Located at 241 West 400 North in Payson, Utah, this park was built where the Wightman School stood and the plaque placed there reads:
Wightman School
Upon this site was once a private school and residence built circa 1883 by William C. and Lucretia J. Pepper Wightman. The school was built approximately 400 feet west of the northwest corner of the original fort and used to educate the children of early settlers in Payson.
When educational activities ended at the school, the structure was used as a residence until June of 2002. In August of 2003 =, the structure was demolished due to years of neglect and deterioration. This monument has been erected to remind all children that play in this park of the important role education has played in the history of the community.
Nebecker Grove, one of two interlaced groves along Peteetneet Creek was the location of the first pioneer camp at Peteetneet (Payson).
Named after Ammon Nebecker, Sr. whose home stood just outside the fort at its northwest corner, now 400 North and 400 West, Nebecker was one of the first trustees on the school board of Payson and had one of the first quadrant schools, built in 1863, named for him. It was called the Nebecker or Rock School.
This grove of century old trees, campsite of early Indians and site of early Payson celebrations was torn down to make way for the freeway in 1965.
This old photo (above) that I found on facebook shows the Nebo Stake Tabernacle that was previously located at 182 N Main in Payson, Utah. It was about where Central Bank and Walgreens are now. Across the street from it, on the left side of the photo you can see the old tithing office and in the background I think that is the John Dixon house.
It’s sad to see historic buildings like these go away, but to see other tithing offices and tabernacles I’ve been able to document visit these pages:
Mounted on a boulder at about 100 North Main in Payson is a plaque explaining that the John Boylston Fairbanks home was located here and was relocated to the Pioneer Trail State Park in Salt Lake City.
The Payson Exchange Savings Bank was opened in April of 1890 in a new two-story building located on the southeast corner of Main Street and Utah Avenue. Since the bank did not have the proper license to operate at that time, it was forced to close until the following year. It was not granted a license to operate until January 1891. The bank advertised that it could transact a general banking business, forward money to any part of the United States, Mexico, or Europe at the lowest possible rates.
In 1924, after more than thirty years in business, the Payson Exchange Bank failed and closed its doors. In 1927, Payson City purchased the building and established a city office complex. The City Library was moved from the Hancock Building located a block north of the old bank building. The library occupied the main west portion of the bank. The City Council Chamber was located on the second floor above the library
The City Offices were moved from the old City Hall across the street west of the City Park to the east rooms of the bank building. The offices had their own entrance located on Utah Avenue. The city police and a jail were located adjacent to the city offices. R. W. McMullin, attorney-at-law occupied the rooms above the city offices.
The bank building housed the library and city offices until the early 1980’s when they were moved to the new city complex located in the newly remodeled Payson City Hospital building located on West Utah Avenue.(*)
It is now Eli’s Old Fashioned Ice Cream and Soda Shop, an awesome place that not only has great food and ice cream but is fun to sit in and look around at the old bank vault, windows, woodwork and more.
