In 1874, Joseph Perkins left Franklin and settled on Cub River and built a house. He was the first settler in the region now known as “Mapleton,” a settlement of houses scattered along Cub River. The hills and mountains provided an excellent summer range for cattle... The trees along the upper course of the river attracted contractors who sought logs for railroad ties, and in April 1877, Harrison a. Thomas of Smithfield led a small company of men up the river past Mapleton to secure logs...
Franklin is located on Highway 91 just across the Utah border on the southern end of Franklin County. It was first called Green Meadows because of the abundant vegetation in the area. Later the name was changed to honor LDS apostle Franklin D. Richards who visited the area frequently after it was founded. It is the only town in the United States named Franklin that is not named after Benjamin Franklin...
Settled in 1871 as settlers continued to come further north. This new northern country was a large flat plateau above the river with low rolling hills, covered with a wilderness of grass and wild hay, ideal for grazing the cattle and horses...
Weston
Weston is located on Highway 34, the first town east of the Idaho Utah border on Highway 34, or the Westside Highway. Two theories exist about the name of the town. Some say it was named after Mary Ann Weston Maughan, wife of the first presiding elder, John Maughan. Others maintain that it was named West Town, as it was the first town on the west side of the valley, then later shortened to Weston...
The first settlers on the present site of Dayton were Joseph Chadwick, Peter Poole, Robert Taylor, Tom Parrot (?) and later Steven Callan and Mr. Wickham joined them. The first name of the town was Chadwick, as Joseph Chadwick was the first settler there. They called their settlement Five Mile because it was five miles to Weston on the south and five miles to Clifton on the north. After a while, the name was changed to Chadville in deference to the first settler, Joseph Chadwick. It was possible in 1881 that the name was changed to Dayton. The Oregon Short Line Railroad came through the settlement in 1890...
Mink Creek (pronounced “Crick”) received its name from the early settlers because of the abundance of creeks and the many mink which housed themselves along the banks...
Preston
Located on the flat, at the junction of Highways 91 and 36 is the county seat of Franklin County: Preston, Idaho. Prior to 1881, the flat was known as “Worm Creek” [pronounced “crick”]. Those that settled this area were predominantly Mormon and their leadership came from the LDS Church President in Salt Lake City, Utah. The name Preston was chosen for the area in the following manner as recorded by Baltzer Peterson...
Cleveland
Cleveland
Bearing right at the fork in the road onto Highway 34-36 and continuing five miles north of Preston, one will come down a steep hill into the Riverdale valley. Originally, Riverdale was named “Hansen’s Bottom” for Emilius Hansen. Currently, the community is called Riverdale after the Bear River, which snakes its way across the valley floor for close to ten miles...
First known as Rushville, the settlement of Clifton was begun in 1865 by a small company of Latter-Day Saints (Mormons) who left Franklin, Idaho in search of a place suitable for permanent homes. Attracted by the beauty of the mountains and acres and acres of meadowland fed by the streams flowing from the mountains, the meadows in Round Valley proved of untold value to them because their livelihood depended mainly on livestock...
Treasureton is located approximately 10 miles from Preston on the extreme northern end of Cache Valley on Highway 34. The town was named after early settler William Treasure, who in 1881 became the first postmaster when a post office was established on his land. Another story is told how an early visitor coming into Treasureton on the Oxford road, looked up to see the moon rising over the ridge of Rocky Peak that appeared close enough to touch, and exclaimed, “Well, this should be ‘Treasureton’—we’re up to the moon.”
There are a number of ghost towns located throughout Franklin County.
Located south of Preston, Fairview received it's name because on a clear day the first settlers had a wonderful view of the surrounding country and could see the LDS Logan Temple... The first settlers were sheep and cattle herders and came to the area winter of 1869...
Oxford is a dis-incorporated village located north of Clifton on the northernmost edge of the west side of Cache Valley. First called Round Valley, the origin of the name of Oxford is not known. It has been part of Oneida, Bannock and Franklin counties. Despite its small size, Oxford has “one of the most fascinating tales in Cache Valley history."
West of Preston, on the plateau above Bear River between Dayton and Weston were the farming communities of Lincoln and Roosevelt... Eventually the names Lincoln and Roosevelt were dropped as designations for the separate areas, and Linrose was used... The first settler in the community was James Frew, who left Franklin, crossed the sand ridge where Preston now is, forded the Bear River and settled just below the hill... For many years these families lived there and knew the hardships and privations of pioneer life. Butter, eggs, or anything they had to sell was taken to Franklin, Dayton, or Weston...
Egypt is the area along the Worm Creek on the west, the foothills on the east, Glendale on the north, and Whitney on the south. Edward Clayton appropriately named the area Egypt after the biblical Egypt which was a storehouse of grain during a time of famine...
First known as "Worm Creek," Glendale is an unincorporated farming community. The first settlers came from Denmark, Englane, Norway and the southern States. Some came for religious reasons, but for the most part they came to better their financial conditions for rearing their families...