Vernal in Uintah County, Utah — The American Mountains (Southwest)

Manfred and Ethel Martin House

Utah Historic Site

Photographed by Jimmy Emerson, September 4, 2025

1. Manfred and Ethel Martin House Marker

Inscription. Constructed in 1912, the Manfred and Ethel Martin House is a 1-1/2 story brick and wood-shingled crosswing-type house on a sandstone foundation with a gabled roof. The house is significant as an early health care facility in Vernal and for its Shingle style architecture. Manfred Martin was an early doctor in Vermal and built this house as a family residence with an attached doctor's office. At the urging of the Socialist Episcopal bishop of Utah, Frank Spencer Spalding, Dr. Martin moved to Vernal during a period of growth and prosperity in Vernal's history when the demand for more medical facilities increased. Manfred was well-known as the doctor who used a little buckskin horse and buggy to visit his patients in Uintah and Duchesne Counties during the early part of the twentieth century. The Martin family continued to own the home until 1971. The Martin house is unconventional in that it employs a late version of the Shingle style of architecture, which was generally found in Utah during the late 1800s. The style is primarily high fashioned with an unusually free form and variable style with several subtypes.

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The choice of such an unusual style for a house in Vernal may have come from the Martin's exposure to the style in the upper Midwest, which is where they were both from. The home retains its historic and architectural integrity and contributes to the history of Vernal and Uintah County. Marker placed in 2006 Division of State History

Erected 2006 by Division of State History.

Topics and series. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Architecture • Religion & Religious Structures • Science & Medicine. In addition, it is included in the Utah Historic Sites (NRHP) series list. A significant historical year for this entry is 1912.

Location. 40° 27.48′ N, 109° 31.729′ W. Marker is in Vernal, Utah, in Uintah County. It is on North Vernal Avenue (National Route 191), on the left when traveling north. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 163 North Vernal Avenue, Vernal UT 84078, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Regionally, this marker is in Utah’s Uinta Basin.

It is also in the American Mountain West

and on the Colorado Plateau.

Globally, it is in North America,

Photographed by Jimmy Emerson, September 4, 2025

2. Manfred and Ethel Martin House Marker

Marker is in a post in the front yard just out of frame.

the Rocky Mountains,

the Western Hemisphere,

the Western World,

and the Anglosphere.

Historically, it finds itself in what was once New Spain

and also Mexico’s Alta California.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker: Cobble Rock Gas Station (about 800 feet away, measured in a direct line); How Far Would You Carry a Brick for Seven Cents? (approx. 0.2 miles away); Where the Dollar has More Cents (approx. 0.2 miles away); Now Playing at the Vernal Theater... (approx. 0.2 miles away); Do Religion and Money Mix? (approx. 0.2 miles away); Parcel Post Bank (approx. 0.2 miles away); Fort Ashley Center (approx. 0.2 miles away); The Bank of Vernal (approx. 0.2 miles away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Vernal.

Credits. This page was last revised on October 15, 2025. It was originally submitted on October 13, 2025, by Jimmy Emerson of Dalton, Georgia. This page has been viewed 71 times since then and 44 times this year. Photos: 1, 2. submitted on October 13, 2025, by Jimmy Emerson of Dalton, Georgia. • Andrew Ruppenstein was the editor who published this page.