HALFWAY HOUSE
Only a few yards from this monument - to the Northwest - stood
the Milo Andrus "Halfway House", a comfortable and convenient
two-story pioneer inn. The inn was one of several built along State
Street in the 1850-80 period to care for the many south and
northbound travelers. The Andrus Inn became known as the "Halfway
House" because it was located midway between "Traveler's Rest" at
6400 South State and Porter Rockwell's layout near the Point of the
Mountain. If one were walking, riding horseback or in a buggy or
ther (sic) horse-drawn conveyance, the Andrus place was always a
welcome stop. Built in 1859 and the early part of the 1860's, the
Halfway House served as both a hotel and a family residence for 120
years. The structure was moved from here beginning in 1982 to the
Pioneer Trails State Park in Salt Lake City after its history was
authenticated by the State. The inn was actually a project of Lucy
Loomis Tuttle Andrus, one of several wives of Milo. Lucy was a
widow with children when Milo married her in 1850 as they were
crossing the plains. At the time he was leader of some Church
members who were enroute to Utah from England. After the group
arrived in Utah, he worked hard to get them all situated. During
the 1850's Milo and his families were involved in the great Church
colonization program. Locations they helped settle were Green
River, Dixie and Cache Valley in Utah, and Oxford and the Salmon
River Country in Idaho. They eventually bought 160 acres in the Dry
Creek area of the Jordon Bottoms that included this land on State
Street. This area is now part of the community of Crescent. (Almost
all of the above information was researched by the late Russell
Stocking, member and officer of the Temple Quarry Chapter, Sons of
Utah Pioneers.)
NEFF'S STATION
The adjoining Benjamin Barr Neff farm - one forth (sic) of a
mile north of here - became known as "Neff's Station at Dry Creek"
or just "Neff's Station" after Deseret Telegraph established an
office here in 1871. Mary Ellen Love Neff, 20-year-old second wife
of Benjamin operated the station. The Neff farm was an ideal
location for the telegraph station because the north-south line
connecting Salt Lake City and east-west lines connecting Alta and
Bingham, crossed at that point. With the coming of the cross-valley
railroad through the Sandy area in 1873, the telegraph station was
moved to that community. Mary Ellen was retained as operator for
the new Sandy station. Benjamin Barr Neff, of Swiss ancestry,
became a successful farmer owning dairy cows, horses and mules. The
well which he dug for the farm was used until a few years ago and
remains on the property.
