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History · Springdale

Springdale’s post office opened in 1864, and 13 of its places are on the National Register

Most of Springdale was built recently: 6% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1988. 13 places in town are on the National Register, among them two historic districts with 22 buildings between them. Below: 11 old photos and papers, maps from 1980 on, and the census since 1880.

1864first post office
13on the National Register
6%homes built before 1940
11old photos & papers
Add an old photoShare a memory
From Springdale’s archive · credits on each photo
Quick answers

How Springdale began

When was Springdale founded?

1864

The Springdale post office opened in 1864, the earliest record of the town by name.

First census: 50 in 18802020 census: 514162 years
Founding year: the first Springdale post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).The full story ↓

What stands out about Springdale’s past

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

Shrank, then grewLost half of its people between 1940 and 1950, then more than doubled.Landmarks on the Register13 places on the National Register.
★ What stands out · People over time

Springdale, census by census

010020030040050018801900192019401960198020002020454 in 1940Low: 174

Lost half of its people between 1940 and 1950, then more than doubled.

15 censuses, 1880–2020.

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

On the National Register

13 historic places in Springdale

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

places listed
13
National Historic Landmarks
0
none yet
historic buildings protected
26
each building in a district counts
first listed
1987
South Campground Amphitheater
South Campground Amphitheater, built 1934South Campground Comfort StationSouth Entrance Sign, built 1935Oak Creek Irrigation Canal, built 1935Pine Creek Irrigation Canal, built 1890Herbert & Lillian Christensen HouseSpringdale Town Jail
BuildingsDistrictsSitesStructuresObjects
South Campground AmphitheaterBuilt 1934
South Campground Comfort StationBuilding
South Entrance SignBuilt 1935
Zion Nature Center-Zion InnBuilt 1934
Crawford Irrigation CanalBuilt 1890
Oak Creek Historic DistrictDistrict
Oak Creek Irrigation CanalBuilt 1935
Pine Creek Irrigation CanalBuilt 1890
All 13 listings
Pine Creek Residential Historic DistrictDistrict · listed 1987Flanigan DitchStructure · listed 1998Herbert & Lillian Christensen HouseBuilding · listed 2019Springdale Town JailBuilding · listed 2025Springdale Hilltop CemeterySite · listed 2025

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

The story

How Springdale came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Springdale.

Read it all →

The 1992 St. George earthquake destroyed three houses as well as above- and below-ground utilities, causing about US$1 million in damage. In the Balanced Rock Hills area of Springdale, a landslide covered part of Utah State Route 9, taking several hours to clear. The slide was approximately 1,600 feet (490 m) long and 3,600 feet (1,100 m) wide, contained boulders up to 20 feet (6.1 m) in diameter, with a total volume of 18,000,000 cubic yards (14,000,000 m3) and total area of 4,400,400 square feet (408,810 m2).

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Timeline

Springdale, 1864 to 2010

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1864Post officeThe Springdale post office opens
  3. 1890BuiltCrawford Irrigation Canal is built
  4. 20th century
  5. 1934BuiltSouth Campground Amphitheater is built
  6. 1934BuiltZion Nature Center-Zion Inn is built
  7. 1935BuiltSouth Entrance Sign is built
  8. 1938In the archiveUtah farm family in the orchard at peach harvest. Near Springdale, Utah
  9. 1963In the archiveRoadside signs in Springdale, Utah Parks Company - Zion Lodge and Inn. ; ZION Museum and …
  10. 1980On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  11. 1993In the archiveReverse of sign, facing south - South Entrance Sign, Zion-Mt. Carmel Highway at south par…
  12. 21st century
  13. 2010CensusPopulation peaks at 529
By decade

Springdale, decade by decade

3 decades in the archive, from the 1930s to the 1990s. Scroll each row; tap a photo for its story.

1930s–1960s10 items
Utah farm family in the orchard at peach harvest. Near Springdale, Utah1938Utah farm family in the orchard at peach harvest. Nea…Roadside signs in Springdale, Utah Parks Company - Zion Lodge and Inn. ; ZION Museum and Archives Image ZION 9425 ; ZIO…1963Roadside signs in Springdale, Utah Parks Company - Zi…Roadside signs in Springdale, obsolete signs of Hardy Jr. Supermarket and distance to Sinclair service station. ; ZION …1963Roadside signs in Springdale, obsolete signs of Hardy…Roadside signs in Springdale, obsolete signs. Image is of an old building with sign on side 'If you like our town tell …1963Roadside signs in Springdale, obsolete signs. Image i…Roadside signs in Springdale. Allred's Cafe. Proposed clean-up of approach to Zion National Park. ; ZION Museum and Arc…1963Roadside signs in Springdale. Allred's Cafe. Proposed…Roadside signs in Springdale. Driftwood Lodge and Restaurant 'Best Western Motel' ; ZION Museum and Archives Image ZION…1963Roadside signs in Springdale. Driftwood Lodge and Res…Roadside signs in Springdale. Texaco sign next to a fire hydrant. ; ZION Museum and Archives Image zion 9416 ; ZION 94161963Roadside signs in Springdale. Texaco sign next to a f…The black on yellow Grandma's signs along State Route 15 (now State Route 9) south of Springdale. Signs were at every t…1963The black on yellow Grandma's signs along State Route…The roadside signs in Springdale, 'Kanab - the Little Hollywood of Utah' - rear view of sign. ; ZION Museum and Archive…1963The roadside signs in Springdale, 'Kanab - the Little…The roadside signs in Springdale, 'Kanab - the Little Hollywood of Utah' - rear view of sign. ; ZION Museum and Archive…1963The roadside signs in Springdale, 'Kanab - the Little…
1990s1 item
Reverse of sign, facing south - South Entrance Sign, Zion-Mt. Carmel Highway at south park boundary1993Reverse of sign, facing south - South Entrance Sign, …
Today1 recent
Springdale2006Springdale
On the map

Springdale on the map, 1980 to 1997

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

Springdale on the 1980 USGS mapSpringdale on the 1997 USGS map1980Springdale East 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 Springdale.

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.

Utah farm family in the orchard at peach harvest. Near Springdale, Utah
Retake this viewUtah farm family in the orchard at peach harvest. Near Springdale, Utah, 1938

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

Retake this view · +15
Famous people

Famous people close to Springdale

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

See all →
Amanda RighettiAmerican actress · b. 1983
Brendon UrieAmerican singer and musician · b. 1987
Howard CannonAmerican politician · b. 1912
Jeffrey R. HollandAmerican educator and religious leader · b. 1940
Bert H. MillerAmerican politician · b. 1879
T
Travis HirschiAmerican sociologist and criminologist · b. 1935
Help out

Finish Springdale’s story

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

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
3 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Retake an old viewUtah farm family in the orchard at peac…: stand where they stood+15Share a family photoSign in to add one+10
Stories next door

History across the town line

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

Rockville3 historic placesnot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town

Questions about Springdale’s history

What year was Springdale founded?

The Springdale post office opened in 1864, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).

What is on the National Register in Springdale?

13 listings: 4 buildings, 2 historic districts, the Oak Creek Historic District and the Pine Creek Residential Historic District, with 22 contributing buildings, 1 site, 5 structures, and 1 object. 26 historic buildings in all.

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). How TownRatings grades history →

From Wikimedia Commons (11), the Library of Congress (1), the National Register of Historic Places (13), Wikipedia, 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.