OGDEN -- A Bountiful resident says a Goshute Indian burial site sits 6 to 8 feet off the proposed Bonneville Shoreline Trail system.
George Tripp said he came forward with the story of the grave after 36 years to save the site from trail development.The site, north of Farmington Canyon on the highest terrace of Lake Bonneville at an elevation of 4,900 feet, is the reported grave of the daughter of Little Soldier, the leader of the first band of Indians to meet with the Mormon pioneers in 1860.
"I think this is a tremendous Davis County historical site," Tripp told Davis County Commissioners Monday.
The 79-year-old history hobbyist has made several visits to the burial ground, three miles up on the mountain. He was initially guided to it in 1963 by Florence Garcia, a great-great-granddaughter of Little Soldier.
As was foretold by a spurned suitor and medicine man, Little Soldier's band was camped at the Jordan Narrows at the south end of the Salt Lake Valley when the chief's daughter died after giving birth to her first child.
Tripp said that according to family history, the baby survived the birth, but there were no nursing mothers in the band at that time and so there was no way to feed the newborn.
The band of Indians brought the mother's body from Point of the Mountain to Farmington for interment. The mother was buried, along with her baby and the horse that carried them, though both were still alive.
County Commissioner Gayle Stevenson said he found the story "interesting" and believes it should become part of the county's written history.
Community Development Director Jeff Oyler said the trail is not being developed for motorized use, but for hiking, biking and horse riding only.
Once completed, the Bonneville Shoreline Trail would follow a terrace formed by the waves of ancient Lake Bonneville along 100 miles of the Wasatch Front from Brigham City to Nephi. Only parts of the trail -- adding up to about 25 miles of the 100-mile stretch -- have been built. During the 1999 legislative session, lawmakers set aside $200,000 toward more work on the trail.
Oyler said he was not aware of the burial site on the mountain until Monday, but the site could be identified with a marker to ensure it remains undisturbed.