Spring City, Utah
Spring City, Utah | |
|---|---|
 Spring City School | |
 Location in Sanpete County and Utah | |
| Coordinates: 39°28′49″N 111°29′29″W / 39.48028°N 111.49139°W | |
| Country | United States |
| State | Utah |
| County | Sanpete |
| Settled | 1852 |
| Area | |
• Total | 1.41 sq mi (3.66 km2) |
| • Land | 1.41 sq mi (3.66 km2) |
| • Water | 0 sq mi (0 km2) |
| Elevation | 5,823 ft (1,775 m) |
| Population (2020) | |
• Total | 949 |
| • Density | 672/sq mi (259/km2) |
| Time zone | UTC−7 (Mountain) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC−6 (MDT) |
| ZIP Code | 84662 |
| Area code | 435 |
| FIPS code | 49-71730 |
| GNIS feature ID | 1445992 |
| Website | springcityutah.gov |
Spring City is a city in Sanpete County, Utah, United States. Its population was 949 at the 2020 census. Most of the city is included in the Spring City Historic District, which is listed on the National Register of Historic Places as an example of the settlement planning and vernacular architecture of nineteenth-century Latter-day Saint communities. Since the late twentieth century, the city has also developed a community of visual artists and craftspeople.
History
[edit]
Latter-day Saint settlers led by James Allred established a community along Canal Creek in March 1852. Initially called the Allred Settlement or Canal, it was abandoned during conflict between settlers and local Ute people in 1853. A second attempt to occupy the site later that year was also unsuccessful. William, George, and Joseph Black led a permanent resettlement in 1859, and the community became known as Springtown and later Spring City.[2]
Danish converts to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints formed a substantial part of the population. Their presence led to the informal names “Little Denmark” and “Little Copenhagen.” Scandinavian and North American settlers worked as farmers and tradespeople and constructed buildings from locally available logs, adobe, and oolitic limestone.[2] The town was laid out on a grid of broad streets and approximately one-acre lots, following the settlement pattern used by many Latter-day Saint communities in Utah.[3]
Spring City was incorporated in 1870. Agriculture, stock raising, wool production, and lumbering formed the local economy. A railroad reached the Sanpete Valley in 1890, improving access to outside markets.[2] The population exceeded 1,100 in 1900 but declined during much of the twentieth century. U.S. Route 89 was rerouted west of Spring City in 1957, reducing through traffic and commercial development. By 1970 the population had fallen to 456. The reduced development helped preserve the town plan and older building stock.[4]
Geography
[edit]Spring City lies in the northern Sanpete Valley beneath the Wasatch Plateau, at an elevation of approximately 5,823 feet (1,775 m). Canal Creek crosses the southeastern part of the city, and Oak Creek flows northwest from the plateau. The city covers 1.41 square miles (3.7 km2), all land.[1]
Utah State Route 17 follows Main Street. It connects the city to US 89, about 1 mile (1.6 km) west of town.
Climate
[edit]The nearest station included in the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's 1991–2020 climate normals is at Moroni, about 6 miles (9.7 km) northwest of Spring City. At that station, average daily maximum temperatures range from 38.1 °F (3.4 °C) in January to 89.0 °F (31.7 °C) in July, while average daily minimum temperatures range from 12.9 °F (−10.6 °C) in January to 52.0 °F (11.1 °C) in July. Normal annual precipitation is 12.55 inches (319 mm).[5]
Demographics
[edit]| Census | Pop. | Note | %± |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1860 | 243 | — | |
| 1870 | 623 | 156.4% | |
| 1880 | 989 | 58.7% | |
| 1890 | 1,044 | 5.6% | |
| 1900 | 1,135 | 8.7% | |
| 1910 | 1,100 | −3.1% | |
| 1920 | 1,106 | 0.5% | |
| 1930 | 902 | −18.4% | |
| 1940 | 839 | −7.0% | |
| 1950 | 703 | −16.2% | |
| 1960 | 463 | −34.1% | |
| 1970 | 456 | −1.5% | |
| 1980 | 671 | 47.1% | |
| 1990 | 715 | 6.6% | |
| 2000 | 956 | 33.7% | |
| 2010 | 988 | 3.3% | |
| 2020 | 949 | −3.9% | |
| U.S. decennial census[6] | |||
The 2020 census counted 949 residents and 414 housing units.[7]
Historic district and preservation
[edit]
Spring City Historic District | |
| Location | Spring City, Utah |
|---|---|
| Architectural style | Mormon vernacular; Greek Revival; Gothic Revival |
| NRHP reference No. | 80003957 |
| Added to NRHP | October 22, 1980 |
The Spring City Historic District was added to the National Register on October 22, 1980. Its significance includes settlement, agriculture, community planning, and architecture.[8] Updated documentation completed in 2022 extended the period of significance through 1972 and refined the district boundary. The survey recorded 496 buildings, structures, sites, and outbuildings, of which 290 contributed to the district's historic character.[9]
