Ira N. Hinckley

Ira Nathaniel Hinckley was an early leader of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Beginning in 1867, he supervised the construction and maintenance of Cove Fort, which served as a fortification for travelers between St. George, Utah, and Salt Lake City, Utah, as well as a halfway point between Fillmore—then the state capital—and Beaver, Utah. He had been living in Coalville, Utah, at the time of Brigham Young’s call serve a mission to the Cove Fort area. His brother, Arza, and skilled workmen who lived nearby helped him. Arza moved his family to Cove Fort in 1877 and lived there until 1882. The Hinckleys lived there until the development of the railroad and more advanced forms of communication ended the need for the waystation.[1] In the early 1890s, the Church leased it and then later sold it.

Hinckley was born on October 30, 1828, in Canada, and was baptized in 1844. His son, Alonzo A. Hinckley served as an apostle of the Church of Jesus Christ. His grandson, Gordon B. Hinckley served as fifteenth president of the Church.

Ira Hinckley practiced plural marriage. He had 21 children with four wives. He died on April 10, 1904, in Provo, Utah.

In 1891, the town of Bloomington, Utah, was renamed Hinckley in Ira’s honor.