OGDEN -- When volunteer worker Ron Mazza arrived at Fort Buenaventura last week to begin reconstruction of the fort's damaged walls, he was surprised at what he learned.
Mazza says he didn't even know the site existed before he arrived to help."The first thing they did when we got here was give us a little history lesson on the fort," he said.
A three-week reconstruction project began last Thursday to repair damage to Fort Buenaventura, Ogden, on one of Utah's oldest but lesser-known historical sites. It is the oldest permanent residence in Utah, built by fur trapper Miles Goodyear in 1846, a year before Mormon pioneers settled in what became Salt Lake City.
Four sections of the fort's exterior walls were damaged by extreme winds last March, winds that also damaged Ogden's Municipal Building when a crane was blown onto the structure.
Students in Clearfield Job Corps Center's rodeo club and retail sales class started the reconstruction with a daylong project to put up planks along the outer walls. The students normally perform service projects at places like food banks and hospitals, said Chuck Peppler of the Clearfield Job Corps Center. The fort project gave the 29 student volunteers an opportunity to learn some little-known Utah history.
"With the historical significance of the fort, it's really neat to be involved," he said.
Although Fort Buenaventura State Park has had visitors from throughout the country and the world, Steve Fielding of the Utah Division of Parks and Recreation said the 65-by-55-foot landmark has gone somewhat unnoticed by local residents. The fort site, which is tucked away behind a baseball park on Ogden's A Avenue, isn't visible from any main roads.
When people from neighboring communities do visit, Fielding says he always hears the same thing: They had no idea the historic site was right in their own back yard.
"This was the first permanent settlement in the Great Basin," Fielding said. "It's kind of an eye-opener that this is all that was here."
He adds that the site gives visitors a more realistic view of what Western travelers in the 1800s would have experienced. Forts portrayed in movies are often shown as much larger structures than they really were, he said.
When travelers coming over the mountain saw Fort Buenaventura, they were most likely impressed by its size.
"This looked like a metropolis to them," Fielding said.
In the 1840s, the fort was used by Goodyear as a trading post. It served travelers on Hasting's Cutoff who were en route to Oregon or California before news of the ill-fated Donner party got out and the route was abandoned.
The current reconstruction project is the third time the fort has been rebuilt. In 1980, it was re-created to mirror the exact measurements and style of the original. Fielding says the high-quality materials workers are using this time should ensure the structure will stand for years to come.
"It's something that's long-lasting. (Volunteers) can come back here and say, 'I helped build this,' " he said.
Volunteers from various organizations will work on the site for several Saturdays to complete the reconstruction.
You can reach Elyse Hayes by e-mail at ehayes@desnews.com