Ghost Towns in Washington County

By: Autumn Nuzman

Sand and water are the lifeblood of southern Utah, but they have also contributed to local destruction. Whether it be through flooding, droughts, erosion, earthquakes, irrigation issues, or lack of mineable materials, sand and water have been the cause of many a ghost town in southern Utah, especially in Washington County.

The patterns in the way these ghost towns were abandoned and their ties to sand and water certainly tell a fascinating tale in regard to how even life-giving resources can be a threat to pioneer settlements. Likewise, it can be interesting how some of Washington County's ghost towns are promoted or remembered in contrast to others.

Patterns in Reasons for Abandonment

Many of the ghost towns in southern Utah overlap in their reasons for abandonment, and those that don't are still worth noting given their intriguing nature. After all, a grasshopper plague is nothing to balk at ("Harrisburg").

Above is a chart showing how many of the 12 ghost towns in Washington County were impacted by each reason for abandonment. Sources include the 12 towns' respective pages in the Washington County Historical Society's database as listed below and the "Tonaquint" article by Cynthia B. Alldredge, as listed in the works cited at the bottom of this page.

Some of these ghost towns are remembered for their historical significance and celebrated regularly while others are advertised as spooky tourist attractions. Still more are barely recognized at all, sometimes because there are no remnants of the town left and other times because their stories are less advertised and require more research to be done.

Below is a map showing each ghost town location organized by the respective reasons they were abandoned. When a town is selected, a pop-up window gives further information about the town's location, history, and why it was abandoned. The sources used to create this map are the same as those mentioned for the chart above.

View larger map

The legend below serves as a guide to the map's color-coded layers. New layers are revealed as you hide others in the left toggle menu of the map. The layers are based on reason(s) for abandonment.

Current Discussion and Promotion

The word cloud above was created using a Voyant data mining analysis of the following paragraphs of text about each ghost town. The following is an analysis of how each town is promoted or discussed based on research in the Washington County Historical Society's database and in The Spectrum.

Adventure

Adventure only lasted for two years before the Great Flood of 1862 destroyed the town, and the site where the town once stood is now at a bend in the Virgin River between the Gableberg Ranch and the Grant Gulch House in Rockville, so it has no promotional material and the town is seldom remembered beyond a Wikipedia page and an entry in the Washington County Historical Society's database ("Adventure").

Duncan's Retreat

The only mention of Duncan's Retreat in The Spectrum is a call for preservation after seeing the discrepancy between Grafton's preservation as opposed to the single grave marker that appears to be the only thing left of Duncan's Retreat (Burkett, "Grafton").

However, the entry in the Washington County Historical Society's database for Duncan's Retreat does seem to indicate that locals continue to discuss and promote theories about whether the name of Duncan's Retreat stems from Duncan retreating from the area or if it stems from Duncan retreating to the area after a botched surveying job in Rockville ("Duncan's").

Fort Harmony

Fort Harmony is advertised and remembered as a historical attraction tied to its pioneer roots, even with the controversial nature of its leading settler John Doyle Lee, who was instrumental in the events of the Mountain Meadows Massacre (Burkett, "Rich"; "Fort"; Washington; Wentz). The Fort Harmony Historical Society likewise maintains that focus on the town's historical value (Wentz).

Grafton

Second only to Silver Reef in number of relevant Spectrum articles, Grafton is among the more promoted and preserved ghost towns in Washington County ("Search Results for Grafton"; "Search Results for Silver Reef").

Articles featuring Grafton tend to mention themes of preservation, pioneer history, the town being a great alternative tourist attraction to the generally busier Zion National Park, and the fact that it was used as a filming location for Western movies like 1969's Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid, 1979's The Electric Horseman, and 1930's The Arizona Kid (Burkett, "Grafton"; Cabrera, "Grafton"; Wilkins).

Hamblin

While there are plenty of references to Hamblin's founder, Jacob Hamblin, there appear to be no direct references to the town of Hamblin or its alternative name Fort Hamblin in The Spectrum, with many articles focusing on Jacob Hamblin's other settlements, such as Santa Clara (Jacobson; Passey, "Hamblin"). There are, however, historical markers guiding people to what remains of Hamblin, so Hamblin is still valued as a historical site ("Hamblin").

Harrisburg

The Harrisburg ghost town has been absorbed into Hurricane, with remnants of pioneer homes and the restored Orson B. Adams Home being Harrisburg's primary remains ("Harrisburg"). Between those remains, a historic monument, and the Harrisburg Estates, Harrisburg tends to be referenced in terms of preservation, historical ties to mining and pioneers, occasionally being tied to its fellow ghost towns, and as a modern location (Burkett, "Grafton," "Pioneer"; "Learn"; Passey, "Leeds"; Thomas).

Hebron

Hebron isn't promoted in The Spectrum, with the only references to Hebron based on a search being a building name and a reference to the biblical Hebron ("Search Results for Hebron"). The lack of promotion might be due to the fact that a small cemetery and the Old Hebron Road are all that remains of the town after its residents tore down damaged buildings for supplies and moved to Enterprise ("Hebron").

