On its age, its old homes and the National Register, South Salt Lake is more historic than 60% of U.S. towns, #29 of 119 in Utah. Its age holds the grade up; its National Register listings pull it down.
B
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of South Salt Lake’s overall grade.
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 South Salt Lake’s 0.4 sits near the middle of its state (38% of Utah towns have fewer) while its 1 listings outnumber those of 51% of U.S. towns.
NoteThe founding year comes from Wikidata alone; no second source gives 1847.
How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from C+ to B. The pre-1940 share (±2.7 points) is firm at this size.
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 South Salt Lake’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
Jesse Fox Jr. developed the area South Salt Lake referred to as Central Park around 1890. Mr. Fox chose the name after visiting New York and seeing Central Park there. He was impressed by the park and its design within an urban environment. Despite South Salt Lake being rural at the time, he decided to name the area Central Park. In 1925 the LDS Central Park Ward was created and named after the development.
Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of South Salt Lake. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
1951Salt Lake City South 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 South Salt Lake.
On the National Register
1 historic place in South Salt Lake
The country’s official list of buildings and places worth saving.
In 1847, according to Wikidata. the census of 1940 counted 1,599 people here.
How does South Salt Lake rank for history?
South Salt Lake is more historic than 60% of U.S. towns, #29 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 South Salt Lake?
One place: the Kearns-St. Ann's Orphanage (listed 1980).
How old are the homes in South Salt Lake?
10% of South Salt Lake’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±2.7 points), against a typical 2.8% for an Utah town; the median home was built in 1986.
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 (6), the National Register of Historic Places (1), Wikipedia, U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, U.S. Census counts (via Wikipedia) 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.
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