82 East 8880 South
Sandy, UT, USA

National Register of Historic Places - Charles Peterson House

Statement of Significance:

Built c. 1895, the Charles Peterson house is significant under Criterion C as a distinct and important example of the double-cell house type which was common in Utah from 1847-18902. This example appears to be the only double-cell house in the Sandy area. Another factor that makes this dwelling unique is that it was built at a time when houses were being built in the Victorian aesthetic throughout the Sandy area. The simplicity, symmetry, and balance of the earlier classical aesthetic have been retained. The alterations which have been effected are minor in nature considering the uniqueness of the plan. They are also easily reversible and therefore do not greatly impact integrity. Under Criterion A, this unique house type is significant for its association with an important period of development in Sandy's history. The house adds to the inventory of classically influenced dwellings including hall-parlor, double-cell, and other vernacular variants which were built during the Mining, Smelting, and Small Farm Era, 1871-c.1910.

Located 12 miles south of Salt Lake City, Sandy is at the crossroads of what was once a busy series of mining districts. Paralleling to a large extent the history of mining in surrounding canyons, Sandy's early history and development either boomed or declined based on these mining operations. Sandy's first major period of development, known as the "Mining, Smelting, and Small Farm Era, 1871-c.1910", closely coincided with the discovery and mining of precious metals in nearby canyons beginning in 1863, and with the arrival of the transcontinental railroad to Utah in 1869. Extending south from Salt Lake City, the Utah Southern Railroad reached the Sandy area in 1871, placing Sandy at a crossroads between Salt Lake City, Bingham Canyon, and Big and Little Cottonwood Canyons. Railroad spurs were subsequently extended to the mouths of these canyons, allowing materials to be shipped to and from the mining operations. Since Sandy was a strategic shipping point, it is only logical that needed sampling mills and smelters were built in the area." Also in 1871, a 160-acre townsite was platted, and the construction of a "boom town" shortly followed. The boom period of the 1870s was, short-lived with the failure of several mining concerns which fed Sandy's economy, leading to the closure of several smelting and sampling concerns beginning in 1876. Mining, however, continued to have a large impact on the town in the years following this initial slowdown.

While the dominant force in the economy of Sandy during the 1870s, '80s, and '90s was undoubtedly that of mining, the local agricultural community continued to develop. A series of wells and ditches were dug beginning as early as 1869 to supply the city, smelters, and farms with water. Early agricultural pioneers, who generally established small, family-type farms, were but forerunners of a later agriculturally oriented lifestyle that was to dominate Sandy's economy. During the 1890s, despite a downturn in the mining industry, Sandy continued to establish itself as a permanent community in the Salt Lake Valley. New business enterprises came into being to support the local agricultural economy, new schools were built, and the city was incorporated in 1893. With the relocation of sampling and smelting concerns to other locations, Sandy's impact as a mining town diminished, Many of the mines that once supported Sandy's mining industry either played out," or their refining operations were relocated. By soon after the turn of the century, Sandy had lost much of the mining component of its economy, marking an end to its initial phase of development. The agricultural component also shifted at this time away from small family farms toward larger, more specialized farming operations, inaugurating a new phase of development in the city.
Both Emily A. (maiden name unknown) and Charles Peterson were born in Sweden, Emily in 1850 and Charles in 1852. They immigrated to the United States beginning in 1878 with Emily and Charles in 1888, and Charles Junior in 1902 at the age of 1911. According to land records, the elder Charles Peterson, a gardener, purchased this property in 1894 from Le Grande and Gracie Young. The house was likely built shortly thereafter. In 1902, Charles and their wife Emily sold the property to Thomas Gauraham who in turn sold the property back to the Petersons the following year. Again in 1903, Charles and Emily sold the property to Jacob Sorenson, who owned it until 1908. At this time, Charles and Augusta Sophia Peterson purchased the property, in whose family the property remained until 1938 when C. I. Goff and Sabina Larson Goff acquired the title.

The Goffs were awarded the property as part of the estate of Anna Louisa Petersen (possibly Charles' second or third wife) who died in 1936. C.I. Goff was president of C.I. Goff and Son Mortuary which his wife helped him found in 1912. He was considered a "prominent civic and church leader in Salt Lake County for more than 40 years, serving in various positions including Midvale postmaster, deputy sheriff, justice of the peace, and the senior high councilman for the East Jordan LDS Stake. However, the Goffs owned the house for only four years and then sold it to Edward DeWayne and Jane M.F. Elswood in 1942. The Elswoods have retained ownership of the house through the present time, although it is currently used as a rental property.