Northrop

Northrop is yet another town that appears to have been forgotten since it only lasted a year before the Great Flood of 1862 destroyed it and forced settlers to form a new town in what is now Springdale ("Northrop"). A search for Northrop in The Spectrum will only pull up six articles, all of which reference either a company name or someone with the surname Northrop ("Search Results for Northrop").

Price City (Heberville)

There is no mention of the Price City ghost town or its original name of Heberville in The Spectrum, most likely because its buildings were torn down and it was absorbed into Bloomington ("Price"). Any search results found in The Spectrum for "Price City" were in reference to either the current city called Price in northern Utah or actual prices ("Search Results for Price City").

Shunesburg

There is no mention of Shunesburg in The Spectrum, though that is likely because the site of the former town is now private property and is only open to the descendants of Shunesburg's settlers once a year so they can visit their ancestors' graves ("Shunesburg").

Silver Reef

Silver Reef is perhaps the most actively promoted of all of southern Utah's ghost towns. With dozens of articles in The Spectrum even after filtering out references to the St. George-based Silver Reef Brewing Co., Silver Reef is an ongoing hub of activity thanks to the Silver Reef Museum being run out of the old Wells Fargo building ("Search Results for Silver Reef"; "Silver").

Articles about Silver Reef include information about art, spooky Halloween events, wildlife and museum exhibits, preservation efforts, the town's mining and geology, and Wild West celebrations and re-enactments of shootouts (Cabrera, "Halloween"; Caldwell; "Drive"; "Learn"; Passey, "Leeds," "Silver"; Sadlier).

Silver Reef also frequently markets itself based on the rarity of finding silver in sandstone, as exemplified by the photo of one of the town's signs on our "Sand & Water: Exploring Southwest Utah Through Digital Humanities" blogpost.

Tonaquint

Almost all references to Tonaquint in The Spectrum are about the modern area within St. George, not to the ghost town the area was named after (Alldredge; "Tonaquint"). The one time the town of Tonaquint is mentioned is in an article detailing which towns came to the first county fair, and it is misspelled as "Tonaquiont" (Washington).

So, while the town is far from being forgotten in terms of local namesakes, it isn't really promoted as a ghost town or a historical venue, and any promotion of tourism appears to be tied to venues attempting to attract visitors to St. George (Alldredge; "Search Results for Tonaquint").

Conclusion

The patterns in how each ghost town was abandoned tell a story of how sand and water formed and decommissioned or destroyed each of Washington County's ghost towns during a time of pioneers and the Old West. The bar chart and color-coded map further give a sense of spatial awareness through visualization. Likewise, the word cloud and its companion paragraphs showcase the various ways these ghost towns are — or in some cases, aren't — discussed and promoted in a more modern context.

This makes for a fascinating comparison and analysis in how these ghost towns are remembered and leaves open the opportunity for future exploration of this topic through the lens of digital humanities. While perhaps not every ghost town in Washington County made it into this analysis, nor were the included ghost towns covered to the fullest extent possible, the future holds many possibilities with regard to this type of research.

Works Cited

“Adventure, Utah.” Washington County Historical Society Database, Washington County Historical Society, https://wchsutah.org/towns/adventure.php.

Alldredge, Cynthia B. “Tonaquint.” Tonaquint, Washington County, Utah, USGenWeb Sites, 2006, https://usgenwebsites.org/UTWashington/towns/tonaquin.html.

Burkett, Jud. "Grafton Ghost Town a Preservation of the past." The Spectrum. The Spectrum. 3 Dec. 2015, https://www.thespectrum.com/story/life/2015/12/03/grafton-ghost-town-preservation-past/76738824/.

---. "Pioneer Past Comes Alive in Ghost Town of Harrisburg." The Spectrum. The Spectrum. 30 Dec. 2015, https://www.thespectrum.com/story/life/2015/12/30/pioneer-past-comes-alive-ghost-town-harrisburg/78082712/.

---. "Rich History in the Harmony Valley." The Spectrum. The Spectrum. 6 Oct. 2016, https://www.thespectrum.com/story/life/outdoors/2016/10/06/rich-history-harmony-valley/91614826/.

Cabrera, Elle. "Grafton Ghost Town is Easy Alternative to Crowded Zion." The Spectrum. The Spectrum. 21 May 2021, https://www.thespectrum.com/story/travel/2021/05/21/grafton-cost-effective-location-visit-southern-utah/5153992001/.

---. "Halloween is Just Around the Corner, and Southern Utah is getting into the Spirit." The Spectrum. The Spectrum. 20 Oct. 2021, https://www.thespectrum.com/story/news/2021/10/20/halloween-southern-utah-getting-into-spooky-season-spirit-got-your-costume-ready-trick-or-treat/8527777002/.

Caldwell, Chris. "Birds of Prey at the Silver Reef Museum." The Spectrum. The Spectrum. 28 Feb. 2022, https://www.thespectrum.com/picture-gallery/news/2022/02/28/birds-prey-silver-reef-museum/6957058001/.

