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Cottonwood Paper Mill 3Photo: User:JerAnderson · Public domain
C−History
History · Cottonwood Heights

Cottonwood Heights was first counted by the census in 1980, and 4 of its places are on the National Register

More historic than 16% of U.S. towns · #89 of 119 in Utah. What drives it

Most of Cottonwood Heights was built recently: 0.6% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1978. 4 places in town are on the National Register, among them a historic district with 6 buildings. Below: maps from 1952 on and the census since 1980.

1980first census
4on the National Register
0.6%homes built before 1940
Add an old photoShare a memory
Quick answers

How Cottonwood Heights began

When was Cottonwood Heights founded?

1980

Cottonwood Heights first appears in the census in 1980. Another post office, Butlerville (1874), opened inside today’s city and later closed.

First census: 22,665 in 19802020 census: 33,61746 years

How historic is Cottonwood Heights?

C−

More historic than 16% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.

What drives the grade ↓
Founding year: the first census.
History grade

What drives Cottonwood Heights’ History grade

On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Cottonwood Heights is more historic than 16% of U.S. towns, #89 of 119 in Utah. Its National Register listings hold the grade up; its age pulls it down.

C−
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Cottonwood Heights’ overall grade.
Founding era1980, from the first census: founded 1945 or later, an older era than 2% of U.S. townsD−Homes built before 19400.6% of homes (±0.4) · typical UT town 2.8% · U.S. 8.4%DNational Register4 listings, 10 historic buildings, 3.0 per 10,000 residents · typical UT town 3.0 · U.S. 2.4B
All U.S. towns we grade (21,289)Ahead of 16%
NewerOlder
Utah towns of 2,500+ (119)Ahead of 25%

Utah towns list more on the Register than most of the country (a typical Utah town has 3.0 per 10,000 residents, the U.S. 2.4), so Cottonwood Heights’ 3.0 sits near the middle of its state (51% of Utah towns have fewer) while its 10 historic buildings outnumber those of 76% of U.S. towns.

How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from D− to C. The pre-1940 share (±0.4 points) is firm at this size.

Founding year: the first census (other dates in Quick answers). Homes: Census ACS 2020–24. National Register: National Park Service, May 2026 list; each listing counted once (boundary changes and added documentation belong to their listing), and a historic district counts its contributing buildings. How TownRatings grades history →

What stands out about Cottonwood Heights’ past

Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.

Lost villages1 post office opened and closed inside today’s Cottonwood Heights, and 124 old place names are still on the map.A history waiting to be writtenNo old photos of Cottonwood Heights are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.Landmarks on the Register4 places on the National Register.
★ What stands out · Places that used to be

Lost post offices, old corners and burying grounds

Another post office, Butlerville, opened and closed inside today’s town.

Hamlets and corners on the map
Alta HillsApple ValleyArtists View HeightsAtlas HillsAuburn HeightsBair EstatesBallstaedt EstatesBellwood AcresBelmont TerraceBlue Grass AcresBradford RanchosBrighton HillsBrighton PointBrighton RidgeBrooktree EstatesButler HillsBywater Park EstatesCaballero RanchesCanyon View VillageCherry HillsCherry Tree LaneCobblerock LaneCoeur Dalane EstatesCormorant
2cemeteries and burying grounds inside Cottonwood Heights
Mountain View Memorial EstatesUnion Fort Pioneer

US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).

Help out

Start Cottonwood Heights’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Cottonwood Heights’s history is told.

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
0 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Share a family photoSign in to add one+10
On the National Register

4 historic places in Cottonwood Heights

The country’s official list of buildings and places worth saving.

places listed
4
National Historic Landmarks
0
none yet
historic buildings protected
10
each building in a district counts
first listed
1971
Granite Paper Mill
Granite Paper Mill, built 1883Granite Hydroelectric Power Plant Historic DistrictAlvin and Annie Green House, built 1910Butler School Teachers Dormitory
BuildingsDistricts

Architectural styles listings

Renaissance1
Late Victorian1
Granite Paper MillBuilt 1883
Granite Hydroelectric Power Plant Historic DistrictRenaissance
All 4 listings
Alvin and Annie Green HouseBuilding · listed 2000Butler School Teachers DormitoryBuilding · listed 2023

National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places. Photos from Wikimedia Commons, credited on each place’s page.

The story so far

Cottonwood Heights, in brief

Wikipedia doesn’t have a history of Cottonwood Heights yet. The photos, dates and memories neighbors add here are how it gets written.

Cottonwood Heights is a city located in Salt Lake County, Utah, United States, along the east bench of the Salt Lake Valley. It lies south of the cities of Holladay and Murray, east of Midvale, and north of Sandy within the Salt Lake City, Utah Metropolitan Statistical Area. Originally a census-designated place (CDP), following a successful referendum in May 2004, the city was incorporated on January 14, 2005. The population, as of the 2020 census, was 33,617. The corporate offices of Instructure, Dyno Nobel, the defunct Fusion-io, Extra Space Storage, Breeze Airways, and JetBlue are located in the city.

Its first post office opened in 1980. Its population held steady between the last two censuses: 33,433 in 2010, 33,617 in 2020.

Intro from Wikipedia. Population: U.S. Census Bureau.

Timeline

Cottonwood Heights, 1874 to 1952

Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.

