The valley was created by a prehistoric river, which flowed as a tributary into the main pool of ancient
Lake Bonneville, emerging east of present-day
Brigham City. The western or lower mouth of Box Elder Canyon is located approximately north of
Salt Lake City, Utah, via
Interstate 15 and US 91. The joint routes of US 89 / US 91 join together at 1100 South Main Street to the west and enter Box Elder Canyon east of downtown Brigham City. In addition to US 89 / US 91, Box Elder Canyon also contains Box Elder Creek, which flows westward from
Mantua Reservoir, a moderately-sized water impoundment created in 1961 through the construction of an earthen-fill dam at the upper mouth of the canyon, adjacent to the small farming community of
Mantua (locally pronounced "man-uh-way"). From Mantua, US‑89/US‑91 enters Dry Canyon for before the combined routes reach their apex at Sardine Summit (). From there, the highway enters a mountain valley known as Dry Lake before traversing Wellsville Canyon (popularly but incorrectly called "Sardine Canyon") before entering the
Cache Valley at
Wellsville. ==See also==