Travel back in time with a tour of Snowflake’s historic pioneer homes 

SNOWFLAKE, Ariz. — In the heart of this small central-Arizona town is Heritage Inn, a perfect Victorian-style getaway, remodeled yet still perfectly preserved, frozen in the late 19th century.

During a fall visit, mature trees overflowing with apples hang over the property at the corner of Main and 2nd Street. Roses envelop the other side of the inn.

The original owner of this home was Osmer D. Flake, the sixth child of William Morgan Flake, the founder of the town of Snowflake.

The younger Flake, born in Beaver, Utah, moved out of state with his family in 1877, when President Brigham Young of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints called on the older Flake to start a settlement in northern Arizona.

The property remained a private residence for more than 100 years, passed down from generation to generation until 2000, when it was sold to locals Dean and Sandra Porter. They transformed the home into a bed-and-breakfast while restoring the pioneer-era decor and antiques. The Heritage Inn has since found new owners.

The inn’s Lucy Hanna Flake Room, now known as the Sunflower Spot, is reportedly the best, as Kirsten Dunst can attest: The “Spider-Man” actress reportedly stayed here during a cross-country road trip years ago.

Visitors can rent the three-bedroom copper house, or one of the 12 suites, and the rates range from $120 to $160 a night.

The Heritage Inn isn’t the only place in the region that reflects the town’s Latter-day Saint heritage. It is the third home on a two-hour-long walking tour of Snowflake’s pioneer history.

There are more than 100 historic homes in Snowflake, and 45 of those are listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

Walking past the 14 tour-friendly homes, it’s hard not to imagine the daily lives of the people who once lived here.

The making of Snowflake

This tour starts with the Stinson Museum, named after James Stinson, who settled the valley around 1870. At the time, he supplied cattle to the Western military outposts. William Flake offered to buy his ranch and Stinson asked $12,000 for it. The two men eventually struck a deal where Flake agreed to pay a $500 down payment and the rest in livestock over three years.

Stinson told Flake, “There’s just enough water here for this small farm. If you will keep the place for your family alone, you’ll have a fine place, but if you let anyone else in, you will all starve.” But Flake reassured the rancher that when the church members come, “the water will increase.” The rains came shortly after Flake brought his family and others to the valley.

The tour also includes an accurate description of Snowflake from Flake’s wife Lucy when she first saw it. She talks about fresh grass and a field full of corn and barley, as well as cottonwood trees and willows alongside Silver Creek.

After more families settled, church apostle Erastus Snow, responsible for overseeing new settlements, met Flake and together they named the town Snowflake after both of their last names.

The home of Flake’s eldest son, James Madison Flake, is on the same block as the Stinson Museum.

Ralph Ramsay, the man who carved the Eagle Gate in downtown Salt Lake City, a monument which forms an arch across State Street, also carved the life-sized horse head in James Flake’s home.

The Flake family’s eldest son served his mission in England and built a home inspired by his time abroad, in Victorian style, in 1895. The home with 16 rooms, spread across three stories, was affectionately called “The Big House” by the Flake family. Flake shared nine children with his first wife, Nancy Hall, who died before the home was built, and 15 children with his second wife, Martha Smith.

“That was a big house for that time. It’s three floors, bedrooms, closets, a fireplace in every room. It’s beautiful,” said Roma Lee Hiatt, president of the Snowflake Heritage Foundation.

Hiatt has deep ancestral roots in Snowflake. “I grew up here. My great-grandfather was the first bishop,” she said.

Her other set of great-grandparents were among the early pioneers. She lives not too far from the Flake home, and even though she said her home “doesn’t have a cool facade” like other preserved properties, it does have a unique story of its own: it was built by two brothers who evenly divided their abode up to the centimeter, she told the Deseret News.

Hiatt said the Snowflake Historical Society is gearing up for something big.

“We will be celebrating ‘Silver Creek Valley’s Sesquicentennial’ in 2028 and will be working with the Taylor Heritage Foundation as we plan,” she said. That marks a century and a half since pioneers came to Snowflake.

Snowflake offers recreation and history

Aside from the Heritage Inn, the Flake Bros. Store is also on Main Street. It was built by the two pioneer Flake brothers, and the church. The latter is the heart of the town, which is laid out on a grid system, like so much of Utah, inspired by Brigham Young’s “City of Zion” plan.

Other notable spots on the tour include the Tithing Home, the Snowflake Stake Academy and the Latter-day Saint Social Hall.

Between them sit two known historic homes, one of them owned John A. Freeman. This 19th-century Gothic Revival style property is known as Snowflake’s “Gingerbread House.” It contains original antiques, toys and textiles.

Another house worth seeing is the Colonial Revival home, built in 1906. It belonged to Jesse W. Smith, one of southern Utah and northern Arizona’s most prominent pioneers. Smith was the youngest cousin of the church founder Joseph Smith.

Aside from the historic homes, visitors can also hike the White Mountain trails or explore Fool Hallow Lake.

About 15 minutes down the road is Show Low, a town much smaller than Snowflake. It gets its name from a card game between early settlers Corydon Cooley and Marion Clark.

As the legend goes, Cooley said, “If you can show low, you win” — not just the game, but control over the ranch. Cooley turned a deuce of clubs and won.

Latter-day Saint pioneers did not settle this town; the likes of William Flake bought the Cooley ranch and developed the region’s agriculture and ranching alongside Native Americans.

The town installed a statue of Cooley and Clark playing the historic card game, commemorating the story behind the town’s name, at the Festival Marketplace. Right behind it is the Latter-day Saint meetinghouse, signifying the interwoven history of the early days of Show Low.

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