide Cement Plant photograph collection
- Author
- Finding aid created by Sara Davis.
- Date
- 2015
- Description rules
- Describing Archives: A Content Standard
- Language of description
- English
- Script of description
- Latin
- Language of description note
- Finding aid written in English.
Repository Details
Part of the J. Willard Marriott Library Special Collections Repository
Contact:
295 South 1500 East
Salt Lake City Utah 84112 United States
801-581-8863
special@library.utah.edu
295 South 1500 East
Salt Lake City Utah 84112 United States
801-581-8863
special@library.utah.edu