In the beginning…
Through the Homestead Act of 1862, Lillian (Williamson) and her husband George E. Gammon, homesteaded the family farm in 1909. This meant that they agreed to take on 2 80 acre parcels, develop the land for agriculture and keep it within the family for a 15 years and the deed to the property would be theirs. This was no small feat because at this time the Sunnyslope valley was basically high-dessert ground covered in sage brush. Lilly and her husband had to clear the land and build. They had no irrigation or well at the time and water was hauled from the Snake River by wagon to water the livestock and to nurture the poplar trees surrounding their house. You can see one of the baby trees in the picture of Lilly in front of the homestead house. Today, over a hundred years later, two of these trees are still standing.