  1. 19th century
  2. 1874Post officeThe Butlerville post office opens
  3. 1883BuiltGranite Paper Mill is built
  4. 20th century
  5. 1902Post officeThe Butlerville post office closes
  6. 1910BuiltAlvin and Annie Green House is built
  7. 1952On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
By decade

Cottonwood Heights, decade by decade

Today16 recent
2016.06.16 10.36.09 DSC04864 - Flickr - andrey zharkikh20152016.06.16 10.36.09 DSC04864 - Flickr - andrey zharki…2016.06.16 10.35.59 DSC04863 - Flickr - andrey zharkikh20152016.06.16 10.35.59 DSC04863 - Flickr - andrey zharki…2016.06.16 10.35.50 DSC04862 - Flickr - andrey zharkikh20152016.06.16 10.35.50 DSC04862 - Flickr - andrey zharki…2016.06.16 10.35.42 DSC04861 - Flickr - andrey zharkikh20152016.06.16 10.35.42 DSC04861 - Flickr - andrey zharki…2016.06.14 09.00.18 DSC04790a - Flickr - andrey zharkikh20152016.06.14 09.00.18 DSC04790a - Flickr - andrey zhark…2015.12.14 10.34.44 DSC02587 - Flickr - andrey zharkikh20152015.12.14 10.34.44 DSC02587 - Flickr - andrey zharki…2015.11.10 11.00.49 DSC01773 - Flickr - andrey zharkikh20152015.11.10 11.00.49 DSC01773 - Flickr - andrey zharki…2015.09.19 12.50.21 DSC00395a - Flickr - andrey zharkikh20152015.09.19 12.50.21 DSC00395a - Flickr - andrey zhark…2015.09.19 12.49.48 DSC00394 - Flickr - andrey zharkikh20152015.09.19 12.49.48 DSC00394 - Flickr - andrey zharki…2015.09.19 11.23.18 DSC00391b - Flickr - andrey zharkikh20152015.09.19 11.23.18 DSC00391b - Flickr - andrey zhark…2015.09.19 11.23.18 DSC00391a - Flickr - andrey zharkikh20152015.09.19 11.23.18 DSC00391a - Flickr - andrey zhark…2015.09.19 11.21.17 DSC00383 - Flickr - andrey zharkikh20152015.09.19 11.21.17 DSC00383 - Flickr - andrey zharki…2015-09-29 11 32 24 View east along Big Cottonwood Canyon Road (Utah State Route 190) about 2.6 miles east of Interstat…20152015-09-29 11 32 24 View east along Big Cottonwood Ca…2015-09-29 11 31 32 View east along Big Cottonwood Canyon Road (Utah State Route 190) about 2.0 miles east of Interstat…20152015-09-29 11 31 32 View east along Big Cottonwood Ca…2012.07.08 13.27.27 IMG 8795 - Flickr - andrey zharkikh20122012.07.08 13.27.27 IMG 8795 - Flickr - andrey zharki…Cottonwood Heights Police2008Cottonwood Heights Police
On the map

Cottonwood Heights on the map, 1952 to 1998

Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Cottonwood Heights. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.

Cottonwood Heights on the 1952 USGS mapCottonwood Heights on the 1963 USGS mapCottonwood Heights on the 1970 USGS mapCottonwood Heights on the 1998 USGS map1952Draper sheet · 1:24,000

U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (public domain), via Esri’s collection of the scans. The red ring marks the center of Cottonwood Heights.

People over time

Cottonwood Heights, census by census

05,00010,00015,00020,00025,00030,00035,000198020002020Peak: 33,617

Between 22,665 and 33,617 people in every census since 1980.

5 censuses, 1980–2020.

U.S. Census Bureau decennial counts, from the census table on Cottonwood Heights’ Wikipedia page.

Famous people

Famous people close to Cottonwood Heights

Nobody well known was born in Cottonwood Heights itself, so here are the best known from just nearby.

See all →
Wilford BrimleyAmerican actor and singer · b. 1934
Loretta YoungAmerican actress · b. 1913
Stephen CoveyAmerican educator, author, businessman and moti… · b. 1932
Frank BorzageAmerican film director and actor · b. 1894
R
Roseanne BarrAmerican actress and comedian · b. 1952
Craig VenterAmerican biotechnologist and businessman · b. 1946
Stories next door

History across the town line

Each neighbor’s History grade, on the same three inputs.

Sandy55 historic placesB−Granite1 historic placenot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townHolladay11 historic placesBMidvale3 historic placesCMurray19 historic placesB+

Questions about Cottonwood Heights’ history

What year was Cottonwood Heights founded?

The Cottonwood Heights post office opened in 1980, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records). Wikidata gives 2005.

How does Cottonwood Heights rank for history?

Cottonwood Heights is more historic than 16% of U.S. towns, #89 of 119 in Utah. The History grade combines the town’s founding era, the share of homes built before 1940 and its National Register listings. It’s a character grade, so it isn’t part of the overall grade. How it works.

What is on the National Register in Cottonwood Heights?

4 listings: 3 buildings, among them the Granite Paper Mill (listed 1971, the first), and 1 historic district, the Granite Hydroelectric Power Plant Historic District, with 6 contributing buildings. 10 historic buildings in all.

How old are the homes in Cottonwood Heights?

0.6% of Cottonwood Heights’ homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate), against a typical 2.8% for an Utah town; the median home was built in 1978.

Memory lane

What the archives can’t tell you, neighbors can.

Town Square →
Start a conversation
Sources

Where this page comes from

Founding dates: Wikidata, Wikipedia, the U.S. post office records of Blevins & Helbock (CC0) and the Census. Homes by year built: Census ACS 2020–24. National Register of Historic Places: National Park Service (list of May 22, 2026). Old photos, postcards and papers: Wikimedia Commons, the Library of Congress and other public archives, credited on each item’s page. Maps: U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (via Esri) and Sanborn fire-insurance maps (Library of Congress). History text and census tables: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0). Places that used to be: USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).

From Wikimedia Commons (16), Wikidata (1), the National Register of Historic Places (4), U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, U.S. Census counts (via Wikipedia), the US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock) and the USGS Geographic Names Information System. Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.