Historical Site Markers Placed 

About a year and a half ago at the suggestion of Al Kackley the Caribou Historical Society began working on selecting several sites around Soda Springs to place historical marker plaques. Al suggested the old Coppard Ford Garage as one of the sites and the addition of the Fryar Hotel which was just north of the Coppard building seemed like an obvious second choice as both sites are presently owned by the same businessman. The third site was an even easier choice as it was a replacement for a marker that had been placed at the site of the first ZCMI store located in Soda Springs. That marker had been placed sometime in the 1990’s on the building that houses Jeri Selos’s salon, Haircuts Etc. at 176 S. Main St.  The old marker was plastic and over the years the sun had burned off the lettering. The other two plaques were placed in the north end of the Eastman Drug parking lot and mark the sites of the old Coppard Ford Garage that was remodeled and now houses both Eastman Drug at 110 S. Main St. and the Flower Box at 120 S. Main St. The Fryar Hotel was torn down in 1965 providing room for the drug store parking lot. 

The project was more involved than we first anticipated. Wording for the plaques and pictures had to be sent back and forth to the company we found to make them several time before they were approved, and then an even bigger issue arose when we agreed that the plaque for the Fryars Hotel and the Coppard Garage should be mounted on a stone and placed in the parking lot. Galen Wilson went over to Montpelier and was looking at samples at Bear Lake Stone when Jeff Sager the owner of the business pulled up and told him that he had closed up shop. He then asked Galen what he wanted the stone for and when Galen told him he said he would donate it if we could get it to Soda Springs. We decided to wait out the winter weather before we attempted getting the stone as the plaques weren’t ready and we didn’t know how long that would take. When the weather changed Galen went and picked up the stone and delivered it to his house while we made arrangements to have it placed. We had a target of placing the markers before the July fourth weekend and made it by placing them on Friday the 28th of June.  

The Caribou Historical Society would like to thank Jeri Selos and Irvin Christensen for allowing us to place the markers on their property. Jeff Sagers for his generous donation of the beautiful stone. Kirk Young for his assistance and expertise in placing the stone marker and Al Kackley for all his encouragement and advice.