Morten Rasmussen House
This full two-story brick home was built in 1875. Located on a corner, the north facade partakes of formal early American styling, especially the Federal and Creek Revival influences. Notice the symmetry, six-over-six windows and Federal lintels, central porch and entry doors and bracketed Creek Revival cornice. The east elevation has a cross-wing plan with recessed entry and original porch.
Morten Rasmussen was one of the original settlers in Mt. Pleasant. His wife Karen crossed the plains in an 1857 handcart company and met Morten while visiting friends in Ephraim. He helped erect the first fort and they lived there for two years, where Karen gave birth to a son Martin, the first male born in Mt. Pleasant. They moved here and built a two-room shed where Sophia and Lars were born. Their next house was a three-room adobe where John Mary, Annie, Henry and Erastus were born. Building this brick house was the pride of family members, who all assisted with the work. The boys hauled wood from the cedar hills to build fire for the kiln. Some of the bricks were fired too long and thus used on the back of the house where inconspicuous. Born here were Daniel, George, Will and Hyrum for a total of eleven children. Morten died here in 1885, followed by Karen 15 years later. In 1959 the house passed to Esther Rasmussen Rasmussen Christensen, the last of Morten and Karen’s grandchildren to be born in the home.(*)
The Morten Rasmussen House is located at 417 West Main Street in Mount Pleasant, Utah and was added to the National Historic Register (#77001317) on August 18, 1977.
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The Morten Rasmussen Home, a two-story, red brick residence built in 1875 by the owner, is a significant example of Federal residential architecture in Utah. Morten Rasmussen, a prominent builder, was a member of the original group of Mt. Pleasant settlers and played an important role in the community’s earliest history.
Morten Rasmussen was born at Brendekilde, Odense, Denmark, October 27, 1834. After his conversion to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in 1851 he immigrated with his uncle Lars Jensen’s family to Ephraim, Utah. On April 1, 1859, he married Karen Marie Christiansen, also from Denmark. The Rasmussens were part of the original group of Mormons called to colonize Mt. Pleasant in 1859. Rasmussen was a construction superintendent in building the fort where his family lived for two years prior to moving into a two-room saltbox house on the property where the big brick house was built in 1875. The second Rasmussen home was a three-room adobe structure with an upstairs. The 1875 house was the third and last built for the Morten Rasmussen family.
All of the family assisted in building the “big brick house.” The boys hauled 30 loads of cedar wood from nearby hills to build the fire needed to make the bricks. The bricks were fired on in a kiln built on the property. Rasmussen was a prominent building contractor but it is not known whether he personally designed the home. The Rasmussen Home is remarkably similar to the Canute Peterson Home (National Register nominee) erected in 1869 in Ephraim, Rasmussen’s former place of residence. Canute Peterson was Ephraim’s leading religious and civic figure for several decades and would have had access to the Mormon architects employed on church projects in the region. Whether one of these architects or Rasmussen himself designed the two homes is conjectural.
In any event, both the Rasmussen Home and the Peterson Home are fine examples of a regional variation of Federal styling. The Rasmussen Home is a 4/4, double-depth, I-form residence and has a T-plan. Its symmetrical northern façade features pairs of 6/6 windows flanking central doors on both stories. The roof pitch, bracketed cornice, lintel caps and porch detailing, as well as certain aspects of the plan reflect subtle Federal influences carried to Utah from the Eastern United States. The home has experienced only minor modification and is well maintained by Mrs. Esther Rasmussen Christensen, Morten’s granddaughter. Excellence in craftsmanship and design is apparent throughout the house.
Morten Rasmussen was one of Mt. Pleasant’s earliest citizens of prominence. Like most Mormon colonists, his primary occupation was farming, but his construction skills led him to take an active role in developing the industry of providing building materials. He engaged in lumbering and helped establish the first local sawmill. Rasmussen was also instrumental in developing the earliest brick kilns in Mt. Pleasant.
Morten Rasmussen took an active part in the Black Hawk War and also served terms on the City Council and the Board of County Commissioners. He was a director of the Sanpete County Co-op Store, played in the Brass Band and was first president of the Birch Creek Irrigation Company. An active Latter-day Saint, Rasmussen served as a missionary in Denmark from 1881 to 1883. He died in 1885 and was survived by his wife and twelve children, many of whom became prominent Mt. Pleasant citizens. The current (1977) owner, Mrs. Esther R. Christensen, is the daughter of Daniel, son of Morten Rasmussen.
The timeline below is borrowed from this page:
