In the spring of 1865, Brigham Young called several families to settle this valley, including Meltar Hatch, president; John E. Hammond, presiding elder; Fredrick Hamblin, Francis Hamblin, Joseph Hadfield, Taylor Crosby, James A. Little, W. M. Lytle, John Lytle, and Henry Chamberlain. They built a fort near here and lived in it for three years for protection from Indians. They cleared the land, made irrigation ditches, and built their first homes.