In July 1864, a company of explorers were sent to Idaho by President Brigham Young to locate suitable places for settlements. That same year, Noam Brimhall and John Boice built the first homes in Oxford. William G. Nelson, George D. Lake, and George D. Black served as presiding Elders until 1876, when William F. Fisher became the first Bishop. Fisher, a noted express rider, erected this building in 1876 for his law and mercantile business. Oxford, one of the first settlements, was for years the main trading center north of Cache Valley.