1882 Pioneer of Granger: Frederick Baker Eldredge’s Farm and Family
Just an note: Father and son shared the same proud name — Frederick Baker Eldredge and his son Frederick Elnathan Eldredge — their middle names help us tell these two outstanding pioneers and community leaders apart
Frederick Baker Eldredge (1845–1909): Mayflower Blood, Utah Pioneer, Builder of Granger
Frederick Baker Eldredge was born on November 17, 1845, in Dennis, Barnstable County, Massachusetts. He was the third son of Elnathan Eldredge, a seasoned sea captain who sailed the Atlantic for years, and Ruth Baker, a schoolteacher from Harwich, Massachusetts. Through both his parents, Frederick descended from some of America’s earliest Pilgrim settlers — William White, Elder William Brewster, and Stephen Hopkins, all passengers on the Mayflower who landed at Plymouth Rock in 1620.
In 1846, Mormon missionaries found their way to the Eldredge family in Massachusetts. Elnathan and Ruth, driven by the same religious conviction that once pushed their Pilgrim ancestors to new shores, accepted the restored gospel and were baptized into The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. They joined the gathering of Saints preparing to make the perilous trek west.
In early 1847, the Eldredges — with little Frederick just a year and a half old — left Massachusetts for Winter Quarters on the Missouri River. From there, they joined John Nebeker’s ten, George B. Wallace’s fifty, and Abraham O. Smoot’s hundred in the historic migration that brought them to the Salt Lake Valley on September 26, 1847. When their creaking wagons descended Emigration Canyon into the dusty desert plain, Ruth Baker Eldredge dropped to her knees and, through tears of gratitude, prayed, “This is the place—our journey is ended.”
Frederick’s early childhood was steeped in the harsh reality of pioneer life. The family spent their first year and a half living in the old Mormon Fort — a crude but blessed refuge. He witnessed the cricket plague of 1848 and the miracle of the gulls that saved the valley’s precious crops.
As a boy, Frederick grew strong working alongside his father. He helped dig irrigation ditches, plowed, sowed, and harvested. He planted shade trees that would one day grace parts of early Salt Lake City — the stately trees that once stood around West High School were planted by his father, Elnathan, with young Frederick’s help. He spent high water seasons laboring in City Creek Canyon to keep floodwaters from washing away homes and fields.
Though his formal schooling was brief due to pioneer hardships, his mother Ruth — well educated herself — taught her children at home. Nature was also his classroom: tending cattle, gathering timber, and roaming the hills taught him the names of native plants, birds, and animals. Friends remembered his cheerful spirit, kindness to animals, and playful sense of humor. He could throw a stone with uncanny accuracy — and, being left-handed, often astonished his brothers by hitting any mark they dared him to.
On January 4, 1869, Frederick Baker Eldredge married Almira Jane Nebeker, daughter of John Nebeker and Lurena Fitzgerald — fellow pioneers who had crossed the plains in the same company. The two families had been steadfast friends from Winter Quarters to the Salt Lake Valley. After their marriage, the young couple first settled in Salt Lake City, where their first child, Frederick Elnathan Eldredge, was born that same year.
In 1870, the family moved north to Laketown, on the shores of Bear Lake, Utah. For twelve years, Frederick helped pioneer that community, known for his honesty, work ethic, and willingness to take on civic responsibilities. Five more children were born during their Bear Lake years: Minnie, Delbert, Ashton Nebeker, William N., and Rosella.
In the fall of 1882, seeking better prospects for farming and family life, the Eldredges returned by wagon team to the Salt Lake Valley and purchased land in Granger. At first, they lived in Salt Lake City while Frederick and his sons commuted back and forth to their farm near today’s 48th West and 41st South. Eventually, he built a simple frame house and moved his family to Granger permanently..
Frederick took great pride in transforming his Granger property into a productive and beautiful farmstead. He planted shade trees, flowering locusts, and tended a neat lawn that softened the edges of their small frame home. Just east and north of the house, he built up an orchard with many kinds of fruit trees—apples, peaches, plums, pears, and cherries—ensuring his family had fresh fruit every season. He also cultivated a fine vegetable garden and was especially known for raising excellent melons that were the pride of the neighborhood.
His Granger farm produced alfalfa, wheat, oats, barley, and potatoes, and he worked hard to make the once-barren land “blossom as the rose.” The farm wasn’t just a source of food but a gathering place where neighbors and children often benefitted from his kindness.
One night, some local boys tried to sneak into his melon patch to help themselves. Unseen by them, Frederick quietly joined them in their search for ripe melons. When they had gathered a few good ones, he surprised them by saying, “Well, now that we have some fine ones, let’s go up to the house and eat them.” This simple act turned a childhood prank into a memory of generosity and neighborly goodwill—perfectly capturing his kind spirit.
Through good harvests and hardships alike, Frederick Baker Eldredge’s Granger farm was his pride. It stood as proof of his pioneer endurance, his skill with the soil, and his wish to provide a safe, happy home for his wife and children. His work turned desert soil into a fruitful homestead, leaving a legacy of hard work, honesty, and hospitality that the community long remembered.
A dedicated church member, Frederick served as assistant superintendent of the Granger Ward Sunday School, helping teach children the gospel for many years. He was ordained a High Priest in 1907 by William Asper. He also served the community as deputy county assessor under Leonard G. Hardy, road supervisor for eight years, and as school board trustee for over a decade. When Utah women gained the right to vote, he walked door-to-door registering new women voters in Granger, just as he had once canvassed tax rolls for the assessor.
Neighbors knew him for his unwavering honesty. Once, after agreeing on a hay price with a customer, he honored the deal even when the market price doubled — often losing money rather than breaking his word. His kindness extended quietly to the needy: many widows later told stories of how sacks of potatoes, apples, or flour would appear at their doors, left by Frederick’s unseen hand.
He suffered two serious accidents in his later years — a cow jerked a rope while he tied a sailor’s knot, pulling his thumb off and tearing the sinew to his elbow. Later, a pitchfork injury while loading hay weakened his health. In 1909, after a paralytic stroke, Frederick Baker Eldredge passed away on July 23, 1909, at the home of his daughter Minnie in Granger. He was laid to rest in Taylorsville Cemetery, near the land he had helped settle and cultivate from raw desert to blossoming farm fields.
When his affairs were settled, it was found he did not owe a cent to anyone. His word and handshake had always been enough. He left behind his beloved Almira Jane and their ten children: Frederick Elnathan, Minnie, Delbert, Ashton Nebeker, William N., Rosella Stocks, Laura, Lurena, Elias Asahel, and Leone Almira.
Frederick Baker Eldredge’s story is one of quiet heroism — an unassuming pioneer who crossed a continent in swaddling clothes and spent his life turning barren ground into green fields, planting trees, building schools, teaching children, and living by the honest measure of his word. Like his Mayflower ancestors before him, he left behind no treasure but a priceless legacy: faith, courage, decency, and a name that meant trust to all who knew him.
