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History · Wanship

Wanship dates to 1859, and 1 of its places is on the National Register

Most of Wanship was built recently: 8% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1981. Its Register listing is the Union Pacific Park City Branch Railroad Grade. Below: 1 old photo or paper and maps from 1967 on.

1859founded
1on the National Register
8%homes built before 1940
1old photo or paper
Add an old photoShare a memory
From Wanship’s archive · credits on each photo
Quick answers

How Wanship began

When was Wanship founded?

1859

Wanship dates its founding to 1859 (Wikidata and Wikipedia’s history agree). Its post office opened in 1864.

2020 census: 423167 years
Founding year: Wikidata; Wikipedia’s history section gives the same year. First post office: 1864.The full story ↓

What stands out about Wanship’s past

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

A history waiting to be writtenOnly 1 old photo is in the public archives. The rest are in attics and albums.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Wanship’s collection

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

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
0 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Date a photo1 archive item has no date. Guess the decade.+2Retake an old viewWanship Stop Union Pacific Rail Trail: stand where they stood+15Share a family photoSign in to add one+10
The story

How Wanship came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Wanship.

Read it all →

Wanship was founded in 1859 by Stephen Nixon and Henry Roper, who were joined by other settlers over the next two years. In 1861, 300 Native Americans settled in the area. The sudden population increase made attempting to gather food in the area difficult. A friendly Ute, Chief Wanship, helped the non-native settlers to find game, locate edible plants, and trade with the Indians. In return, the town was named for him.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Timeline

Wanship, 1859 to 1967

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1859
    FoundingWanship is established
  3. 1864Post officeThe Wanship post office opens
  4. 20th century
  5. 1939Post officeThe Wanship post office closes
  6. 1967On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
By decade

Wanship, decade by decade

Date unknown1 to date
Wanship Stop Union Pacific Rail TrailDate?Wanship Stop Union Pacific Rail Trail
Today4 recent
Wanship Valley Utah2009Wanship Valley UtahWanship Utah2009Wanship UtahWanship Barn Museum2009Wanship Barn MuseumSummitcounty ut2006Summitcounty ut
On the map

Wanship on the map, 1967 to 1997

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

Wanship on the 1967 USGS mapWanship on the 1997 USGS map1967Wanship 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 Wanship.

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.

Wanship Stop Union Pacific Rail Trail
Retake this viewWanship Stop Union Pacific Rail Trail

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

Retake this view · +15
On the National Register

1 historic place in Wanship

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

place listed
1
National Historic Landmarks
0
none yet
historic buildings protected
1
each building in a district counts
first listed
1996
Union Pacific Park City Branch Railroad Grade
Union Pacific Park City Branch Railroad Grade
Structures
All 1 listings
Union Pacific Park City Branch Railroad GradeStructure · listed 1996

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

Places that used to be

Lost post offices

Wanship had its own post office from 1864 to 1939.

Wanship
1864–1939
18601940today

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

Questions about Wanship’s history

What year was Wanship founded?

In 1859, according to Wikidata and Wikipedia’s history of the town. Wanship’s post office opened in 1864.

What is on the National Register in Wanship?

One place: the Union Pacific Park City Branch Railroad Grade (listed 1996).

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 (5), the National Register of Historic Places (1), Wikipedia, U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, 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.