Bushnell Hospital/Intermountain School Interpretive Trail

With the help of local donations, Utah State University (USU) Brigham City created an interpretive trail to recognize the history around its campus. The Bushnell Hospital/Intermountain School Interpretive trail stretches three-quarters of a mile, starting at 200 east and 1000 south. The trail is paved for walking or riding and open to the public.

“A lot of work has gone into making this trail, both in construction and in historical archival research,” said Dan Black, USU Brigham City’s associate vice president. “There is plenty more to come, but there has been sufficient progress made for families to enjoy the trail.”

Preliminary signs are now in place, but in the future, permanent signs detailing the history of the land will be spread throughout the trail. For example, signs will share how the military’s Bushnell Hospital opened during World War II in 1944, then its campus was adapted to become the Intermountain Indian School (IIS) from 1950-1984. QR codes will be placed on the permanent signs, linking phones to a comprehensive digital exhibit of photos and documents. USU Brigham City is working with local researchers and historians to help create the signage, and USU Special Collections is creating the digital exhibit.

Tom Lee, former director of academic programs for Statewide Campuses and former USU Brigham City executive director, stated an immense amount of coordination and planning went into the trail.

“We worked with Rob Bishop’s office to gain access to vital government archives, we met with the State Historical Preservation Office to ensure we properly dealt with old buildings, and hundreds of hours are going into the signage and digital exhibit,” he shared. “I’m sure the public will enjoy the new trail and better appreciate Brigham City’s history.”

More landscaping will be planted over the next few years, trail activities for children installed, a courtyard constructed near the remaining IIS building, and the digital exhibit will continue developing.

Source:  Wikipedia 2021 Brigham City, UT, Intermountain Indian School; bcutah.org2021, edited by USU staff.