WASHINGTON COUNTY HISTORICAL SOCIETY (Washington County, Utah)
WASHINGTON COUNTY, UTAH
LOCATION
Washington County is located in the very southwest corner of Utah.
Boundary Changes
HISTORY
The Anasazi Indians inhabited this area from 200 B.C. to around 1300 A.D.Paiute Indians arrived around 1100 to 1200 A.D. and continued until today.
The Dominguez-Escalante exploration group passed through the area in 1776. This was the first contact between Europeans and Paiutes.
The county was formed on March 3, 1852 by an act of the territorial legislature. It was named for George Washington. Harmony, one of the only settlements in the area at that time, was appointed as the first county seat. The first boundaries of Washington County stretched nearly 600 miles - the entire width of the territory. As the territory was settled the county boundaries changed several times and the county seat was later changed to St. George. The county achieved its present shape and size in 1892.
The town of Washington was made the seat of Washington County in 1859 by act of the Territorial Legislature. But on January 14, 1863, St. George was designated as the county seat and has remained so ever since.
Sheriffs of Washington County: Check out the photos
Charles Wakeman Dalton (4/1856-4/1857)
Evan Edwards (9/1857-3/1859)
Harrison Pearce (3/1859-8/1859)
Albert Washington Collins (9/1859-8/1863)
Andrew Smith Gibbons (9/1863-3/1864)
David Henry Cannon Sr. (3/1864-8/1867)
George Henry Crosby (9/1867-8/1869)
Daniel Seegmiller (9/1869-11/1877)
Augustus P. Hardy (11/1877-8/1883)
Samuel Judd Jr. (9/1884-8/1888)
George Brooks Sr. (9/1888-12/1900)
Alex Y. Milne (1/1901-12/1904)
Frank Richard Bentley (1/1905-12/1906)
William Thomas Perkins (1/1907-12/1908)
Charles R. Worthen (1/1909-12/1920)
Woodruff W. Cannon (1/1921-12/1922)
Wilford Goff (1/1923-12/1926)
William Brooks (1/1927-12/1934)
John H. Cottam (1/1935-12/1936)
Antone Prince (1/1937-12/1958)
Roy Ralph Renouf (1/1959-12/1962)
Evan Whitehead (1/1963-12/1978)
Eugene S. Jones (1/1979-12/1982
Kenneth Campbell (1/1983-12/1986)
Glenwood Humphries (1/1987-12/1998)
Kirk Smith (1/1999-1/5/2011)
Cory Pulsipher (1/5/2011-Present)
PHOTOS
TBDWEBSITES
Official Washington County websiteWikipedia article about Washington County
A history of Washington County
A history of Washington County
A history of Washington County
A history of Washington County
A history of Washington County
A history of Washington County
List of historic sites in Washington County
List of historic markers in Washington County
List of historic documents from Washington County
National Association of Counties information on Washington County
Washington County QuickFacts from the US Census Bureau
KindredTrails genealogy references for Washington County
ePodunk profile of Washington County
REFERENCES
A History of Washington County From Isolation to DestinationBook by Douglas D Alder and Karl F Brooks
Utah Centenial County History Series
Published by the Zion National History Association
http://www.zionpark.org
See the information page.
History of Washington County
Book by Anne Miller Eckman; Daughters of Utah Pioneers.
Salt Lake City: Daughters of Utah Pioneers, 2002
I Was Called to Dixie
Book by Andrew Karl Larson
Salt Lake City: Deseret News Press, 1961
Library Call Number 979.248
See the information page.
Under Dixie Sun: A History Of Washington County
Book by the Washington County Chapter, Daughters of the Utah Pioneers
Available for sale at the DUP Museum
Library call number 979.2
See the information page.
"What Is Dixie?"
By Dr. Douglas D. Alder
A talk about the founding and early roots of Utah's Dixie given January 29, 2010 as part of the St. George Tabernacle Lecture Series.
This audio recording was made by Carl Rich of http://www.dixietoday.com.
STATISTICS
Population
1860 691
1870 3,064
1880 4,235
1890 4,009
1900 4,612
1910 5,123
1920 6,764
1930 7,420
1940 9,289
1950 9,836
1960 10,271
1970 13,669
1980 26,065
1990 48,560
1998 79,831 or 73,161
2000 91,244 or 86,222 or 90,354
2001 94,609 or 95,590
2002 99,609 or 93,388
2003 104,508
2004 110,476
2005 119,188
2006 126,312
2010 130,529
2020 177,570 (projected in 2010)
2035 400,000 (projected in 2007)
2050 500,000 (projected in 2007)
Doctors in Washington County
1980 25
2005 150
Certified Local Governments (CLGs) in Washington County
Enterprise
Hurricane
Leeds
Rockville
Santa Clara
St. George
Washington City