The story
History
St. George was founded as part of the cotton mission in 1861 under the direction of Latter Day Saint apostle Erastus Snow. At the outbreak of the American Civil War, Brigham Young accelerated the colonization effort:
Fearing that the war would take away the cotton supply, he began plans for raising enough in this southwestern country to supply the needs of his people. Enough favorable reports had come to him from this warm region below the rim of the Great Basin, that he was convinced cotton could be raised successfully here. At the general church conference in Salt Lake City on October 6th, 1861, about 300 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 ensure the communities the right number of farmers, masons, blacksmiths, businessmen, educators, carpenters, as needed.
The settlement was named after George A. Smith, an LDS Church apostle.
In April 1877, the LDS Church completed the St. George Utah Temple. It was the church's third temple and is the oldest still in active use.
The 1992 St. George earthquake destroyed three houses, as well as above- and below-ground utilities, causing about US$1 million in damage.
St. George was the location of the 1997 United States Academic Decathlon national finals.
In January 2005, a 100-year flood occurred throughout the region, due to prolonged heavy rainfall overflowing both the Virgin River and Santa Clara River. One person was killed and 28 homes were destroyed by the Santa Clara River.
Nuclear contamination
In the early 1950s, St. George received the brunt of the fallout of above-ground nuclear testing at the Yucca Flats/Nevada Test Site northwest of Las Vegas. Winds routinely carried the fallout of these tests directly through St. George and southern Utah. Marked increases in the frequency of cancer in the population, including leukemia, lymphoma, thyroid cancer, breast cancer, melanoma, bone cancer, brain tumors, and gastrointestinal tract cancers, were reported from the mid-1950s until the early 1980s.
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In 1980, People magazine reported that from about 220 cast and crew who filmed in a 1956 movie, The Conqueror, on location near St. George, 91 had come down with cancer, and 50 had died from it. Of these, 46 had died of cancer by 1980. Among the cancer deaths were John Wayne, Pedro Armendáriz, and Susan Hayward, the film's stars. But the lifetime odds of developing cancer for men in the U.S. population are 43% and the odds of dying of cancer are 23% (38 and 19%, respectively, for men and women). This places the cancer mortality rate for the 220 primary cast and crew quite near the expected average.
A 1962 United States Atomic Energy Commission report found children living in St. George at the time of the fallout may have received doses to their thyroids of radioiodine as high as 120 to 440 rads (1.2 to 4.4 Gy).
2020 census
As of the 2020 census, St. George had a population of 95,342. The median age was 36.7 years. 25.7% of residents were under the age of 18 and 22.4% of residents were 65 years of age or older. For every 100 women there were 94.7 men, and for every 100 women age 18 and over there were 91.7 men age 18 and over.
95.5% of residents lived in urban areas, while 4.5% lived in rural areas.
There were 33,554 households in St. George, of which 31.6% had children under the age of 18 living in them. Of all households, 58.1% were married-couple households, 14.0% were households with a male householder and no spouse or partner present, and 23.5% were households with a female householder and no spouse or partner present. About 21.6% of all households were made up of individuals and 12.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.
There were 39,933 housing units, of which 16.0% were vacant. The homeowner vacancy rate was 1.8% and the rental vacancy rate was 8.1%.
2010 census
As of the 2010 census, 72,897 people, 27,552 households, and 13,042 families resided in the city. The population density was 1,135 people per square mile. There were 32,089 housing units at an average density of 415.9 per square mile. The city's racial makeup was 87.2% White, 0.7% African-American, 1.5% Native American, 0.8% Asian, 1.0% Pacific Islander, and 8.9% from other races. 12.8% of the population was Hispanic or Latino of any race.
2000 census
As of the 2000 census, 49,728 people, 17,367 households, and 13,042 families resided in the city. The population density was 771.2 people per square mile (297.7/km2). The 21,083 housing units had an average density of 327.4 per square mile (126.4/km2). The racial makeup of the city was 92.27% White, 0.24% African American, 1.64% Native American, 0.57% Asian, 0.59% Pacific Islander, 2.87% from other races, and 1.83% from two or more races. Hispanics or Latinos of any race were 6.72% of the population.
Of the 17,367 households, 34.2% had children under 18 living with them, 63.6% were married couples living together, 8.6% had a female householder with no husband present, and 24.9% were not families. About 19.4% of all households were made up of individuals, and 10.2% have someone living alone who was 65 or older. The average household size was 2.81 and the average family size was 3.21.
In the city, the age distribution was 28.4% under 18, 13.7% from 18 to 24, 22.0% from 25 to 44, 16.8% from 45 to 64, and 19.3% who were 65 or older. The median age was 31 years. For every 100 women, there were 94.5 men. For every 100 women 18 and over, there were 91.2 men.
The median income for a household in the city was $36,505, and for a family was $41,788. Men had a median income of $31,106 versus $20,861 for women. The per capita income for the city was $17,022. About 7.4% of families and 11.6% of the population were below the poverty line, including 14.4% of those under 18 and 4.4% of those 65 or over.
Parks and recreation
The St. George parks division manages over 20 city parks and nearly 60 miles of paved urban trails interlinking neighborhoods, communities, parks, and open space. The city also has over a dozen award-winning golf courses, making the area a Southwestern golfing destination. Major parks and sites include the Canyons Softball Complex, Little Valley Softball Complex, Pioneer Park, Tonaquint Nature Center, nationally recognized Snake Hollow bike park, Thunder Junction All Abilities dinosaur theme park, Red Hills Desert Garden - a public water-conservation garden displaying both native and exotic flora suited for the local climate, and three local skate parks; Legacy Regional Park and fairgrounds are just east of the city in Hurricane. The St. George area has several public recreation centers: the St. George Rec Center and Sand Hollow Aquatics Center and Washington City Rec Center. St. George is fast becoming a popular rock-climbing and mountain-biking destination.
From Wikipedia’s article on St. George, Utah, shared under CC BY-SA 4.0.5