Isaac Chase House

Tags

Historic Homes, NRHP, Salt Lake City, Salt Lake County, utah

In 1847 pioneer Isaac Chase built a one-room shanty and a sawmill on Emigration Creek. A few years later he joined with Mormon leader Brigham Young, owner of the adjacent allotments, and together they built a flour mill and this house, the centerpiece of a 110-acre pioneer-era farm now known as Liberty Park.

Construction on the house began in the winter of 1853 and the Chase family lived here until 1860, when Young gave Chase land in Centerville in exchange for his interest in this property. The Brigham Young Jr. family, followed by other millers and their families, subsequently lived here. In 1881 the farm was sold to Salt Lake City for use as a city park, and for eight decades park employees lived in the house. In 1964 the Daughters of Utah Pioneers opened the house to the public as a museum, and in 1983 it became a gallery and later a museum for the Utah Arts Council.

The Chase home is one of a few remaining houses in Salt Lake City that date from the 1850s. Its symmetrical façade, smooth stucco, and boxed cornices with gable-end returns are all hallmarks of the Greek Revival style that was popular with early Mormon builders. The distinctive two-story front porch was a later addition, having been built sometime after 1916. In 2000 the home was renovated with donations from Salt Lake City, the State of Utah, and the LDS Church.