Garrison, Utah

Location: 8 miles east of Baker, Nevada just across the Utah border.

The first settlers in the area that would later become known as Garrison were youngsters. Daniel A. Gonder, the first permanent settler in Snake Valley, was only 19 when he arrived in 1861 and decided to settle on Snake Creek. Willard Burbank was only 17 when he decided to settle in Burbank Meadows. They chose land near creeks that could be used for irrigation. Ike Gandy came to Snake Valley before he was 20 and George Samuel Robison arrived when he was only 13. It was only through sheer grit that these young men would carve out a living and become well-known family names in the valley.

Garrison was named for Emma D. Garrison who was the first postmaster. The first post office was established December 2, 1986.

In 1922, Otto Meek (who was owner of the Baker Ranch at that time) convinced his friend who was a Hollywood film director to use Snake Valley as the set for a movie about pioneers crossing the plains. The flat benchland just south of Garrison was selected as the site for filming. Pruess Lake was to represent the North Platte River. Nearly everyone in the Valley was hired to work on the set. This was the first full-length movie ever made and it became a classic. It was called "The Covered Wagon" and it was filmed by Paramount Pictures.

In the 1970s, Garrison ranchers formed an organization that would later become Mt. Wheeler Power. They were instrumental in getting a loan from the Rural Electrification Administration to bring electricity to rural areas throughout White Pine County.

Sources: "Pioneers of Snake Valley" by Boyd E. Quate