"It's an adrenaline rush!" Fourteen-year-old Hutch Udy from Tremonton lights up as he shares his plan to continue in his family's 70-year old tradition of chariot racing. On a balmy winter day in Ogden, the Golden Spike Arena grandstand is filled with eager spectators awaiting the starting gate to open. "And they're off!" the starter shouts. Two chariots abreast, pulled … [Read more...]
Trappers and the Ogden Valley
Jim Bridger Spins The Yarn “One hundred Cheyenne warriors, arrows drawn, fire in their eyes, riding on the fastest mustangs you ever did see were right on my heels! I could feel the ground rumble as they chased me right into a steep canyon. I looked around at walls and Indians on every side. There I was, surrounded, boxed in ...” “What happened next, Mr. Bridger?” an eager … [Read more...]
#MeToo Pioneer Style
Stories of sexual assault, harassment and misconduct by politicians and people of influence seem to permeate the headlines with alarming increase. Unfortunately, many stories of this nature could almost be written on a template where only the names of the perpetrator and victims change. Consider the story of John W. Dawson, Utah’s third Territorial Governor. Although, it took … [Read more...]
Ogden’s Ghosts of Christmas Past
Many of Ogden's historic buildings in the area between Wall Avenue and Washington Boulevard claim the upper floors had been used as brothels during seedier times. Local legend suggests that the Woodmansee Building was no exception. When the working girls wanted the fellas on the street below to know they were available for “business,” they would drop beans out of the windows, … [Read more...]
Get Up Close with the Ghosts of Ogden
Often referred to as one of the most haunted cities in the United States, Ogden, Utah tends to embrace its ghosts; making this area a prime locale to run a ghost tour. Story Tours has provided Ogden and Salt Lake bus tours and Historic 25th Street ghost walks in Ogden since 2003. Ogden had its beginnings as a peaceful rural town settled by Mormon Pioneers. That changed when … [Read more...]