St. George Utah History & Facts

St. George is a city in and the county seat of Washington County, Utah, United States. Located in southwestern Utah on the Arizona border, it is the principal city of the St. George Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA). The city lies in the northeasternmost part of the Mojave Desert, adjacent to the Pine Valley Mountains and near the convergence of three distinct geological areas: the Mojave Desert, Colorado Plateau, and Great Basin. The city is 118 miles (190 km) northeast of Las Vegas and 300 miles (480 km) south-southwest of Salt Lake City on Interstate 15.

As of the 2020 U.S Census, the city had a population of 95,342, with the overall MSA having an estimated population of 180,279. St. George is the seventh-largest city in Utah and most populous city in the state outside of the Wasatch Front.

The city was settled in 1861 as a cotton mission, earning it the nickname "Dixie". While the crop never became a successful commodity, the area steadily grew in population. Between 2000 and 2005, St. George emerged as the fastest growing metropolitan area in the United States. Today, the St. George region is well known for its year-round outdoor recreation and proximity to several state parks, Zion National Park and The Grand Canyon. Dixie State University is located in St. George and is an NCAA Division I institution.

Prior to the arrival of the first European settlers, the St. George area was inhabited by the Virgin River Anasazi and later by the Southern Paiute tribe. The first Europeans in the area were part of the Domínguez–Escalante expedition in 1776.

St. George was founded as a cotton mission in 1861 under the direction of apostle Erastus Snow. It was called Dixie by Brigham Young, who was president of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church). While early settlers cultivated cotton as a commodity crop, they did not succeed in producing it at competitive market rates; consequently, cotton farming was eventually abandoned. More important to the economy was tourism, which developed as the railroads began to carry visitors to the nearby Zion National Park.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 64.9 square miles (168.0 km2), of which, 64.4 square miles (166.8 km2) of it is land and 0.5 square miles (1.2 km2) of it (0.72%) is water. St. George lies in a desert valley, with most of the city lying below 3,000 feet (900 m). Wildlife and vegetation are typical of the Mojave Desert in which it lies. It is situated near a unique geological transition zone where the Mojave, Colorado Plateau, and Great Basin all converge. The Beaver Dam Mountains/Utah Hill lie to the west, the Red Cliffs National Conservation Area and Pine Valley Mountains to the north, the western edge of the Colorado Plateau and Zion National Park to the east, and the Arizona Strip to the south. The Virgin River and Santa Clara River flow through the St. George valley and converge near the western base of Webb Hill near the city center.

Famous Peoples From St. George Utah

Erastus Snow

Erastus Snow (November 9, 1818 – May 27, 1888) was a member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church) from 1849 until his death. Snow was also a leading figure in Mormon colonization of Arizona, Colorado, and New Mexico.

Snow was born on November 9, 1818, in St. Johnsbury, Vermont, to Levi Snow and Lucina Streeter. He joined the institutional predecessor of the LDS Church, the Church of Christ, in the early 1830s. One of the missionaries who taught him was Orson Pratt. Snow's brothers, William and Zerubbabel Snow, joined the church prior to his joining. He was baptized on February 3, 1833, in Vermont. Snow moved to Kirtland, Ohio, where the church was headquartered, and was able to witness the dedication of the Kirtland Temple. However, he spent much of his time on missions, primarily in Pennsylvania. He later served a mission to Salem, Massachusetts, where he baptized several converts, including Nathaniel Ashby, a man with whom he shared a duplex when they both resided in Nauvoo, Illinois. Snow was ordained a member of the Seventy in 1836.

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