Photo provided by the North Ogden Historical Museum
Hunting and trapping was an important element of survival in the early days of North Ogden. Bears, coyotes, deer, ducks,pheasants, and sage hens provided food and sport. Other animals were trapped,and the pelts were sold or used for clothing and other necessities.
In fact, the city’s name originates from one of the best known trappers! Peter Skene Ogden was a brigade leader for the Hudson Bay Company and he visited the area in 1826. He traded for several years near North Ogden and eventually the canyon, city, valley, and river were all named after him.
However, he was not the first trapper in North Ogden. That title belongs to Etienne Provost. He was the first recorded visitor to the area in 1821 and he farmed the area with others until about 1844. This photo taken in 1915 includes hunters, from left to right, George Roylance, Chris Lind, and Charles Jones. Wayne Barker was also a North Ogden hunter in the 1950s. In a photo on page 49 of the book, Images of America North Ogden, Wayne is showing off the bounty of his pheasant hunt. Take a closer look and you’ll realize the photo captured his dog going crazy about his master’s prizes. The dog in the picture with the three men must have been a little more used to the work judging by his seemingly calm demeanor. Or perhaps he was completely worn out from a day’s worth of pointing and retrieving.
I am not a hunter myself, but I’ve been around hunters enough to be amused by a dog’s reaction. Excitement overtakes hunting dogs when they and their masterwork together successfully to spot, flush,shoot, and recover a bird. However, I’ve heard there’s nothing worse than the look of confusion and disappointment on a dog’s face when he does his job but the hunter misses the shot. These hunters and their dogs likely frequented the ridge along the summit of the North Ogden pass. Lewis peak and Ben Lomond probably weren’t just beautiful destinations to hike to; they were points along their journey to find food.