Sanpete County is in center of Utah. Mountains separate the county from Interstate-15, the
state's major North/South highway, which has distanced the county from major
developments over the years. While early Freemont Indians and later the San Pitch Indians
populated the area in peace, things changed in 1849 when Ute Chief Wakara invited the Mormon settlers to live in the Sanpete
basin. In 1853 and 1854 Chief Wakara changed his mind about having the settlers in his
area causing many of the settlers to move into neighboring forts for protection during the
Walker War with Wakara's people. The Black Hawk war of 1865-68 brought more conflicts
between the Native Americans and the Mormon settlers. Many of the Scandinavian
immigrants were sent to Sanpete County. They built their homes similar to those found in
Europe and set up small communities within specific language backgrounds like Spring City that became known as little Denmark.
Today, the Moroni
Feed Company makes Sanpete County one of the top ten turkey-producing counties
in the nation and probably helped provide your last turkey dinner. The
Scandinavian influence is still felt each year in the county's many festivals celebrating
their European heritage. In addition to the festivals, Spring
City Historic district has many Scandinavian homes that are
on the state and national historic registers. The LDS temple, in Manti,
can be seen from miles around. In June each year the
annual Mormon Miracle
Pageant, held on the side of temple
hill, brings in over 100,000 visitors (almost 5 times the population of the whole
county). The county has many areas for recreation such
as fishing and hiking along with areas for off-road vehicles and snowmobiles. Palisade
State Park which has camping, a golf course, and a reservoir, also helps
provide water for neighboring areas. Also in the area is Snow College, a two-year state
college, which brings many students from the neighboring cities to Ephraim.
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| This old public school house in Spring City, Sanpete County, Utah, was constructed in 1899. |
Sanpete Valley is physically unique because three large features, the Great Basin, Colorado Plateau, and Rocky Mountains, all converge near north Sanpete. The Sanpete Valley is tucked neatly between two plateaus at the far northwest corner of the Colorado Plateau. There the
valley crosses the Wasatch prong of the Rocky Mountains and the Great Basin.
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Touring Sanpete County is like stepping back in time. Many homes and commercial buildings have not changed much since pioneer hands built them. Numerous buildings in the area are listed on the National Historical Registry. In fact, the entire town of Spring City is a National
Historic District. |
More information for Sanpete County can be found at the following sites:
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