James Madison Gaylord

James Madison Taylor, better known as Matt Taylor, was an early settler and freighter in southeastern Idaho whose entrepreneurial activities played a central role in the development of what would become Idaho Falls. Little is recorded about his early life or exact date and place of birth, but by the early 1860s he was working as a freighter in the Intermountain West, regularly traveling through the region along the Snake River. As a freighter by trade, he frequently camped along Black Rock Canyon on his way to the Eagle Rock Ferry, choosing the site because the narrow gorge caused the river to flow faster, which in turn meant there were fewer mosquitos at his campsite.

Taylor’s practical experience on the freighting routes led him to recognize the strategic importance of Black Rock Canyon as a potential river crossing. One evening, he measured the width of the canyon by throwing a stone tied to a string across the river and determined that the span was approximately 83 feet (25 meters) wide. Concluding that a bridge was feasible, he sought out suitable construction materials. He located straight timber in Beaver Canyon, about 80 miles (130 kilometers) away, and arranged for these timbers to be transported to the site. Using these timbers, together with scrap iron salvaged from old wagons and from a Missouri River steamboat, he assembled the raw materials necessary to construct a substantial toll bridge over the Snake River.

In 1864 Taylor joined with two business partners to form the Oneida Road, Bridge and Ferry Company, the first corporation organized in what would later become Bonneville County, Idaho. This company purchased the existing Eagle Rock Ferry and, in the fall of that year, established a stage station at the Black Rock Canyon crossing. The station complex included a blacksmith shop, employee housing, a barn, and a store, providing essential services to travelers, freighters, and stage lines moving through the region. Construction of the bridge itself proceeded during the winter months, when the frozen river made it easier to work in the channel and position the structural elements. By May 1865 the bridge was operational as a toll crossing, significantly improving transportation and commerce in southeastern Idaho.

The toll bridge that Taylor built over the Snake River at Black Rock Canyon became the nucleus for subsequent settlement and development. The community that grew up around the crossing and stage station eventually developed into the town of Idaho Falls. Taylor’s bridge provided a reliable and permanent crossing point in a region where river travel and seasonal conditions had previously posed serious obstacles, and it helped to channel trade, migration, and communication through the area. Although the original bridge no longer stands, its historical importance has been recognized locally and regionally as a foundational element in the creation of Idaho Falls and the broader development of the upper Snake River Valley.

In addition to his work as a freighter and bridge builder, Matt Taylor entered public life and participated in the governance of the Idaho Territory. He served in the Territorial Legislature in 1868, reflecting the prominence he had attained as a leading settler and businessman in the region. His legislative service placed him among the early political figures helping to shape laws and institutions in the territory during a formative period, when infrastructure, transportation, and settlement policies were critical to the region’s growth.

Taylor remained active in southeastern Idaho for more than two decades after the completion of his bridge and the establishment of the stage station and associated enterprises. His activities contributed to the economic and civic foundations of the area that would become Idaho Falls and Bonneville County. In 1886 he left the region and moved to Missouri, marking the close of his direct involvement in Idaho’s development. The later details of his life and the date and place of his death are not well documented in surviving records, but his legacy in Idaho endured through the community that grew around his bridge and the transportation corridor he helped to establish.

The historical significance of Matt Taylor’s work continued to be acknowledged long after his departure. Although the original toll bridge was eventually removed as transportation technology and infrastructure advanced, its role in the founding of Idaho Falls remained a point of local pride and commemoration. In 1996 a replica of Taylor’s bridge, erected by the Rotary Club, was dedicated at the site, serving as a physical reminder of his contribution to the settlement and development of southeastern Idaho and preserving his name in the civic memory of the community that emerged from his early enterprise.