William N. Fife
William N. Fife was the first professional architect in Weber County, Utah. He is the creative mind behind the original Ogden Tabernacle, the Weber Court House, and the Ogden Central School. Although he did not devote much of his time to his architecture, his work was of high quality.
He was born on October 16, 1831, in Kincardine, Perthshire, Scotland. He apprenticed for an architect and builder for seven years and afterward took work in Glasgow. He worked less than a year before heading to Melbourne, Australia—his uncle Thomas Fife had requested him to go into the building business with him. However, he went to Manchester instead, with the encouragement of his grandmother. He took lodging at a home where Latter-day Saint missionaries were lodging. It was a Conference house, in today’s terms a mission home, and he converted to the gospel. Instead of continuing to Australia, he went to Utah, arriving on October 20, 1853.
He landed a job with Heber C. Kimball and worked for him for 18 months in his building business.
In 1856, Fife was called to move to Ogden to build the tabernacle there. In addition to designing the building, he also built much of it, during which time he fell from a scaffold sixty feet above ground but recovered after he was given a priesthood blessing.
Other demands took him away from his architecture business, which he turned over to his gifted son W. W. Fife. He participated in the Echo Canyon Indian War and other military needs and became a captain.
He contracted with the government to construct buildings at Camp Floyd. He also built a tannery, stables (for Wells Fargo), and a few buildings in Salt Lake.
In April 1862, he was appointed city marshal of Ogden and served several terms. He was also Weber County coroner, pound keeper, president of the dramatic association, and organized the first Ogden Valley militia. He was made Colonel of Infantry in 1866 by Ulysses S. Grant. He also built several miles of the Central Pacific railroad between Promontory and Ogden.
When smallpox was brought into Ogden in May 1870, he personally disinfected every afflicted house, built a shelter for the sick, provided the 89 victims with food, supplies, and medicine for three months.
Fife also served as a missionary for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints to his native Scotland. He also went to explore parts of Arizona and Mexico for President Heber J. Grant. His first wife, Diana, was killed there in 1882. He returned to Ogden and died on October 21, 1915.
He also married Phebe Abbott Brown in 1866 and Cynthia Abbott in 1867.