The district contains log cabins and adobe buildings as well as numerous houses constructed from local oolitic limestone. Its architecture includes vernacular house forms brought by settlers and later examples influenced by pattern books, including Greek Revival, Gothic Revival, Victorian, and bungalow forms.[10] The broad streets, large lots, houses, barns, granaries, and agricultural land preserve the relationship between the residential settlement and surrounding farms.[3]
Friends of Historic Spring City formed in 1983 to support preservation within the district. Painter Lee Udall Bennion, potter Joseph Bennion, and other residents participated in the organization and its effort to preserve the former school.[11] The group's projects have included grants for historic houses and outbuildings and restoration of the 1899 Spring City School and adjoining junior-high building for community use.[4] Restoration of the school took about four decades and combined volunteer work, private fundraising, grants, and public financing.[11][12]
Arts and culture
[edit]Artists began moving to Spring City in the 1970s. The married artists Lee Udall Bennion and Joseph Bennion settled there in 1976; Joseph later established Horseshoe Mountain Pottery on Main Street. They were among the early professional artists in the community, and other painters, craftspeople, architects, and preservation specialists followed.[13][14] Joseph Bennion was also among the artists who helped organize Spring City Arts, which organizes exhibitions, art education, a plein-air painting competition, and an annual studio tour.[15]
Heritage Day, held on Memorial Day weekend, includes tours of historic houses and art events. Proceeds have supported local preservation projects.[16]
Education and infrastructure
[edit]Spring City is part of the North Sanpete School District. The city has an elementary school; older students attend schools in Moroni and Mount Pleasant.[17]
The city operates an electric utility and a small hydroelectric plant at the mouth of Oak Creek Canyon.[18]
Notable people
[edit]- Joseph Bennion, potter
- Lee Udall Bennion, painter
- Orson Hyde, Latter-day Saint apostle
- Jacob Johnson, United States representative
See also
[edit]References
[edit]- 1 2 "2019 U.S. Gazetteer Files". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved September 19, 2026.
- 1 2 3 Spring City Historic District: Additional Documentation (PDF) (Report). Utah State Historic Preservation Office. 2022. section 8, pp. 3–9. Retrieved September 19, 2026.
- 1 2 Spring City General Plan, 2023–24 (PDF) (Report). Spring City. 2024. Retrieved September 19, 2026.
- 1 2 "Friends of Historic Spring City". Preservation Utah. 2026. Retrieved September 19, 2026.
- ↑ "Summary of Monthly Normals, 1991–2020: Moroni, Utah (USC00425837)". National Centers for Environmental Information. Retrieved September 19, 2026.
- ↑ "Census of Population and Housing". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved September 19, 2026.
- ↑ "State of Utah incorporated places: 2020 Census". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved September 19, 2026.
- ↑ "Spring City Historic District". National Park Service. Retrieved September 19, 2026.
- ↑ Spring City Historic District: Additional Documentation (PDF) (Report). Utah State Historic Preservation Office. 2022. section 7, p. 1; section 8, p. 1. Retrieved September 19, 2026.
- ↑ Spring City Historic District: Additional Documentation (PDF) (Report). Utah State Historic Preservation Office. 2022. section 7, pp. 8–14; section 8, p. 9. Retrieved September 19, 2026.
- 1 2 Shumway, Mia (August 12, 2024). "A Spring City artist's reflection on the nearly 40 year restoration of a local landmark". Utah Public Radio. Retrieved September 19, 2026.
- ↑ "Playing the long game in Spring City, Utah". National Trust for Historic Preservation. Retrieved September 19, 2026.
- ↑ Dean, Suzanne (May 8, 2003). "Portrait of an artist's haven". Deseret News. Retrieved September 19, 2026.
- ↑ "Joseph W. Bennion". J. Willard Marriott Library, University of Utah. Retrieved September 19, 2026.
- ↑ Rossiter, Shawn (August 2008). "An organic development: Spring City Arts, studio tour, and plein-air competition". 15 Bytes. Artists of Utah. Retrieved September 19, 2026.
- ↑ "Gleaning a small town's harvest in Spring City, Utah". Utah Office of Tourism. Retrieved September 19, 2026.
- ↑ "2020 Census school district reference map: Sanpete County, Utah" (PDF). United States Census Bureau. Retrieved September 19, 2026.
- ↑ "Electric". Spring City. Retrieved September 19, 2026.
External links
[edit]- Official website
Media related to Spring City, Utah at Wikimedia Commons
