Am.F. home put on historic registry

AMERICAN FORK — James Chipman was a merchant, banker and builder in the early days of American Fork. He built many of the town's first businesses and served as mayor in 1893.

His name belongs to the ages — and now, so does his house.

The first home Chipman built in American Fork at 121 W. Main is one of four sites that has been added to the city's historic registry, American Fork Councilwoman Juel Belmont announced at a recent City Council meeting.

"(Chipman) was into everything," Belmont said. "He had a big mercantile company and worked in lumber, coal and machinery. He was quite the merchant, and he built a great deal of downtown American Fork."

Chipman's Lumber Yard at 17 N. Merchant St. was also added to the registry, as were the Ben Bates Blacksmith shop at 66 W. Main, now home to The Yogurt Parlor, and the Salt Lake and Utah Railroad Depot at 65 W. Main, now Bradshaw Auto Parts.

Belmont is also a member of the American Fork Historic Preservation Committee, the group that researches the history of potential historical sites and registers them. She said the committee researches four sites per year with the help of outside consultants.

The committee also purchases plaques for designated sites and sponsors restoration projects.

Now that these sites have been researched and documented as historically significant, they are eligible to be enrolled on the national registry of historic sites.

"There's a huge benefit to the owners of these buildings," Belmont said. "They can do the plumbing, or whatever else needs to be done, and save 20 percent of the cost."

Other grants, tax credits and refinance options are also available to owners of sites listed on the national registry. Sites must be approved first at the state level, then the national, but Belmont said the hard part is already done.

"We've already done the work and research," she said. "The people that own these buildings now have to apply for the national registry."

American Fork has 12 sites on the national registry at present. The town's registry, however, is much larger.

"I'm thinking there must be 100 (sites) or more," Belmont said.

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E-mail: jtwitchell@desnews.com