School
The school is built to look as if we are ready for a day of learning at the turn of the twentieth century, about 1900. It resembles the one built at approximately 104th S. and 1300 West. Children are playing outside waiting for the school bell. * When the clock says 9:00 am sharp, the bell rings and the students march in and sit quietly at their desks waiting for the teacher to begin. *These desks are from early Utah schools and loaned to us by the Utah Historical Society and others. * The bookshelves and the books are from the old South Jordan auditorium that was recently torn down on the corner of 104th S. and 1300 West.
*This teacher's desk is from the original South Jordan old adobe school and the tale told is that it has been painted with ox blood. The larger desk is from the school that replaced this 1890 school.
A typical school day would have included the Pledge of Allegiance as well as lots of reciting aloud of math facts and poetry. Perhaps students would have recalled parts of the Constitution, or had a Spelling Bee. Proper penmanship was also stressed. Maps from books such as this one* would have been important for the teacher to use as a reference.
*Students shared reading books like these vintage reproduction McGuffy Readers. They were common in earlier times.
*Take a minute to look at the photos. See if you might recognize someone who was an early student in a South Jordan school.

Home
This house is built to look like the home of Byrum Henry Beckstead, one of the first settlers in South Jordan and was built especially for children. In it they (you) have the opportunity to feel what it would have been like to live back in the early days of South Jordan. Furniture was simple and often made by the early settlers. A large stove was needed to cook, keep food warm and heat water for the many ways it was needed.
Children can take some time to pretend they live in this home back in the 1920's. Cook a delicious meal on the stove, set the table with the dishes and silverware in the cupboard. Take care of the babies by rocking them or putting them to bed with a song. This is their (your) special place to pretend to be an early South Jordan pioneer.

Store
There were several stores in early South Jordan. The first large store was the Jordan Mercantile run by Joseph Holt. It was located at 10346 South 1300 West and was built about 1895. It carried a full line of household and farm items. It also housed an office, dance hall and stage. The wonderful building here in the History Center is a combination of two later stores that were important places in the lives of the early settlers starting around 1930.
* The H & E., which stands for Helen and Earl, was located on 1300 West and 104th South right where the traffic semaphore is now. They laughingly referred to it as the "Hurry and Eat" store. (You had to hurry and eat so as to get back out to serve the customers!) *Holt's store was the other grocery located in South Jordan. It was up on Redwood Road and 104th South where the Beehive Credit Union is now located. Both stores had a garage similar to the one here in the museum. * In the garage cars were greased and lubed on a grease rack and tires were changed. Both of the stores sold gas.
Inside, we have the black cash register from 1928 that belonged in the Holt store. *The white scale (from H&E) and the black restored register (from Holts) would have been important items in the store. * You can try them out if you like. The brass cash register on top of this counter (from H&E) and the blue scale (from Holts) are to only enjoy from a distance.
The store sold not only gas and oil, but canned goods, bread, soda pop, ice cream and candy. There was also material and thread to sew clothing, as well as tool, hammers, and hardware. H&E also had an ice cream fountain for awhile that sold malts. *The best part of going to either store if you were a child was the delight of choosing some "penny candy." It was always FUN go to the general store!! *The locker behind the glass display case is built to look like the lockers that Holts rented to people as a place to store their meat. You could rent a locker by the month or by the year. There was also a huge scale at the side of the store. Trucks would drive onto the scale and be weighed for their wheat, grain or sugar beets before selling them. They also weighed coal before unloading.
It is important to understand how vital the neighborhood store was to the early residents of South Jordan. The owners kept everyone stocked with food during difficult times or during difficult months when Kennecott would go on strike. They helped out during the Depression and drought, and people relied on them through the lean times. You could purchase groceries and gas on credit until you were able to pay. Each family had their own book of credit. People would then pay these great storeowners back when their crops were sold or they went back to work at the mines.

The Homestead Plot/Family Garden
This area is a work in progress where lots of important work took place. Every member of the family would have had jobs to make sure that there was food and the necessary items needed to survive in early South Jordan. Students and children will have the opportunity to gather eggs, milk the cow, work in the garden, or even gather vegetables in a wheelbarrow. Daily chores and all these activities helped the place run efficiently and smoothly.
*While they work, they will have the wonderful feeling of being in the wide open western plain that stretched to the Oquirrh Mountains past the creek and the farmer's fields. Our scenic mural was painted by Lisa Barton and Renae Britton.
*A bridge over the water will bring to mind memories of the small trickles of water found in all farming communities. In South Jordan, it might have been Midas or Butterfield Creek, or the Beckstead Ditch. Does it remind you of a favorite "crick" that drew you as a child to look for tadpoles and water skeeters?

