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1850 Lemon Survey North of the Ogden River

Ogden Mayor Lorin Farr seeing that the new immigrants were taking up choice spots of land at their pleasure, thus throwing the county into confusion, engaged a surveyor in 1850 named William Lemon who began surveying the land adjacent to the plat of Ogden City and north of the Ogden River. The survey covered an area approximately six miles square and was titled at the top of the original papers: “Record of Farming Lands”.

 

Shortly after commencing the work William Lemon died, and William M. Dame and Jesse W. Fox completed the survey, thereafter to referred to as The Lemon Survey. It extended from the Ogden River northward to today’s North Ogden and west to today’s Marriott/Slaterville.

 

Territorial Road (today's Washington Blvd.) was the center line of measure beginning at today’s 17th Street.  The farm land was divided into blocks 1/2 mile wide by 1 mile in length, with streets running north and south every mile and east and west every half mile. Each block contained 16 twenty-acre farms that fronted streets running east and west.  This laid the foundation for the grid for the roads still used today.  After the survey was done the first deeds for land were granted in 1850.

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Record of the Farming Lands, North of Ogden River, 6 miles square; includes today’s Ogden, Harrisville, Marriott/Slaterville and North Ogden.

In the spring of 1851 the Bingham family took up about six claims on the Lemon Survey and joined a few families on a dirt lane numbered 1W4N on the survey.  In time the lane was called Bingham's Lane, then Bingham Fort Lane and finally W 2nd Street. This was the beginning of the Five Points area. The important job of bringing irrigation water to 2nd Street was completed by the people in 1852 under the supervision of Isaac Newton Goodale. Erastus Bingham was 54 years old, and this would be his last and final farm, pictured below on the Lemon Survey. This is the only farm that remains from the Lemon Survey; it was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2004.

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Detail of Ogden in the Lemon Survey.

Farms fronting S. side of 2nd Street ended at 7th Street (like the Bingham Farm).; farms fronting N. side of 12th Street and ended at 7th Street. Farms fronting N. side of 2nd Street ended at North Street. Farms fronting S. side of 12th Street ended at 17th Street.

Thus 12th Street and 2nd Street became the prominent locations for residences. Some of these pioneer residences and the Bingham Farm remain today on 2nd Street.

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