Visitors Perry City, originally known as "Three Mile Creek" is located in Box Elder County, nestled between Brigham City, Utah and Willard, Utah. Perry is bordered on the east by the beautiful Wasatch Mountains and on the west by the shoreline of the Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge. Perry is known regionally for its contribution of delicious fruit, vegetables and row crops produced and sold along Highway 89 from Perry’s northern boundary to the Weber County line. This traditional way of life is shifting to the development of homes and businesses as growth investments have increased land values significantly over the past decade, and some farmers have sold their property for development. Currently the population is around 3500 and climbing. PERRY CITY !!! A great place to live!

 

 

History of Perry

    Perry, located in eastern Box Elder County, directly south of Brigham City, Utah.  The Bear River Valley, in which Perry is located, is one of the prime agricultural areas of Northern Utah.  Perry is bordered on the east by the Wasatch Mountains and on the west by the shoreline of the Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge.    It was an area of about 9 square miles with a population of 1,550 in 1992.

    In 1851, the same year that Box Elder (now Brigham City) was being settled, Orrin Porter Rockwell and his brother, Merrell, laid claim to some land lying about 2 1/2 miles southwest of the center of Box Elder. It was adjacent to a large spring known to this day as Porter Spring.  The Rockwell's made no improvements on their land, although they claimed it for a number of years.  The reason they never occupied the land may have been the danger of Indian raids.  Porter Spring was a great camping place for both emigrants and Indians in those early days.

    Early in the spring of 1853, Mormon pioneers began to settle on the land in the area.  William Plummer Tippetts and his family, Lorenzo and May Wray Perry, along with Gustavus Perry and his family set claim to land in which became the center of town.

    Three Mile Creek was the name given to early day Perry as it was just three miles from the center of Box Elder to the small stream which furnished water for the settlers.

    While surrounding communities were building forts to protect themselves from the Indians, the residents of Three Mile Creek made friends with them.    The Indians would bring wild game and trade it for what was called "white face bread" and they taught the settlers to cure and tan deer hides to make covers for their feet.

    There was a small settlement of Welsh people midway between Three Mile Creek and Box Elder.  Among the first settlers were Benjamin Jones, Kidwalendar Owens, David Peters, Thomas Mathias, and John Roberts.  They chose to meet with those living in Box Elder in 1868 when the two communities joined together and organized a Sunday School.

    Thomas C. Young Sr., Robert Henderson and Alexander Perry, known as "The Scotch Boys," settled to the north of the  Tippetts and Perrys.

    The first brick school building in Box Elder county was built in Three Mile Creek in 1874.  It was erected ostensibly for a meeting house, but was used for school purposes also.

    In 1899 a new meeting house was erected, a two story building 32 X 60 feet with a tower and large double doors on the west.  The building was constructed under the direction of Bishop James Nelson at a cost of $5,000.

    This building has seen several additions and when a new LDS meeting house was built in 1874-1975, it was sold to a theatrical group and is now home to the Heritage Theater.  Live productions delight people throughout northern Utah each month.

    From the beginning, lack of water kept back the growth of Three Mile Creek, as there was much more land than water.  In the fall of 1894 a reservoir was partially completed at the head of Three Mile Creek Canyon.  Before the project was completed, frost stopped the work and winter set in.  The next year no work was done to finish the dam, but being a low water year, nothing happened.

    In June 1896, a rain storm before the snow was all gone, caused a heavy flow of water into the reservoir which resulted in a terrible flood.  Homes were lost and farms were covered with mud, gravel and trash, but no lives were lost.   In 1923 a series of cloud bursts caused a second flood out of this same canyon.   Damage was not quite as great this time.

    When the railroad passed through the western part of Three Mile Creek in 1868-1869, it brought much needed revenue to the residents, who hauled timber and telegraph poles from the canyon.  Some men made as much as $30 a day.  The railroad also paid high prices for goods.  Hay sold for $50 a ton.  Grain, eggs, and butter were also very much in demand.

    In May 1898 the name of Three Mile Creek was changed to "Perry" in honor of O.A.Perry who had served as an LDS Bishop for almost 20 years.

    Population at the turn of the century was 261 souls, (50 families).

    In the spring of 1905, residents of Perry built their own electric company with Vinson F. Davis as president, at a cost of $2,399.  They erected their own lines and strung their own wires.  The company was purchased by the town in 1912. In the winter of 1950 it was sold to Utah Power and Light.

    Water, or lack of it, continued to be a major problem.  In 1902 the Three Mile Creek Irrigation Company decided to pipe water from the mouth of the canyon to the settlement for irrigation purposes.  When the Pine View Canal was built from Ogden to Brigham, farmers could increase their orchards and plant row crops.    Hundreds of acres of arid land was then reclaimed.

    Agriculture consisting of family dairies and fruit orchards was the leading industry in Perry City.  A creamery was built at the Barnard White farm and 1910 a cannery was established to take care of the counties summer harvest, peas, tomatoes, carrots, beets, etc.  Facilities were also set up for shipping the excellent fruit grown in this region to all parts of the United States.  This improvement gave work to those in the community and surrounding areas.

    In 1909 the Inter-Mountain Nursery was established on 40 acres of the Brigham Nelson Property.  Growing and grafting to make a better variety of fruit trees:  pears, peaches, and apple, the number of trees reached a half million, supplying trees for many orchards in the area.  F.T. Troxell was president with Brigham Nelson and M.J. Thorne as vice presidents, E.M. Tyson, secretary-treasurer, and E.F. Whaley as superintendent.

    A culinary water system, providing water to each home was put into operation in 1911. The water came from mountain springs and later from wells.

    Population in 1958 was 500. At that time Perry City's growth began, orchards giving way to housing areas, and dairy farms becoming fewer in number.  The character of the town changed from a rural community to a suburban community whose residents commuted to Ogden, Brigham City, Thiokol, Morton International, and other areas of employment.

    With this growth, the small three-room school house built in    about 1910 was enlarged.  In 1961 six classrooms, along with a multi-purpose room and kitchen made it a modern school.

    The modern day Perry City is a progressive community, looking to the future in it's development.  In 1973, a sewage disposal plant was begun and in 1981 an addition was made to accommodate  the growth.

    The city has three parks, one with ball diamond and a bowery, one with a children's play area and small bars and the third is a nature park with a horse riding arena and in the winter an ice skating rink.

last updated July, 2007