The oldest standing house in North Ogden is a gorgeous white home that is located on 400 W, just south of Ben Lomond Dental on Lomond View Drive. A few years ago, I heard the story of the cute family who built and lived in this home originally.

Mary (or Marie) Stalle Warren (1845-1929) and Elihu Warren (1828-1910) were expecting their second child — a boy — they had 13 in all. Before building the home, they had lived in a house on 2700 N 425 E that had a dirt roof. They decided to build a new two story rock home, hoping to have it completed before the birth of the new baby. I can imagine that Elihu must have worked feverishly to finish the huge job of building a home without the modern conveniences we enjoy today, along with all of his other chores and duties. This story hit home for me because every time we were expecting a child, Ryan would develop an urge to better our situation and we would end up moving. We moved during every pregnancy.

Unfortunately for the Warrens, a huge storm hit and damaged the dirt roof home that they were staying in, forcing them to move into the new home even though it wasn’t complete. The home was completed in 1864 and was a combination home and dance floor. Originally stone walls, the siding was added later. The upper floor was used as a dance hall, with the only access being an exterior stairway.

Elihu had interests in farming, lumber hauling and mining. Maria took care of the children, used a spinning wheel to make the family’s clothing, and dried fruit from their orchards, among many other tasks required of early pioneer mothers. Marie and Elihu raised sugar cane, converting it into molasses to sell. Elihu owned a large mowing machine that could cut grain and hay. He kept busy hiring out his services to cut the crops of neighboring fields.

The baby that was born in the unfinished home was Nathan Elihu Warren, born in 1864. He married Mary Priscilla Bailey in 1885, and he became an accomplished brick maker. Nate and Priscilla were the parents of nine children. Priscilla died in 1929 and Nate in 1949.

“Brief Sketches of the Lives of North Ogden Pioneers-1850-1870” by Florence Snooks, LeRoy Montgomery, and Marion Brown