Guest, Sign inJoin

Post to Moab

We’ll email a one-tap link to publish your post. No password, and nothing is public until you click it.
Already a member? Sign in
B−History
History · Moab

Moab dates to 1878, and 9 of its places are on the National Register

More historic than 52% of U.S. towns · #36 of 119 in Utah. What drives it

Most of Moab was built recently: 3% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1979. Below: 13 old photos and papers, maps from 1959 on, and the census since 1890.

1878founded
9on the National Register
3%homes built before 1940
13old photos & papers
5famous people
Add an old photoShare a memory
From Moab’s archive · credits on each photo
Quick answers

How Moab began

When was Moab founded?

1878

Moab dates its founding to 1878 (Wikidata). The census first counted it in 1890.

First census: 333 in 18902020 census: 5,366148 years

How historic is Moab?

B−

More historic than 52% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.

What drives the grade ↓
Founding year: Wikidata. First post office: 1880.The full story ↓
History grade

What drives Moab’s History grade

On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Moab is more historic than 52% of U.S. towns, #36 of 119 in Utah. Its National Register listings hold the grade up; its share of homes from before 1940 pulls it down.

B−
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Moab’s overall grade.
Founding era1878, from Wikidata: founded 1850–1899, an older era than 37% of U.S. townsC+Homes built before 19403.0% of homes (±2.5) · typical UT town 2.8% · U.S. 8.4%C−National Register9 listings, 113 historic buildings, 213 per 10,000 residents · typical UT town 3.0 · U.S. 2.4A
All U.S. towns we grade (21,289)Ahead of 52%
NewerOlder
Utah towns of 2,500+ (119)Ahead of 70%

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 Moab’s 213 sits above most of its state (94% of Utah towns have fewer) while its 113 historic buildings outnumber those of 90% of U.S. towns.

How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from C− to B+. The pre-1940 share (±2.5 points) is firm at this size. Two sources give 1878.

Founding year: Wikidata (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 Moab’s past

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

A town in old photos13 old photos, postcards and papers.Landmarks on the Register9 places on the National Register.
★ What stands out · By decade

Moab, decade by decade

2 decades in the archive, from the 1970s to the 1980s. Scroll each row; tap a photo for its story.

1970s5 items
AERIAL OF WHITE RUN AND GRANDVIEW POINT IN CANYONLANDS NATIONAL PARK. TOWN OF MOAB ON THE COLORADO RIVER IS SUPPLY... -…1972AERIAL OF WHITE RUN AND GRANDVIEW POINT IN CANYONLAND…MAIN STREET OF MOAB. THIS OLD MORMON PIONEER TOWN IS THE STARTING POINT FOR TRIPS NORTH INTO THE ARCHES NATIONAL... - N…1972MAIN STREET OF MOAB. THIS OLD MORMON PIONEER TOWN IS …MAIN STREET OF MOAB. THIS OLD MORMON PIONEER TOWN OF THE COLORADO RIVER IS THE STARTING POINT FOR TRIPS NORTH INTO... -…1972MAIN STREET OF MOAB. THIS OLD MORMON PIONEER TOWN OF …MAIN STREET OF MOAB. TRAFFIC IS BEGINNING TO BRING POLLUTION PROBLEMS TO A REGION LONG NOTED FOR THE CRYSTAL CLARITY...…1972MAIN STREET OF MOAB. TRAFFIC IS BEGINNING TO BRING PO…SIGN OUTSIDE MOAB, AN OLD MORMON PIONEER TOWN SITUATED ON THE COLORADO RIVER, INVITES INDUSTRIAL EXPANSION. THE... - NA…1972SIGN OUTSIDE MOAB, AN OLD MORMON PIONEER TOWN SITUATE…
1980s8 items
Old tractor near Moab, Utah1980Old tractor near Moab, UtahArches National Park1980Arches National ParkArches National Park1980Arches National ParkNorth window, Arches National Park1980North window, Arches National ParkPark Avenue, Arches National Park1980Park Avenue, Arches National ParkRed-rock formation at Arches National Park1980Red-rock formation at Arches National ParkRed-rock formation at Arches National Park1980Red-rock formation at Arches National ParkRed sandstone formation in Arches National Park1980Red sandstone formation in Arches National Park
1990snothing yet
Nothing in the archives for these yearsWeddings on Main Street, storms, parades, school pictures, the old store. If it’s in your family album, it belongs here.
Add from your album
On the National Register

9 historic places in Moab

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

places listed
9
National Historic Landmarks
0
none yet
historic buildings protected
113
each building in a district counts
first listed
1976
Courthouse Wash Pictographs
Courthouse Wash PictographsMoab Cabin, built 1893Arthur Taylor House, built 1896Moab LDS Church, built 1889Star Hall, built 1906John Henry Shafer HouseApache MotelOrlando W. Warner House, built 1890Elk Mountain Mission Fort Site
BuildingsSites

