Just to the north of Granger/Hunter: El Dorado: A Town Built on Hope and Rails

Clear History of El Dorado — The Dream of a Model Suburb (1888–1895)

In November 1888, C.F. Von Brunck, founder of El Dorado, discovered a stretch of land about five miles west of Salt Lake City that he believed was perfect for building a thriving town. Impressed by the views, the fertile soil, and its location near the Utah & Nevada Railway, Von Brunck quickly purchased the land through the El Dorado Land and Water Company and put town lots on the market.

From the start, El Dorado was promoted as an affordable, practical alternative to the expensive lots in the city. Lots were sold at low prices — between $30 and $100 each — on easy monthly payments, with the promise that new buyers would actually live there, build homes, and help the community grow. One unique incentive was that every block would include a sturdy adobe-brick house worth about $500, which lucky lot owners could draw by chance, or receive the value in cash to build their own.

El Dorado’s promoters took pride in building real houses, not just selling empty land. The plan included wide streets watered by canals from the Jordan River, as well as fresh water from 95-foot-deep artesian wells that flowed year-round. A park named Central Park was laid out as the town’s green heart. Local clay deposits made brick and adobe cheaper to produce on-site.

Rail service was a major selling point — daily trains offered quick, reliable travel to Salt Lake City in 15 minutes, or out to Garfield Beach, a popular resort on the Great Salt Lake. The company insisted El Dorado was no “paper town” — work started immediately, not someday in the future.

Promoters envisioned El Dorado as a healthful, beautiful, and prosperous community — perfectly situated between the bustling city and the “Dead Sea of America” (the Great Salt Lake), surrounded by fertile farmland and scenic foothills. They promised buyers clear land titles and easy access to building materials.

For a few years, interest in El Dorado was strong. Lots sold quickly and a handful of homes went up. But despite the optimistic start, nature had other plans. The soil proved too alkaline for easy farming, and irrigation could not overcome the lack of dependable water for crops. By the mid-1890s, the little town’s dream faded, leaving settlers with empty foundations and broken plans.

Today, faint traces of El Dorado can still be found near the modern motorcycle park — a reminder of the hopeful settlers, clever promoters, and the west side’s cycle of big dreams and tough realities.

In 1890, residents like C. Johnson, H.S. Deuble, E. Larsen, H.T. Johnson, H.A. Petit, A.S. Kendall, E. Niesson, Maria C Eliason , Matilda C Jensen ,and H.J. Hayward each purchased lots from the El Dorado Land and Water Company, drawn by the promise of an affordable, well-planned town just outside Salt Lake City. Like so many others, they invested with high hopes of building new homes and better lives in what was promoted as a flourishing, modern suburb with good water, rail connections, and fertile farmland. Though El Dorado’s promise was short-lived, the optimism and faith these settlers brought with them remains part of the westside’s pioneer story — a testament to the dreams that built early communities, even when nature and circumstances made them hard to keep.

1890, a motor line (meaning a small train or self-propelled rail car — like an early streetcar or light railway) was built to connect parts of Salt Lake City with developing communities like El Dorado, Brighton, and Garden City. The “motor” was a passenger car that ran on tracks, similar to the electric streetcars used in Ogden at the time.

The line connected to Salt Lake’s electric streetcar system at Main Street and Seventh South, then ran west and south through areas that did not yet have railroad access. The goal was to open up undeveloped land for new subdivisions — like El Dorado — by making it possible for people to travel easily between downtown Salt Lake City and these new suburbs.

The motor line’s plan was to run hourly trips, with departures from El Dorado on the half-hour and from downtown on the hour. Besides carrying passengers, the company planned to add a stronger motor to haul freight.

So — this was not about cars or buses, but about a passenger railway line, built to boost land sales by offering convenient rail stops directly into new real estate developments like El Dorado.

📍 North boundary: ~2100 South
📍 South boundary: ~Haynes Lake area (it is now drained) 2700 South
📍 West boundaries: from about 5600 West

📍 East boundaries: from about 4800 West