The Ghosts of Camp Floyd
and Fairfield

A Real Ghost Town?

So why call this page the Ghosts of Camp Floyd and Fairfield? So much has been written about the coming of Johnston’s Army and the Utah War … even on my previous page about Camp Floyd/Stagecoach Inn State Park and Museum … that it is probably redundant to give too much historic detail here. Nonetheless, the history of a town is what determines whether we can classify it as a Utah ghost town.

I have written multiple pages about Ghost Towns in Utah and this is one more in that series. The real story about this area starts when President James Buchanan sent a large number of troops … 3,000 or more men … to the Utah Territory to put down a supposed Mormon rebellion in 1857.

Some historians point to the bigger problems of slavery and the rumblings of southern states wanting to exit the Union as being what Buchanan was really trying to divert attention from. Some claim that the perceived target of this focus … Mormon polygamy … was a smokescreen.

The troops were under the command of Col. (later General) Albert S. Johnston. As they made their way through Wyoming, there was some non-fatal harassment by members of the “Mormon Militia” that was more of the guerilla variety.

This would be the “Mormon War” as it is called. The force eventually entered the Utah Territory the next spring and settled in Cedar Valley 35 miles southwest of Salt Lake City.

A fellow by the name of Amos Fielding had scouted out this area five years earlier and had noted there were several springs in the valley that produced good meadowland. In 1855, three Carson brothers and several other families started a small town near the largest of the springs.

The Founding of Fairfield and the Rise of Camp Floyd

The settlers named it Fairfield for its pleasant surroundings and in honor of Amos Fielding, an early Mormon leader. They built a few homes and a stone fort between 1856 and 1857.

It was right beside this settlement where Colonel Johnston decided to build his fort. He named it Camp Floyd in honor of Secretary of War John B. Floyd. The Army’s presence eventually turned into a mixed blessing for the local Mormon population.

They provided most of the workmen required to build the fort. The project kept many of them employed while the required stone and lumber supplies were all provided by Mormon-owned reserves.

The fort eventually had 300-400 buildings so many artisans were kept busy and employed. Consequently, with the resulting commerce as a result of the Army presence, many of the local Mormons also benefitted economically.

One of the town’s founders, John Carson, saw his opportunity and built a good-sized inn. He used it to house his own family but also offered it as accommodations for notable visitors.

General Johnston used this inn as his temporary headquarters also. This inn later became the first major station for the Overland Stage line and the Pony Express west of Salt Lake City.

Fairfield’s Wild Days: Saloons, Gambling and Gunplay

Like the towns that sprung up around the mining developments, the fort attracted hundreds … and eventually thousands … of camp followers all with the intent of appropriating as much of the soldiers’ money as possible. It wasn’t long before the quiet Mormon town had transformed into a bustling, wild-west, raucous boomtown replete with 12 saloons, gambling halls, prostitutes and the requisite gunslingers.

Shootings became a common occurrence in and around the town. It developed all the characteristics … not all of them positive … of many of the mining towns that had sprung up all over Utah and the west.

By 1859-1860, the population of the town and fort exceeded 7,000. The town became the third largest in Utah behind only Salt Lake City and Provo. The fort became the largest military installation in the United States and territories.

Transition and the End of Camp Floyd

Allegedly, the ongoing reason for the Army remaining was to help keep the stage and express trails open and the Indians under control. It was apparent to all that they were also there to keep their eye on the Mormons.

Despite numerous incidents between the soldiers and the local Mormons, the Utah economy and especially the Fairfield area benefited greatly from the military presence and the accompanying human leeches.

Ironically, in 1860, Colonel Philip St. Edward Cooke, who had commanded the Mormon Battalion in 1846, took over from General Johnston at Camp Floyd. As soldiers began to be pulled back east due to trouble simmering in the southern states, he began to cut back on supplies and buildings.

The local population was able to pick up equipment, wagons, animals, clothing and other supplies at bargain prices. Originally purchased for over $4 million, the assets were sold off for around $100,000.