Architectural styles listings

Late Victorian2
Barrier Canyon style1
Eastlake1
Classical Vernacular1
Greek Revival1
Romanesque1
Courthouse Wash PictographsBarrier Canyon style
Moab CabinBuilt 1893
Arthur Taylor HouseEastlake · Built 1896
Moab LDS ChurchGreek Revival · Built 1889
Star HallLate Victorian · Built 1906
John Henry Shafer HouseLate Victorian
Apache MotelModern
All 9 listings
Orlando W. Warner HouseBuilding · listed 1977Elk Mountain Mission Fort SiteSite · listed 1978

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

The story

How Moab came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Moab.

Read it all →

Residents named the town Moab in 1880; in the Bible this term refers to an area of land located on the eastern side of the Jordan River. Some historians believe the city in Utah came to use this name because of William Andrew Peirce, the first postmaster, believing that the biblical Moab and this part of Utah were both "the far country". However, others believe the name has Paiute origins, referring to the word moapa, meaning "mosquito". Some of the area's early residents attempted to change the city's name, because in the Christian Bible, Moabites are demeaned as incestuous and idolatrous (but note, Ruth was a Moabite). One petition in 1890 had 59 signatures and requested a name change to "Vina". Another effort attempted to change the name to "Uvadalia". Both attempts failed.

ChaptersEarly yearsLater years

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Timeline

Moab, 1878 to 1980

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1878
    FoundingMoab is established
  3. 1880Post officeThe Moab post office opens
  4. 1889BuiltMoab LDS Church is built
  5. 1893BuiltMoab Cabin is built
  6. 1896BuiltArthur Taylor House is built
  7. 20th century
  8. 1906BuiltStar Hall is built
  9. 1924Born hereRex Berry is born here
  10. 1932Born hereKay Dalton is born here
  11. 1955Born hereJacques Boyer is born here
  12. 1959On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  13. 1964Born hereArnie Beyeler is born here
  14. 1972In the archiveAERIAL OF WHITE RUN AND GRANDVIEW POINT IN CANYONLANDS NATIONAL PARK. TOWN OF MOAB ON THE…
  15. 1980In the archiveOld tractor near Moab, Utah
On the map

Moab on the map, 1959 to 1985

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

Moab on the 1959 USGS mapMoab on the 1968 USGS mapMoab on the 1985 USGS map1959Moab 4 SE 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 Moab.

Then & now

Stand where they stood

No then-and-now pairs yet. Take a photo from the same spot as an old one and they appear here side by side.

AERIAL OF WHITE RUN AND GRANDVIEW POINT IN CANYONLANDS NATIONAL PARK. TOWN OF MOAB ON THE COLORADO RIVER IS SUPPLY... -…
Retake this viewAERIAL OF WHITE RUN AND GRANDVIEW POINT IN CANYONLANDS NATIONAL PARK. TOWN OF MOAB ON THE COLORADO RIVER IS SUPPLY... -…, 1972

Find the spot, match the angle, and add your photo. It becomes the first then-and-now pair on Moab’s page.

Retake this view · +15
People over time

Moab, census by census

05001,0001,5002,0002,5003,0003,5004,0004,5005,0005,5006,00019001920194019601980200020205,366

Grew from 333 people in 1890 to 5,366 in 2020, more than tenfold.

14 censuses, 1890–2020.

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

Famous people

5 famous people were born in Moab

Writers, athletes, leaders and more, ranked by how widely they’re known.

See all →
J
Jacques BoyerAmerican racing cyclist · b. 1955
R
Rex BerryAmerican football player · b. 1924
Arnie BeyelerAmerican baseball player · b. 1964
K
Kay DaltonAmerican gridiron football player and coach · b. 1932
L
Lyn HellegaardAmerican politician · b. 1958
Help out

Finish Moab’s story

Most archives stop around 1920. The photos from after that are in family albums, not libraries.

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
2 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Retake an old viewAERIAL OF WHITE RUN AND GRANDVIEW POINT…: stand where they stood+15Share a family photoSign in to add one+10

Questions about Moab’s history

What year was Moab founded?

In 1878, according to Wikidata. Moab’s post office opened in 1880, and the census of 1890 counted 333 people here.

How does Moab rank for history?

Moab is more historic than 52% of U.S. towns, #36 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 Moab?

9 listings: 7 buildings and 2 sites. 113 historic buildings in all.

How old are the homes in Moab?

3% of Moab’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±2.5 points), against a typical 2.8% for an Utah town; the median home was built in 1979.

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 (5), the Library of Congress (8), Wikidata (4), the National Register of Historic Places (9), Wikipedia, Wikidata and Wikipedia for famous people, 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.