The first settlers built '' ' Fort Clara ' '' or '' ' Fort Santa Clara ' '' , in the winter of 1855-1856 . In the fall of 1861 , Swiss Mormon colonists arrived at the new settlement , but shortly afterward were victims of the large flood in the Clara River that wiped out the fort and most other buildings , its irrigation dams and ditches , in early in 1862 . This flood was part of the Great Flood of 1862
Great Flood of 1862
Great Flood of 1862
Santa Clara, Utah