LORIN FARR: First Mayor of Weber County

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First Mayor of Weber County

Soon after Brigham’s return to Salt Lake City, on October 6, 1849, it was voted at the general conference of the Church to lay out a city in Captain James Brown’s neighborhood.1 Young’s next act to help assure the success and growth of the pioneer settlements in Weber County was to select an outstanding man, Lorin Farr, to take charge of affairs there. Farr had been residing at Salt Lake City since September 21, 1847, having crossed the plains in Daniel Spencer’s company, the first to arrive in the Basin after the original pioneer band. The Mormon President not only recognized the advantages derived from strong leadership, but he also had the knack of selecting powerful men and placing them in key positions in his colonizing program. The thorough cooperation of these leaders with the people helped to make Utah’s colonial history one of the most successful projects in the history of the American frontier. On some occasions the selection of a leader was made before the nucleus pioneer group left the Mormon Mecca for the

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Art by Farrell R. Collett, courtesy Weber State College.