Sharon

Three miles north of Liberty is a little town which seems to have flowed from the mouth of four canyons, North, Emigration, Copenhagen and Mill.

First called North Liberty, it was suggested that the town next be called Emigration, but some did not approve; so John T. Lyon suggested that the town be named Sharon for the birth place of the prophet Joseph Smith. All agreed and it was so.

Probably the first person who could be called a settler in the area was an old trapper named John Snyder who camped on a creek that runs through the area. The creek has since been known as Snyder Creek. He often encouraged the incoming groups to move on through for more level ground at other locations in the valley. He had at least three cave-like dugouts: one in North Canyon, One in Mill Canyon (originally called Cabin Fort because of his half built cabin located there), and the other near Copenhagen Basin. Arnold Merk and his wife were among the first to live there. They stayed there one winter, and he came out once on snow shoes. Blizzards were bad, and the snow ran deep. Sometimes it would drift clear up to the eaves of the homes.

Joseph Wixom was assigned to live at the mouth of Emigration Canyon to assist the Saints as they arrived by helping them with their animals, broken wagons, directions, etc. He was the first to own land in this territory and to plant crops. He also planted an orchard that was very successful and his wife, Elvira Ricks, had a beautiful raspberry patch. Thomas Gambling and George Sleight came next. Sleight proved that grain could be grown in large quantities. He also owned the first car in Sharon.

School, which started around 1874, was held for two months to 10 weeks during the summer. Then, in 1875, a two-room school was built, and finally, regular sessions were established after a county system of schools was developed. In 1916, a new two-room frame building was completed. That building doubled as a church and a school until a separate church was constructed in 1926.

For the first 10 years, LDS church members attended church in Liberty until the North Liberty Branch was organized on Feb. 4, 1897. John Lyon was the first presiding officer. He moved away, and Samuel Hymas was the presiding elder from April 27, 1901, to June 23, 1901, when a ward was organized and he was set apart as bishop. He served as bishop for 26 years and was released after a new church was built.

The people settled in Sharon because of the rich soil and good lumber. Before it was a town, there was a saw mill and a dairy. Wild hay grew waist high and was an ideal place for cattle. Several men in the valley formed a corporation and started the Union Dairy. Samuel Humpherys operated the dairy in 1880. James McMurray was the first herd wrangler for the dairy. The first milk maids were Sarah Hoge, Nettie Bee, Elvira Ricks, Maria Nielsen. They were each required to milk 20 cows per day, stir the cheese and clean the vats for $1 a week plus board. Good calico at the time was 50¢ a yard, and a sturdy pair of shoes cost $1. Some nights the cowboys would be out nearly all night to keep the bears away from their young calves, as they would often kill them.

When Sharon was first settled, people made roads at random, crossing each other's farms. John H. Miles contacted surveyors and eliminated the unnecessary roads. A child of Mr. and Mrs. Josiah Orr was the first one buried in the Sharon Cemetery. James Neibaur was the first chorister and the first postmaster. L.P. Nielson of Ovid was the first mail carrier. It came three times each week. Lewis Wixom, son of Joseph Wixom, was the first child born in Sharon. Ester Ricks Linford was the first school teacher. She taught two months each summer. Sharon claimed the first triplets born in the county. Kenneth, Calvin and Cleo Wixom, were born on pioneer day, July 24, 1911. They were the children of John S. Wixom. For a while, there was speculation that Sharon would become the "Pittsburg of the West," when well diggers who were searching for water hit a vein of coal. There was even talk of railroad tracks being built through Emigration Canyon to connect the area with Utah points. This idea was short lived however. It turned out that there was not enough coal to be profitable. In 1899, Albert Beutler developed another sawmill in the area near the mouth of North Canyon. The mill offered employment for several families and soon Sharon was a thriving town of 250 people. Less than 25 full-time families live in the Sharon area now.

Resources:

J. Patrick Wilde, Treasured Tidbits of Time, Vol 1.
A history compiled and written by Ida Lucille Wixom Prescott. A former long-time resident of Sharon, Idaho. March 23, 1961