Cooke changed the name of the camp to Fort Crittenden in honor of Kentucky senator John Crittenden. Secretary Floyd, along with General Johnston, had switched their allegiance to the Confederacy. In May 1861, the Pony Express delivered the order to abandon the fort and return to Fort Leavenworth in Kansas.

A Ghost Town is Born

The fort was demolished in less than two months. They tore down all the structures and destroyed all the buildings that couldn’t be sold. One of the remaining buildings was the Commissary which now houses the Commissary/Museum. It was sold to the Beardshall family who relocated it to its current site and used it as their home.

By the end of 1861, the town was left with only its original settlers … 15-18 families. It had truly become a “ghost town.” The leftover stone from the buildings and from the wall of the cemetery were removed over the years for house construction in Fairfield and Lehi 20 miles east.

So, after all that, the only things remaining from the military presence were the Commissary building (mentioned above) and the cemetery. Of course, John Carson’s Stagecoach Inn remained and sits fully restored today on the Camp Floyd/Stagecoach Inn State Park and Museum grounds. A shorter iron fence now surrounds the grassy, well-maintained cemetery.

As of 2023, 157 people lived in Fairfield. The town is located on State Highway 73 twenty miles west of Lehi. Two miles north of Fairfield, the old grade of the Salt Lake and Western Railroad crosses the highway. This is where the railroad snaked up the canyon towards the mining towns of Mercur and Manning.

Haunted History and Paranormal Tales

To commemorate the history of the Camp Floyd/Fairfield area, the Camp Floyd/Stagecoach Inn State Park and Museum was established in 1964. As explained earlier, Camp Floyd was once the largest military installation in the United States housing over 3,500 troops.

The camp's rapid expansion brought with it a wild and crazy boomtown including a notorious red-light district known as "Frogtown." It was bursting with saloons, gambling halls and brothels similar to the mining towns of the era.

The area became notorious for numerous violent incidents including murders and unexplained deaths. “A lot murders” says the guy in the video below. This has contributed to some of the camp’s modern reputation for paranormal activity. A true “ghost town?”

The Ghosts of Camp Floyd and Fairfield?

To go along with its description as a ghost town, visitors and staff at the park have reported various paranormal occurrences over the years. Not having heard about these things prior to our visit, we walked through the Inn by ourselves without thinking much about it.

Nonetheless, it seemed eerie as we walked from room to room. In one of the rooms, I noticed what looked like the remains of a shotgun blast in the wall. Come to find out, that’s exactly what it was. Once again, this was before I learned about these paranormal occurrences:

• Apparitions and Orbs: Photographs taken during tours have captured unexplained orbs and misty figures particularly around the Stagecoach Inn and the cemetery. We walked through the Inn and around the cemetery on a beautiful sunny day and before I learned about some of this stuff.
• Unusual Sounds and Smells: Guests have reported hearing disembodied voices and footsteps as well as smelling scents like perfume, cigars and gunpowder with no identifiable source.
• Colored “ribbons” floating through the air.
• Physical Manifestations: Instances of the rocking chair in the Inn … an original piece … moving on their own. Sudden drops in temperature have been noted which only adds to the site's eerie ambiance.
• The park even holds an event called the "Ghosts of Camp Floyd."

The Ghosts of Camp Floyd Event

This event offers participants a chance to engage in a guided paranormal investigation. Attendees are encouraged to bring their own equipment such as cameras and audio recorders to capture potential supernatural phenomena. The evening includes a briefing on investigative techniques followed by an exploration of the park's historic buildings and cemetery.

For more information or to participate in the next "Ghosts of Camp Floyd" event, visitors can contact the park directly:

Camp Floyd/Stagecoach Inn State Park and Museum
18035 West 1540 North
Fairfield, Utah 84013
Phone: (801) 768-8932
Website: https://stateparks.utah.gov/parks/camp-floyd/

Whether you're a history buff or a seeker of the supernatural, Camp Floyd offers a unique glimpse into Utah's past and its enduring mysteries.

For a visual exploration of Fairfield Utah’s haunted history and if you want the hair on your neck to stand up maybe just a little, you might find this video insightful:

Ghostly Whispers: Unearthing Camp Floyd's eerie past

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