Some myths and legends of Layton

THE Layton area has abounded with some myths and legends over the decades.

Here are some of the historical myths about Layton:

                                       Note the many trees scattered about in modern Layton.

• Some incorrectly believe that Layton and the entire greater Salt Lake area was treeless when the Mormon Pioneers arrived in 1847. However, that is not correct. “To say the area was treeless was simply not true,” it is stated about the Layton area in the book, “Layton, Utah,” by the Kaysville- Layton Historical Society. There were trees scattered about, particularly along streams and on the mountainside.

• Another myth is that Layton has existed as a community since the first settlers arrived in 1849.

That’s not entirely accurate, since Layton is an outgrowth of Kaysville City and its actual progress for

its own identity was a gradual process over decades. For example, Layton’s own U.S. Post Office opened in 1886. Before that, a portion of Layton was known as "Kays Creek" and another part was still Kaysville.
Layton de-annexed from Kaysville City in 1902, but Layton did not incorporate as official town until 1920.

• Layton City has always been the largest community in the area. This is another myth and relative newcomers to Layton would just assume this to be the case. However, Layton City had a population of just 646 residents at the start of World War II and was smaller than both Kaysville and Bountiful in Davis County. By the end of World War II, Layton’s population had grown to 3,456, thanks to many military

families moving into the City. This now

meant that Layton had a larger population

than neighboring Kaysville. The additions

of the Laytona area in 1957 and the

incorporation of East Layton into Layton

City in 1981 all boosted the size and

population of Layton. In 1985, Layton

surpassed Bountiful as Davis County’s

new largest city with 36,000 residents.

LEGENDS:

Layton City also boasts some colorful legends.

Most of these can’t be verified, but they make for great stories at the least. Here are a few:

                            Statue of a bear in the museum at Grand Teton National Park.

• MONSTER BEAR: An August 17, 1910 report in the Salt Lake Herald newspaper was headlined:

“Traps Monster Bear while herding sheep.” The story claimed that a 1,200 pound bear was trapped by a sheepherder, Charles Jacobs, on the east end of Layton. (In contrast, “Old Ephraim,” the legendary bear of the early 20th Century in Logan Canyon, was only believed to have weighed 1,100 pounds.)

• LAYTON’S LEGENDARY MIGHTY HUNTER: A March 8, 1934 story in the Salt Lake Herald profiled Del H. Adams as perhaps the greatest big game hunter ever from Layton. Adams bagged mountain sheep, mountain goats, cougars, buffalo, moose, wild hogs and more during his long hunting career.

His tales of mountain goat hunting on cliffs in Idaho to stalking cougars in southeast Utah were full of excitement.

-CHEWING ON A RATTLESNAKE: There were NO dentists in the early Layton area. Elias Adams, one of the first settlers, used a nail and hammer to removed problem teeth as needed. His sons had heard a legend that if they chewed on a live rattlesnake, that their teeth would never rot. Young Joshua Adams tied a rattlesnake head to a clothesline and then chewed the entire length of the snake. He boasted in his old age that he still had every tooth that had touched the snake. (-From "Elias Adams A Pioneer Profile," by Harris Adams.