"'Drive the Future of Arts' Wins Naming Contest." The Spectrum. The Spectrum. 13 Feb. 2018, https://www.thespectrum.com/story/news/2018/02/13/drive-future-arts-wins-naming-contest/334023002/.

“Duncan's Retreat, Utah.” Washington County Historical Society Database, Washington County Historical Society, https://wchsutah.org/towns/duncans-retreat.php.

“Fort Harmony, Utah.” Washington County Historical Society Database, Washington County Historical Society, https://wchsutah.org/towns/fort-harmony.php.

“Grafton, Utah.” Washington County Historical Society Database, Washington County Historical Society, https://wchsutah.org/towns/grafton.php.

“Hamblin, Utah.” Washington County Historical Society Database, Washington County Historical Society, https://wchsutah.org/towns/hamblin.php.

“Harrisburg, Utah.” Washington County Historical Society Database, Washington County Historical Society, https://wchsutah.org/towns/harrisburg.php.

“Hebron, Utah.” Washington County Historical Society Database, Washington County Historical Society, https://wchsutah.org/towns/hebron.php.

Jacobson, Matthew. "10 Things to do in (and around) St. George." The Spectrum. The Spectrum. 25 Oct. 2017, https://www.thespectrum.com/story/entertainment/2017/10/25/10-things-do-and-around-st-george-during-autumn/794995001/.

“Learn about Geology of Old Mining Area.” The Spectrum, The Spectrum, 12 Feb. 2014, https://www.thespectrum.com/story/news/2014/02/12/learn-about-geology-of-old-mining-area/5434585/.

“Northrop, Utah.” Washington County Historical Society Database, Washington County Historical Society, https://wchsutah.org/towns/northrop.php.

Passey, Brian. "Hamblin Home Offers Pioneer History." The Spectrum. The Spectrum. 17 July 2014, https://www.thespectrum.com/story/life/faith/2014/07/18/hamblin-home-offers-pioneer-history/12799551/.

 ---."Leeds Residents Preserve Historic Stone Buildings." The Spectrum. The Spectrum. 17 Jan. 2015, https://www.thespectrum.com/story/life/2015/01/17/leeds-residents-preserve-historic-stone-buildings/21938921/.

---. "Silver Reef Museum Will Host Smithsonian Exhibit." The Spectrum. The Spectrum. 5 Sept. 2017, https://www.thespectrum.com/story/news/2017/09/05/silver-reef-museum-host-smithsonian-exhibit/626790001/.

“Price City, Utah (formerly Heberville).” Washington County Historical Society Database, Washington County Historical Society, https://wchsutah.org/towns/price.php.

Sadlier, Samantha. "Wild West Days Celebrates History in Leeds, Silver Reef." The Spectrum. The Spectrum. 3 Sept. 2014, https://www.thespectrum.com/story/news/local/2014/09/03/wild-west-days-celebrates-history-leeds-silver-reef/15053899/.

“Search Results for Grafton.” The Spectrum, The Spectrum, https://www.thespectrum.com/search/?q=grafton.

“Search Results for Hebron.” The Spectrum, The Spectrum, https://www.thespectrum.com/search/?q=hebron.

“Search Results for Northrop.” The Spectrum, The Spectrum, https://www.thespectrum.com/search/?q=northrop.

“Search Results for Price City.” The Spectrum, The Spectrum, https://www.thespectrum.com/search/?q=price+city.

“Search Results for Silver Reef.” The Spectrum, The Spectrum, https://www.thespectrum.com/search/?q=silver+reef.

“Search Results for Tonaquint.” The Spectrum, The Spectrum, https://www.thespectrum.com/search/?q=tonaquint.

“Shunesburg, Utah.” Washington County Historical Society Database, Washington County Historical Society, https://wchsutah.org/towns/shunesburg.php.

“Silver Reef, Utah.” Washington County Historical Society Database, Washington County Historical Society, https://wchsutah.org/towns/silver-reef.php.

Thomas, Sarah. "Building the Northern Corridor Would be Like Tossing a Burning Match into the Reserve." The Spectrum. The Spectrum. 29 Nov. 2020, https://www.thespectrum.com/story/opinion/2020/11/29/op-ed-northern-corridor-plans-threaten-red-cliffs-desert-reserve/6456489002/.

“Tonaquint, Utah.” Washington County Historical Society Database, Washington County Historical Society, https://wchsutah.org/towns/tonaquint.php.

Washington City Historical Society. "Washington City Was Home to First County Fair." The Spectrum. The Spectrum. 3 Aug. 2020, https://www.thespectrum.com/story/news/2020/08/03/washington-city-home-first-county-fair/5564611002/.

Wilkins, Terell. "From Red Rocks to the Big Screen: A Look Back at Movies Filmed in Southern Utah." The Spectrum. The Spectrum. 20 Aug. 2019, https://www.thespectrum.com/story/news/2019/08/20/look-major-movies-films-shot-in-southern-utah/2035359001/.