Capitol Reef

 

Torrey, Utah is made up of about fifty families, many of whom are direct descendants of the Scandinavian and British Isle pioneers who settled in this area in the 1880s. This place was originally named Youngtown, after LDS apostle John Willard Young. For some reason the name was rejected when the town applied for a post office, and it became Torrey instead. No one really knows where this name came from, but prevailing opinion leans toward Jay L. Torrey. Torrey served in the Wyoming legislature when it created three volunteer cowboy cavalry regiments. Torrey became colonel of the second regiment, the “Rocky Mountain Riders.” Don’t feel bad if you’ve never heard of them. They never actually saw any action. The only regiment that did was the first, the “Rough Riders.” Torrey still has its original one-room, log-built school/meeting house, built in 1898. Their 1914 brick schoolhouse is also still standing. Today it serves as a posh bed and breakfast.