I made a visit to my hometown in mid April, so I took some photos of my mom’s ride to church, through our little town of Trenton, Utah, just a couple of miles south of the Idaho border in Cache Valley. Trenton was founded in 1870 by Mormon pioneers, but it’s not a traditional Mormon village. It’s a “string town,” with a small town center with farms strung further apart on very rural roads. The Bear River meanders through Trenton, and much of Cache Valley, and it indirectly gave Trenton its name. A visiting church authority said that the trip across the Bear River to Trenton reminded him of Washington’s crossing of the Delaware to the Battle of Trenton, so Trenton, Utah was named after the armpit of New Jersey.
When I was in elementary school, we had our own school in town, with 3 classrooms– two grades in each, no kindergarten. When my mom was PTA president about 1966, there were 76 kids in the school. (My friend’s grandmother and great-aunt were the lunch ladies and they’d ask us what they should cook for lunch the next day when we came through the lunch line.) There were about 420 people in town then, and about 450 now. The school was torn down about 1970 and the children are now bussed about six miles to Lewiston. We lost our old church building in late 80s when it was deemed to be financially easier to tear it down, rather than maintain it. Now the ward meets in a building they share with the town just to the north, Cornish. The loss of those two important institutions has left the center of Trenton has almost become a ghost town.
Carole’s post a few weeks ago was about Paradise, at the south end of Cache Valley– Trenton’s at the far north end. My great-grandparents, grandparents, and parents all farmed here for most of their lives. Trenton is definitely my home, and as I see each of these places, I also see the people who are dear to me who have lived here.
So we’ll set out from my mother’s house, for about a 4 mile drive in her Buick sedan.
![8](https://dovesandserpents.org/wp-content/gallery/trenton-utah/8.jpg "The \\"new\\" post office, the town hall, and the fire station.")
Notes on the photos:
4. Ever see Napoleon Dynamite? It was filmed in Preston, about ten miles to the north. The mountains here are visible in the scenes when Napoleon is waiting for the bus. Like Napoleon, I spent many mornings waiting for the bus and looking at these mountains–I love every ridge and valley of them.
5. A couple of miles from our farm, is the center of Trenton. At one time Trenton had a population of about 2000 because of the train station. It was considered as a candidate to be the county seat, but Logan won out, and Trenton’s now a quiet farm town. This photo is of the side of the old Trenton general store, which has been closed for 25 years or so. In the 70s, a painter in the valley traveled around and convinced people to pay him to paint mountain scenes on their buildings– here’s one, slowly fading from view.
6. The bell from the old red brick school house, on the town square where the school stood.
7. Trenton’s old post office, closed for years.
8. The “new” post office, the town hall and the fire department. When I was in high school, the girls my age were allowed to have sleepovers in the town hall, with no adult supervision, except for my friend’s grandma who lived across the street..
9. The gas station is from before my time.
9.5. In the landscape of my heart, this is what should still be here in the center of the town– it’s our fine old brick church with plaster walls and french doors inside. It was the center of life in Trenton the whole time I lived there.
15. I will follow the Thumper the Rabbit’s mother’s rule here, and not say what I think about how this building on the far north edge of town compares to our old one.
24. and 25. I’ve doubled back to the square and these cars are next to the old gas station.
28. Somewhere near this bend of the river, in the 1860’s, a group of miners coming south from Montana were attacked by group of Shoshone, at a time that the Shoshones had realized that their territory in Cache Valley was almost lost. Partly to avenge this attack, a group of U. S. Cavalry committed the Bear River Massacre north of Preston, Idaho. http://historytogo.utah.gov/utah_chapters/american_indians/bearrivermassacre.html
These make me so melancholic. I’ve never been to Trenton and really only have spent about a day in Cache Valley but they remind me of my grandparent’s little town in central Wisconsin. The high school is all boarded up – consolidated in the 50s, and only a few hundred people still live in the area. The little bar where my grandparents spent every Friday night eating fish fry is closed now. It’s sad.
I’m with Claire. The Cache Valley is beautiful, and I miss its mountains even though I only visited or passed through. Thanks for the photos!
Thanks — I’m sorry about the numbering of the photos. We can’t figure out why the only number displayed is 34.
I meant to say this more clearly– thanks for kind words. I lived in Wisconsin for awhile, and loved the small towns there too.
Cache Valley is always so brilliantly colored– the blue mountains in the spring or winter, brown in the fall, green in summer. I miss it.
This is so bucolic. It sounds like your childhood was wonderful. Wish our kids could experience some of those things—asking the lunch cooks for your favorite food the next day at school lunch, having a sleep at the town hall. Crazy! I love the countryside of Utah. Thanks for showing your mom’s and your ride to church.
Merrill’s Market is the one that is still open, right? We used to drive out there on Sundays to buy a pop. Thanks for sharing, Paula.
Tom, I think you’re thinking of the general store in Newton. Merrill’s Markets been closed for about 22 years, maybe more. Ludlow, it really was so different than the way my kids grew up. They spent a lot of time at my parents’, but it just wasn’t the same.
I love Cache Valley. Thanks for this fun ride.
I love this, makes me homesick for a time I never knew. The town of my birth, La Grande OR, had (and still has) about 8,000 people. Other than staying at my grandparents during summers (in Boring, OR–a real town), that’s as close to small-town living as I’ve ever been. Thanks for sharing.
