to
Update
1 in 3 homeowners
sold without
a traditional agent
Saving an average of
$9,562
Cities Near St George, UT
1040 E 900 S
St George, UT (in city)
3 Bed, 2 Bath
Home
1400 sq.ft.
2169 W 1100 N
Saint George, UT (in city)
2 Bed, 2 Bath
Home
1780 sq.ft.
Shadow Springs
St George, UT (in city)
4 Bed, 2+ Bath
Home
2187 sq.ft.
Local city information for St George, UT
St. George is a city located in the southwestern part of the U.S. state of Utah, and the county seat of Washington County, Utah. It is the principal city of and is included in the St. George, Utah Metropolitan Statistical Area. The city is 119 miles (192 km) northeast of Las Vegas, Nevada, and 303 miles (488 km) south of Salt Lake City on Interstate 15.
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, St. George had a population of 67,614 in 2006, up from 49,728 in 2000. In 2005, St. George surpassed Layton as the eighth-largest city in Utah. From 1990 to 2000, St. George beat Las Vegas by a mere 0.6% as the fastest-growing metropolitan area in the U.S. This trend has continued, with St. George being declared the second fastest-growing metropolitan area in the U.S. (behind Greeley, Colorado) in September 2005. In 2007, the metropolitan area (defined as Washington County) had an estimated 140,908 residents. The population of St. George and surrounding cities in 2050 is projected to be at more than 700,000 residents.
St. George is the population and commercial center of Utah's Dixie, a nickname given to the area when Mormon pioneers grew cotton in the warm climate. St. George's trademark is its geology — red bluffs make up the northern part of the city with two peaks covered in lava rock in the city's center. The northeastern edges of the Mojave Desert are visible to the south. Zion National Park can be seen to the east, and the Pine Valley Mountains loom over the city to the north and northwest. The climate has more in common with the Desert Southwest than the rest of the state, with scorching hot summers and mild, mostly snowless winters. The city has recently developed into a major retirement destination.
St. George was founded as a cotton mission in 1861 under the direction of Brigham Young, the President of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (the Mormons or LDS Church)— part of a greater church effort to become self-sufficient. While the early settlers did manage to grow cotton, it was never produced at competitive market rates; consequently, cotton farming was eventually abandoned.
At the outbreak of the Civil War in 1861, Brigham Young organized the settlement of what is now Washington County, Utah.
“Fearing that, the war would take away the cotton supply, he began plans for raising enough in this western country to supply the needs of his people. Enough favorable reports had come to him from this warm country below the rim of the Basin, that he was convinced cotton could be raised successfully here. At the general church conference in Salt Lake City on October 6th, , about three hundred families were “called" to the Dixie mission to promote the cotton industry. Most of the people knew nothing of this expedition until their names were read from the pulpit; but in nearly every case, they responded with good will, and made ready to leave within the month’s time allotted to them. The families were selected so as to insure the communities the right number of farmers, masons, blacksmiths, businessmen, educators, carpenters, as needed.”
The settlement was named after George A. Smith, an apostle of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
In April 1877, the LDS Church completed the St. George Utah Temple. It is the Church's third temple, and, currently, its longest continually-operating temple.
St. George was the location of the 1998 United States Academic Decathlon national finals.
The city began booming in the mid-1980s, first as a retirement hotspot and tourist gateway to Utah's color country.
List your home on the MLS in St George, Utah