8586 South 115 East
Sandy, UT, USA

National Register of Historic Places - William D. Kuhre House

Statement of Significant:

Built in 1890 and remodeled c. 1910, this house is historically significant f or its association with William D. Kuhre, an influential leader in civic, educational, business, and religious activities in Sandy during the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. Kuhre, who lived in this house from 1890 until the 1930s, served as mayor of Sandy, was a member of the school board for many years, served as bishop of the Sandy Ward of the LDS church, and was a partner in one of the community's longest-lived businesses, Jensen & Kuhre Lumber and Hardware Company. This house is also architecturally significant, representing the upper range of residential architecture in a community of primarily frame hall-parlor houses and brick Victorian Eclectic cottages. In addition to being one of the earliest brick houses in the town, it is also the largest house and the only example of the four-square type in Sandy.

William Dobbie Kuhre was born January 21, 1863, at Ephraim, Sanpete County, Utah. His Danish immigrant parents had arrived the previous September. On the fateful day of October 17, 1865, the parents, a seventeen-year-old girl, and the two-year-old William were gathering potatoes in a field outside of the town. A band of Indians under Chief Blackhawk approached and killed the adults. Young William was picked up by an Indian and dropped unharmed. Four other adults were killed as the Indians travelled down the valley. William was adopted by John and Ellen Dobbie who gave him every advantage in their power. The Dobbie’s moved to Salt Lake City shortly thereafter, where William grew to adulthood. William moved to Sandy in 1881 and resided there the remainder of his life. He worked as bookkeeper at the Pioneer Ore Sampling Mill for many years.

The Sandy of 1881 when William D. Kuhre arrived was a boom town of wooden buildings, two operating smelters, the Mingo and Flagstaff, two sampling mills, of which the Pioneer was by far the largest and lasted the longest.

Two distinct types of people could be found. One, the boom towner who worked at the smelters, slept in the boarding houses, and for recreation drank in the saloons. The other was the Mormon immigrant who worked in the smelter or sampling mill, endeavored to attend church services and went home to his wife and children no matter how crude the domicile. These two types opposed each other, and their confrontations helped lead to the incorporation of Sandy on August 2A, 1893. At least part of the reason for incorporation was to hire a Marshall and enact laws to control the rowdy element.

Mr. Kuhre worked as bookkeeper at the Pioneer Sampling Mill. On April 14, 1886, he married Alice Drown of West Jordan. They apparently lived in Midvale until 1890 when they built this brick home by the railroad tracks and across from the Pioneer Sampling Mill. Kenneth, the third of nine children born of the marriage was the first to be born in this house in 1891. The nine children were Leon, Helen, Kenneth, Martin, Alice, Ella, Newell, Thelma and Udell. Martin became an early dentist of Sandy, Mrs. Kuhre died December 6, 1933.

Mr. Kuhre later married Christine Jensen Wilson (widow of W. W. Wilson) and moved into a brick bungalow built in the early 1920s by Mr. Wilson. The house is located on 8680 South and 90 East, and i s still in good condition and occupied. He remained in this location until his death at age 96.

William Kuhre became a partner with James Jensen in Jensen & Kuhre Lumber & Hardware Company. This company became one of the most prominent and long-lived businesses in Sandy. The partners also were involved in real estate, purchasing the land of the old Flagstaff Smelter and incorporating it into Sandy as the Flagstaff addition. William Kuhre sold his interest in the lumber company in his latte r years, but continued to work as bookkeeper until he was 90 years old. He was a very religious man and held many oppositions in the LDS church. In 1892 he was chosen as second counselor to Bishop James Jensen of the Sandy Ward (congregation), and from 1900 to 1914 he served as bishop of the ward. He became a member of the Jordan Stake Presidency (a stake consists of several wards), and in 1919 was set apart as patriarch of the stake, a position he held until his death. He was also very active in civic affair s and was elected mayor in 1901. He served as a member of the school board for many years, first as a trustee and then as a board member after the consolidation. He was one of the most respected men of early Sandy. He died in 1960 at age 96.

The Kuhre home was in possession of the family for seventy years. I t was then purchased by David Oman Grow in 1966. He divided the house into two apartments. In 1974, it was sold to Kendell W. Young. In 1975 he sold it to Mountain Empire Investment Corp. from whom the present owners are purchasing the property. They have restored the house throughout.