In the 1950s, from time to time I visited my uncle and aunt on their farm in Trenton. From these photos, it appears to be much the same as 60 years ago. Beautiful photos, Paula.
Loved these photos. I thought the picture with the Russian thistles was especially beautiful!
These photos make me miss Utah!
Paula;
I just discovered this great tour of Trenton, Utah. Our family lived in the neighboring Town of Amalga. My Grandfather’s house is the large white New England style 3 story house on the edge of town as you drive in from Richmond. He was one of the first mayors of Trenton and taught at the old school house. My father ran the old mill (Trenton Coop) for some years and I well remember going to Merrill’s Market for a cold soda after a hard day of hauling hay – we liked “Ironport” the best. Thanks for the great pictures they bring back a lot of memories.
Thanks Col. Tom, I know that house well. My dad and Walt were pretty good friends. (I’m guessing maybe Walt was your uncle?) And I used to love going to Merrill’s Market, after Primary. I’d go in for a Reese’s peanut butter cup and a stick of beef jerky, then ride my bike home.
Yes, Walter L. Wood, was my father’s younger brother. I spent a lot of time as a youth up at Uncle Walt’s home playing with my cousins. I am putting together my life history for my grand children and great-grand children. I was wondering if I could obtain to copy a few of your images of the Trenton area, especially the West Cache Canal, Merrill’s Market and the West Cache Coop. My grandfather, Charles G. Wood, was founder and founding Secretary-Treasurer of the West Cache Irrigation Company which he formed in 1894. Many thanks for your consideration.
My grandmother is Lola Spackman. She’s in the last house on the east end of town before heading to Richmond. We visit once in a while. Great pictures! Can you name any of the people in the old school photo? I want to show it to her. Thanks!
Do you recall the old red brick school house?
I barely remember that before they tore it down. I do think my grandmother knows some Jensen’s out there. Her husband, Morland, was the school bus driver for a while.
I remember the lunch’s ,we all took our turn to help Luella and peal
Paula would you be a jensen
Yes i knew Morlan and Lola,I hung out a lot with scott (nexy door)and one day the bull got roger against the barn. Morland always made sure that us boys had away(work) to go to scout camp.He was a great scout leader.And cool bus drive.
Lola (grandma) told me about the day that the bull got my uncle Roger. lol! Sounds like fun. I’m going up there to visit grandma on Monday. I’ll have to ask her if she knew a Scott next door. I’ll take some pics when I go up there. If you want to see the property behind my grandmother’s house, here’s a link to it: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xCkDEIG-qkU Morland (grandpa) donated it to Pheasant’s Forever.
Trevor, I meant to get back to you quite awhile ago, but forgot. The only person that I can name in that photo up above is my uncle, Scott Jensen, who’s in the back left corner. I’ll have to ask my mom if she can identify any more. I bet your grandma can identify some of them. I have several old photos from Trenton and I keep meaning to get them up on a website to ask other people for help in identifying them. And, yes, I am a Jensen. I’m named after my dad, Paul, and Julius was my grandfather. Morland, or Morley as we called him, was my bus driver for many years. I didn’t know he had donated that property– good for him! So Trevor, is your dad Dennis? I am a year younger than him. I remember Roger also. I didn’t realize that Lola was still there in the house in Trenton. I live in southern California but I visit my mom a few times a year.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xCkDEIG-qkU
This is the link to the video of the land to the east of my grandmother’s house.
I wasn’t able to visit Trenton this last weekend. We will try this upcoming weekend.
I’ll ask grandma if she knows any of your family. I think I’ve heard her talking about them before. Nancy is my mother. I’ve seen Dennis, Roger and Charles not too long ago. They seem to be doing well. Charles is the oldest. He is just down the road near the bend from my grandmother. Roger I think lives in Nibley or Hyrum. Dennis is in Millville. My mom recently moved down to Salt Lake County near us. She’s in Magna. Morland passed away I think in 1998. It’s been a while and I can’t remember. He’s buried in the Trenton Cemetary near the hill.
Thanks for getting back to me. I’ll see if my grandma has any pictures. I’ve seen one of my grandpa when he was about 14. I should be able to take a pic with my phone and upload it. I’ll give you a link when I do.
Paula I grew up in the big white house on the corner. It belonged to Walt and Nedra Wood. It was a wonderful house to grow up in and I have lots of fond memories of growing up in Trenton. We lived just close enough to the church and school that we could walk.
My parents had a huge garden that they constantly worked in and gave away many of the veggies. You father Paul was so good to them and would plow that spot for them each year. My Mom and your Mom were friends as well. When I saw the article written by Paula I immediately thought of you I do remember you and have tried to figure out who your friend was that had a Grandma right across the street from the town hall. It was probably one of Glenn &Nola’s daughters. That is wild that they would let the girls have a sleep over at the Trenton Town Hall.
When I was young after school sometimes we could stop by Merrill’s and buy some penny candy. Those were the days!
Oh Margaret– I do know that house– such a wonderful house. And, I know that your parents were some of my parents’ favorite people. And, you are right. It was Pearl Griffin who was the grandma across the street. My friends still talk about those parties — we were so very trusting back then. And they were so fun.