Post Office
In early days mail delivery was very different from today. Mail to this area of the Salt Lake Valley was delivered once a week to the city of Sandy. One postman, or mail carrier, then delivered mail to the South Jordan, Bennion, West Jordan, Riverton, Draper, Midvale and Crescent cities. Then back to Sandy he went! He carried it all on his back in 2 bags. Everyone in all these cities was on Rural Route 2 Delivery until the 1940's. That's when every house received a house number and the postman began to deliver mail to each house according to the address.
The early post office was often located in someone's house. Then it moved to a building or place close to the general store. The first post office was called the South Jordan Post Office and started 1877. In 1887 it changed to become the Gale Post Office. Some early postmasters were James Oliver, Mary Ann Soffe and Robert Holt.
Optional: (Frederick Cooper, who owned a home in South Jordan, was also the first postmaster in West Jordan. He owned a small adobe across from the Gardner Mill. When you went to the mill to grind your wheat, you stepped across the road and picked up your mail.) Our post office is what it might have looked like around 1920.

Grandma's House
This very special place has been recreated to represent the feelings of love, comfort and warmth that everyone feels when they go to Grandma's house. Because the items in this area are very precious, we will only look with our eyes and try to imagine what life was like back when Grandma lived in such a house.
*The first thing you notice is the lovely door. Notice the unique etched glass. This was the original door from Aunt Marie's home. In South Jordan there were two wonderful women named Aunt Marie and Aunt Mame. They were both granddaughters of Matthew and Ann Holt, two important early settlers. Most residents of the town called them "Aunt." Everyone was welcome to visit. *Our first stop is the kitchen, which was usually the heart of Grandma's house.
The stove is authentic from early South Jordan days (donated by Marnae Wheelock.) On top are some of the cooking tools that might have been used. Auntie Mame always had a popcorn popper ready, and every visitor was sent off home with a bag of popcorn.
There is also an old pressure cooker (from LaDawn Farr.)
*On the ironing board are some embroidered dresser scarves (these were cloths that were place on the top of furniture.) Women used old flour sacks which they washed and ironed. Then they did elaborate embroidery or crocheting around the edges to make something beautiful to be displayed. (These were made by Jeanne Jackman's grandmother.) *The churn and butter mold (also from Jeanne.) and the milk separator (from Earl Jones) were all important kitchen tools.
* The kitchen table and chairs were donated by Annette Wilkinson. They were made by her Grandfather Sheppick who was an early resident of South Jordan.
*Most of the china and dishes belonged to Auntie Marie.
*As we move into this beautiful front parlor, there are many special items to make note of and appreciate. The old radio, donated by Jeanne Jackman, belonged to her dad. His family enjoyed many hours of listening pleasure before the invention of the television.
*The organ against the wall was originally used in the old South Jordan LDS church still standing on 1300 West. It was affectionately called the "purple church" by ward members. Joan Groves saved the organ for many years and donated it to our museum. Dell Urry restored it so it can be played today. *In the corner is a victrola, which is an old record player. Listening to these different sounds will bring back threads of the musical past.
* The picture above the fireplace is of James Oliver, an important first settler in South Jordan. James Oliver gave the ground for the South Jordan Cemetery. We also have a "squeeze box" that belonged to Byrum Henry Beckstead. Remember? The Children's house is built to look like his home.
* This elegant couch and chairs were made by Jeanne Jackman's grandfather and are very beautiful still today.
* The plate on the wall (donated by La Royce Beckstead Fisher) is a clever advertisement for the Jordan Mercantile-South Jordan's first store.
* As we move into the bedroom, we find many artifacts that belonged to early residents. Many homes had bare wooden floors scrubbed and kept very clean. Some had linoleum, and some had rugs. The rugs were woven, braided, crocheted or hooked and women often made their own. They used homegrown straw under the rugs for padding, or perhaps old copies of the newspaper. *Our rug is donated and braided by an early resident of South Jordan. It would have warmed your toes on cold nights. (donated by Mada DeMille.)
Quilts to us are precious heirlooms, but to the early settlers were the only blankets they had and a necessity. *This one is loaned by Renee Britton and belonged to her great grandmother. Beds were made from woven ropes strung in a crisscross pattern and knotted. Then a big "mattress" that looked like a large pillowcase was stuffed with either straw or feathers and laid on top. *Notice the chamber pot, or "thunder jar" peeking out from beneath the bed. It was an important "necessary" when the nights were cold and a trip to the outhouse wasn't practical or desirable!! The white lace pillowcases on the bed were made by Aunt Marie Holt and were loaned by Jean Beckstead Bateman.
*On the dresser are some things that might have belonged to any women in the early 1900's. We have a clock, hat boxes and a brush set from Aileen Gygi's mother-in-law.