In 1855 Brigham Young appointed a company of men under the leadership of William Bringhurst to establish a colony at Las Vegas. The company left Salt Lake on May 10 and arrived at Las Vegas on June 14, 1855, camping near this site. William Bringhurst was appointed president, with Wm. S. Covert and Ira S. Miles as counselors. On Sunday, June 17, they built a bowery and held their first religious services. The next day they began building the fort, 150 feet square, with walls 14 feet high, 2 feet wide at the base, and 1 foot wide at the top.