St. George, Utah

 city, county seat

St. George is a city in and the county seat of Washington County, Utah, United States. The population was 72,897 at the 2010 census, making it the seventh-largest city in the state. The city was named in honor of Mormon apostle George A. Smith.

St. George was founded as a cotton mission in 1861 by Brigham Young, the president of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, as part of a church effort to become more self-sufficent. Many of these families assigned to settle the area hailed from the South and possessed the necessary skills to grow cotton and establish a community. Settlers referred to the region as "Utah's Dixie" in honor of their heritage.

The city was incorporated in 1862, and became the county seat of Washington County in 1863. In April 1877, the LDS Church completed it's third temple, the St. George Utah Temple. It is the longest continually operating Mormon temple in the world and the first built west of the Mississippi River. St. George received the brunt of the fallout of above-ground nuclear testing conducted at the Yucca Flats/Nevada Test Site in the mid-20th century. Winds routinely carried the fallout of these tests directly through St. George and southern Utah.

In the early 2000s, St. George was the second fastest-growing metropolitan area in the United States, only after Greeley, Colorado. This trend continued through 2007, when growth slowed substantially due to the economic recession. The city experienced 46.6% growth from 2000 to 2010, with the population increasing from 49,728 to 72,897 in that time period.

The city is noted for its location in a geologically interesting area, with Zion National Park, Dixie National Forest, the Grand Canyon, and other parks located nearby. St. George is the home of Dixie State University, a public university with a student population of roughly 8,500. The city is served by St. George Municipal Airport located southeast of the city.

"The Conqueror" (1956) starring John Wayne and Susan Hayward was filmed in Snow Canyon State Park, and they stayed in St. George, Utah until the end of the filming. It was a really BAD but funny film. us.imdb.com/title/tt0049092/

www.sgcity.org/ - City Website
www.stgeorgechamber.com/ - Chamber of Commerce
www.uen.org/utah_history_encyclopedia/s/ST_GEORGE.html - History