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History of the Defense Industry, Utah
Taken from the Utah History Encyclopedia. (Links Added)
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Steptoe moved on to California in l855, and Colonel Albert Sidney Johnston founded the first regular military post at Camp Floyd (later Fort Crittenden) near Fairfield in Cedar Valley after the arrival of the Utah Expedition in 1858. Sent to quell an alleged rebellion by the Mormons and to escort Governor-designate Alfred Cumming to the territory, the camp offered employment and surplus sales in addition to construction and supply contracts for the local population. It also served as an irritant as Johnston sent troops to cities like Provo and Springville where conflicts with local citizens aggravated already strained relations. During its short duration (1858-1861), Camp Floyd constituted the largest troop concentration of its kind in the United States, averaging approximately 2,500 men. After the outbreak of the Civil War, the federal government recognized the need to protect the overland mail route from Indian depredations. This led to the establishment in October 1862 of Fort Douglas by California Volunteers. Convinced that the Mormons were traitors and fanatics, Colonel Patrick Edward Connor decided not to rebuild the ruins of Camp Floyd, but to situate his command on the bench overlooking Salt Lake City. Following the creation of Camp Douglas (renamed Fort Douglas in 1878), the soldiers set out to control the Indians. At the Battle of the Bear River just north of the Utah border in Idaho, Connor's men wiped out more than 250 Shoshoni men, women, and children, in what was among the largest number of dead in any Western Indian battle.


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