Activities of Father's Life Remembered by James Monsen

He was always ready and willing to answer to calls made upon him from church or state.

The first steam sawmill brought to Mt.  Pleasant was by Peter Y. Jensen.  and placed in Cedar Creek Canyon.  But before it could be placed, a road had to be constructed.  Father was the supervisor.

Father assisted in leveling of the hill where the Manti Temple now stands, after which a sawmill, called the Temple Sawmill, was placed in Twin Creek Canyon, where lumber was sawed to be used in the construction of the Temple.  the work was carried on winter and summer.  Men donating their work , with a few exceptions, who were paid temple-scrip, with which they could buy such commodities as were donated by the people.  

grew weary of going around.  That is where we boys fit in.  The  tanners were glad to have the horse ridden, to make him carry on..

The bark, when ground, was placed between the hinds in the vats, for just what purpost I never knew.  The bark was peeled from large logs in summer time, about three feet in length, then piled in ricks to dry.  From a distance it looked like ricks of cord wood.

Manti Temple Saw Mill ~ taken from "Highlights In the Life of James Monsen"

Reference has been made to father's activities with the Temple saw mill.  I think it proper to further illustrate the operation in Twin Creek Canyon.  The saw mill was first set at the forks of the canyon, where they worked all winter, logging and sawing lumber.  It was next moved higher up into the head of the canyon, and naturally the road was made in the shortest manner, avoiding dugways as much as possible.  For about a mile the road followed a deep ravine, so steep that it required six or eight yokes of oxen to pull the steam boiler up the hill.  Of necessity, men were pushing and blocking, to hold the ground they gained.  Once there, where thy stood the effort was worthwhile, because there was an abundance of beautiful timber where no man had ever set an ax.  I am not sure that it was the first summer of the operation that Pete Oman and his wife, Sena (she being my sister) worked at the mill  Sena was the cook.  The road was so steep that no lumber was hauled out by wagon.  Provisions we hauled up to the mill on a two-wheeled cart drawn by two yokes of oxen.

The lumber was taken out in the wintertime on bob sleighs.  One end of the load dragged on the snow, and to go down the steep hill required lock on each runner of the sleigh.  If the horses were willing to hold back, the speed was moderate, but if not they sometimes went down the hill like a bat out of ----.

Those who hauled the timber camped at the forks of the canyon.  From there it was hauled to Manti by wagon.  After the lumber was all hauled out, several of the boys continued hauling slabs and poles, house logs and wood, which were near the beaten snow road.

(this was about 1882 )