Heritage trails: Woodlands in Malad, Idaho

The small town of Malad, Idaho, not far from the northern Utah border, is where my Woodland great-grandparents lived while raising their children a century ago. They moved there from Brigham City in 1915, and the last five of their seven children were born there. Daniel worked for the Stohl furniture company, and moved north to open a new branch of the store (which also sold pianos and supplied funeral needs). The Woodlands moved away in the early 1930s, as the Depression caused Dan to change careers.

Daniel's store building is still there, in the current Thomas Electric building (historical R. T. Owens building), and it made me happy to see that it still sells appliances. Next door was a J C Penney store. Malad has historic plaques on the buildings too, which adds to its charm.

Daniel Woodland, back at his store

I was happy to see that the local Oneida County library won "Idaho library of the year" this year, because Dan was an early proponent of the Malad library. And then I looked it up and the library was housed in his furniture building back in the day! No wonder!

Nita Woodland Welch was born in Malad in1922, and moved away after fourth grade. She liked to visit her father at the furniture store, as well as the drugstore down the street. Alas, the Dude Ranch Cafe, which is now there, was closed for two weeks so we couldn't try their homemade pies.

Her elementary school is no longer, but we loved attending church at the same Malad Tabernacle the Woodlands knew (and spent a lot of time at, since Dan was in the stake presidency and spoke at hundreds of funerals, and Blanche was busy with MIA leadership). 

It has an arched ceiling, beautiful stained glass, an old pipe organ, and a balcony where we sat. Nita remembered shaking Heber J Grant's hand on the wide staircase entrance when she was a child.

The Woodland home is at 380 N Main, on a curve of the street. Its back overlooks the fields and Deep Creek where Nita played, and the big M on the mountain that she aspired to climb. The house has seen better days, and doesn't look much like its original photos.

Blanche

M for Malad on the mountain

photo of house from a century ago, with house now

little Nita

Jim reported from his visit in 2024: "Stopped in Malad to find the house my mother lived in from 1922 to about 1930.  The house is at 380 N. Main Street, Malad.  The Williams family bought it in 1958. It’s been fixed up with siding, but you can still see the rock work on the rear foundation, and the garage to the north is still slowly falling down. The lady of the house was very nice and let us in to see the interior, which of course is all different now."

It was a delight to explore this town with its wide streets, and sagebrush and sunflower coated hills, and imagine the Woodlands settling here. One farm leading into town from the north has hundreds of old boots lining every fencepost for many acres, lots of personality. I wish I'd visited with GMW to hear her stories, but many are captured in her book (which I fortunately brought along to read at the right places!). If you go, enjoy the treats at nearby Ganache Gelato!