Old Sorrel Trail - Brian Head, UT
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N 37° 40.654 W 112° 50.740
12S E 337241 N 4171643
A plaque erected in 1998 by the Boy Scouts of Cedar Breaks depicting a trail route that the work horse, Old Sorrel, used to move wood down to Cedar City for the construction of the Old Main building on the SUU campus.
Waymark Code: WMKX0X
Location: Utah, United States
Date Posted: 06/05/2014
Views: 4
Brian Head is traversed by the Old Sorrel Trail, the route used to haul timber to Cedar City for the first structure on the campus of what would become Southern Utah University. On January 5, 1898, a group of men, the first of a long line of townsmen to face the bitter winter weather of the mountains, left Cedar City. Their task was to cut logs necessary to supply the wood for the new building. They waded through snow that often was shoulder deep, pushing and tramping their way up the mountains, sleeping in holes scraped out of the snow and covered with mattresses of hay. It took them four days just to reach the Jensen saw mills, located near the present day ski resort, Brian Head. Once they got there they realized they had to go back to Cedar City again. The wagons they brought with them could not carry logs through the heavy snows, and it was determined that sleighs were needed to do the task. The way back was just as arduous as the trip up. The snow had obliterated the trail they had originally blazed and the snow was even deeper. The wagons could not make it and were abandoned at a clearing. It was in this phase of their march that an old sorrel horse proved so valuable. Placed out at the front of the party, the horse, strong and quiet, would walk steadily into the drifts, pushing and straining against the snow, throwing himself into the drifts again and again until they gave way. Then he would pause for a rest, sitting down on his haunches and heave a big sigh then get up and start all over again. "Old Sorrel" was credited with being the savior of the expedition.
Fleur-de-lis?: Yes
Who placed the Monument or Memorial?: Boy Scouts of America Cedar Breaks District
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