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Wayne County


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Wayne County Facts:

County Website: Wayne County
Area: 2,466 square miles
Population: 2,614 (in 2023)
County Seat: Loa
Origin of County Name: after state legislator Willis E. Robison's son Wayne
Cities/Towns: Bicknell, Hanksville, Loa, Lyman, Torrey
Economy: cattle, lumber, tourism
Points of Interest: Capitol Reef National Park, Canyonlands National Parks, Horseshoe (Barrier) Canyon pictographs, Fruita schoolhouse, Teasdale Tithing Office and Granary, Thousand Lake Mountain (11,305 feet)

 

About Wayne County:

Wayne County’s early residents were a diverse group of mammals. The sloth, horse, mammoth, and bison all have left evidence of their lives here within the county borders. There also is evidence of the Archaic and Fremont Native American cultures living here with sites that date as far back as 6300 B.C. and up to A.D. 450. The pioneer settlers didn’t make it into this remote area until the 1880’s. When the U.S. government had work programs to build roads and campgrounds, the area grew both in the number of residents and towns. The county courthouse in Loa was built with funds earned by residents of the county during the depression-era. Ranchers have also used the area for raising cattle.

The state and federal governments run over 97% of the land. The county’s main attraction and income is tourism at Capitol Reef National Park. The park gives the visitor a chance to drive, hike, and camp among the large and unique rock formations found in the area.

 

Resources:

More information for Wayne County can be found at the following sites:

Gallery:


Desert bighorn sheep like this pair have been re-established in Capitol Reef National Park since efforts began in the 1980s to avert their feared extinction.
Image from Wikimedia Commons

Initially designated a National Monument in 1937, Capitol Reef National Park features dark red hills along its base, topped with rock bands of differing thickness, colors and textures.
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A sign near Neilson Wash and Steamboat Point in Wayne County, Utah, points to Steamboat Butte and Factory Butte.
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Wayne County from Service Road 72 south.
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Raft Lake, a typical small lake on the top of Boulder Mountain in Utah.
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Boulder Mountain from the west alongside UT 24 near Torrey, Utah.
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Thousand Lake Mountain, Utah, from the south.
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A photo of Wayne County taken along Service Road 24 East.
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The old Grover School, Wayne County, Utah.
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The Bicknell DUP Museum, a museum of local history run by Daughters of Utah Pioneers in Bicknell, Utah.
Image from Wikimedia Commons
The Charles W. and Leah Lee House, a historic home in Torrey, Utah.
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The abandoned former church / schoolhouse in Caineville, Utah.
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The Loa Tithing Office, a historic building in Loa, Utah.
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Fruita Schoolhouse in Fruita, Utah.
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North of Hanksville, Utah.
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Badlands incised into shale at the foot of the North Caineville Plateau.
Image from Wikimedia Commons
Coming out to the Big Drop.
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The main part of the Great Gallery in Horseshoe Canyon, Utah.
Image from Wikimedia Commons