The Jacob Hamblin Home was built in 1862-1863. The home's construction materials were obtained locally-ponderosa pine from Pine Valley and rock from nearby hillsides. Pioneer craftsmen from Cedar City laid the stone in what is know as a coursed rubble pattern-stone of irregular size and shape laid in approximate horizontal courses. A sense of Classical design, common during the period, is demonstrated by the geometrical composition and symmetrical balance depicted by the chimneys and vertical post as well as the windows and door on the upper level. The home departs from the Classical with the asymmetrical lineup of the door and windows on the lower level. The overhanging roof and upper balcony served well in this hot, dry climate, but were not commonly found in Utah.
The long, sloping roof on the rear of the home is representative of the saltbox type of house which is defined principally by its roof shape rather than its plan. The saltbox style displays homes with two-story roofs on the front section of the home and a one-story section to the rear, covered by a long sloping roof.
The interior of the Jacob Hamblin Home is laid out in a pair-house plan, which has two equally sized rooms to the front. Pair-house floor plans were typically built to provide autonomous spaces within a combined family dwelling. This worked well for the Hamblin polygamist household. Both Rachel and Priscilla, Jacobs plural wives during this period, maintained separate bedrooms on the front of the house on either side of the common family/dining room between. Each of the wives bedrooms has a fireplace for cooking and warmth and a staircase ascending to the upper floor. The children's sleeping quarters and a large weaving room that doubled as a community room were on the second story. In this large room, Jacob could hold meetings and entertain Church and other officials. The rear of the main level provided storage rooms for essentials necessary to pioneer lifestyle-food storage, cooking utensils, tools, candle-making supplies, and more.
Jacob Hamblin was an explorer, adventurer, pioneer, and devout member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. He was born in Salem, Ohio, in 1819 and was among the first of the Mormon pioneers to cross the Plains in 1847. He first settled in Tooele, Utah, and then accepted a call from Church President Brigham Young to go to southwestern Utah. He spoke Paiute and Ute languages and was known across the region as a peacekeeper between Native Americans and the pioneers.
One of his best remembered accomplishments as peacemaker was his negotiation of the Treaty of Fort Defiance, New Mexico, in November of 1870. He also was the man sought out by Colonel John Wesley Powell to help discover what had happened to Powell's three men who had left his initial Colorado River voyage while in the Grand Canyon. An historic photograph taken during this period depicts Hamblin, Powell, and a group of Native Americans at a meeting. A quote of Jacob Hamblin's philosophy can be found in Pearson H. Corbett's Jacob Hamblin, the Peacemaker, p. 370. "I never talk anything but the truth to them. Always listen to them when they wish to tell their grievances?I never submit to any unjust demands."
Comments 0 comments