Mount Carmel Junction and Mount Carmel are
unincorporated communities
An unincorporated area is a parcel of land that is not governed by a local general-purpose municipal corporation. (At p. 178.) They may be governed or serviced by an encompassing unit (such as a county) or another branch of the state (such as th ...
located east of
Zion National Park
Zion National Park is a national park of the United States located in southwestern Utah near the town of Springdale. Located at the junction of the Colorado Plateau, Great Basin, and Mojave Desert regions, the park has a unique geography and a ...
and north of
Kanab
Kanab ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Kane County, Utah, United States.[Find a County]
". ' ...
in
Kane County,
Utah
Utah is a landlocked state in the Mountain states, Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It is one of the Four Corners states, sharing a border with Arizona, Colorado, and New Mexico. It also borders Wyoming to the northea ...
, United States. They lie in close proximity to the
Coral Pink Sand Dunes State Park
Coral Pink Sand Dunes State Park is a state park in southwestern Utah, United States, located between Mount Carmel Junction and Kanab, south and west of U.S. Highway 89 in Kane County. The park features uniquely pink-hued sand dunes located ...
.
Mount Carmel Junction sits at the junction of
U.S. Route 89
U.S. Route 89 (US 89) is a north–south United States Numbered Highway with two sections, and one former section. The southern section runs for from Flagstaff, Arizona, to the southern entrance of Yellowstone National Park. The northern sectio ...
and
State Route 9 in southwestern Utah. Mount Carmel is one mile (1.6 km) north of the junction. Mount Carmel Junction is set in the high desert of the Colorado Plateau.
History
The
Virgin Anasazi
The Virgin Ancestral Pueblo peoples were the westernmost Ancestral Pueblo peoples group in the American Southwest. They occupied the area in and around the Virgin River and Muddy Rivers, the western Colorado Plateau, the Moapa Valley and wer ...
were the prehistoric settlers in the area. Among other areas, nearby Parunuweap (East Fork of the Virgin River) contains evidence to their presence. This group occupied the area until about the 13th century. The people were agriculturalists who maintained a diet of mostly maize.
Settlement
Doctor
Priddy Meeks
Priddy Meeks (August 29, 1795 – July 30, 1886) was an American frontier doctor who practiced Thomsonian medicine. He was a polygamist member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and helped settle areas in Utah as a Mormon pionee ...
settled the town of Winsor in 1864, at the site of present-day Mount Carmel Junction, as part of
Brigham Young
Brigham Young ( ; June 1, 1801August 29, 1877) was an American religious leader and politician. He was the second President of the Church (LDS Church), president of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church) from 1847 until h ...
's plan to settle all of Utah Territory. In 1865 more settlers were sent by the church. Nearby
Orderville
Orderville is a town in western Kane County, Utah, United States. The population was 577 at the 2010 census. The town was founded and operated under the United Order of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. This system allowed the co ...
and
Glendale (called Berryville at this time) were also being settled. Before long, Indians forced them to leave the area. It was not until 7 years later in 1871 that the settlers returned and this time settled down permanently. This time the town was settled in the name of Mount Carmel to honor the mountain in Palestine. In 1875 Elder Howard O. Spencer presided over Mount Carmel and Glendale. He reported that most homes were temporary, but permanent structures were underway. Doctor Meeks moved to Orderville in 1876 where he died at the age of 91. He left behind two wives and several children.
Only two families ever settled in Mount Carmel Junction, and one was Jack and Fern Morrison. Jack contemplated the idea that a road must be built connecting Zion Canyon to the east side of the park. Jack explored the area and came to the conclusion that the road must come down in the area now known as Mount Carmel Junction. There were old wagon trails that Jack used to navigate his way down to the valley. The hills were steep forcing Jack to attach a Cedar tree to the back of his Model-T-Ford. Jack was patient and in 1931 he was able to homestead the land now known as Mount Carmel Junction. The land was unkind. It was covered with gullies, quicksand and many layers of sand. The area was also prone to violent flash floods. Jack and Fern lost two children in the flash floods of the East Fork of the Virgin River that runs through the junction. The East Fork of the Virgin River is now known as Parunuweap. Jack died in 1961, from cancer after serving in the war and spending much of his life working in the coal mines. Fern, a strong willed and hard working woman continued to build. She lived to the age of 90, dying in 1998.
Artist
Maynard Dixon
Maynard Dixon (January 24, 1875 – November 11, 1946) was an American artist. He was known for his paintings, and his body of work focused on the American West. Dixon is considered one of the finest artists having dedicated most of their art to ...
,
famed for his paintings of the American West, built
a summer home in Mount Carmel Junction in 1939. After his death in Tucson, Arizona, in 1946, his ashes were buried on a high bluff above the Mount Carmel art studio being built on the property.
John Wesley Powell - Parunuweap
John Wesley Powell
John Wesley Powell (March 24, 1834 – September 23, 1902) was an American geologist, U.S. Army soldier, explorer of the American West, professor at Illinois Wesleyan University, and director of major scientific and cultural institutions. He ...
visited the area as part of the Powell Survey of 1872. He was the first European-American to descend the East Fork of the Virgin River from the current location of Mount Carmel Junction to Shunesburg. A plaque can be found at the edge of the river, just east of the Zion National Park boundary in the East Fork, that reads:
"Major John Wesley Powell 1834-1902 explorer, scientist, Steven V. Jones 1840-1920 teacher, topographer, Joseph W. Young 1829-1873 Mormon pioneer leader, Descended Labyrinth Falls 1/2 mile below Monday, September 30, 1872 during first Parunuweap Canyon traverse. Powell named this canyon from the Paiute Indian word 'Parunuweap' which means roaring water canyon. Dedicated September 30, 1972."
Historic Rock Church
The
Historic Rock Church in Mount Carmel was used to school the children living in the Mount Carmel area. The log building was built in 1880 and used as a church, school house and recreation hall. In 1890 it was converted into the stone structure. "The rock for the building was hauled by team and wagon from a hill about a mile south of town. Later a lumber wing was added, making it into a two-room school. At first the floors were of rough pine lumber. Then hardwood floors were installed, which made them 'nicer for dancing.'"
In 1919 it burned down. In 1923 it was rebuilt, this time with rock. After the small building was rebuilt, the rock structure was used almost entirely as a church. The children who once attended school in the log building rode to nearby Orderville in a covered wagon each day to attend school. The Historic Rock Church is on the National Register of Historic Places.
Zion-Mount Carmel Highway History

In 1919, a Congressional bill designating
Zion National Park
Zion National Park is a national park of the United States located in southwestern Utah near the town of Springdale. Located at the junction of the Colorado Plateau, Great Basin, and Mojave Desert regions, the park has a unique geography and a ...
was signed into law. In 1923 the task of finding a way to open Zion Canyon to the east side of the park began. Four different routes were considered including two options through Parunuweap and another through North Creek. The route chosen went up the side of Pine Creek canyon on switchbacks, through a tunnel and then along Clear Creek to the east boundary of the park, and hence to US-89 at Mount Carmel Junction. Construction work on the Zion-Mount Carmel Tunnel and the
Zion-Mount Carmel Highway began in 1927. The tunnel especially was considered quite an engineering feat for the time, requiring boring through solid rock. July 4, 1930, the tunnel and highway were dedicated, linking
Zion Canyon
Zion Canyon (also called Little Zion, Mukuntuweap, Mu-Loon'-Tu-Weap, and Straight Cañon; ''weap'' is Southern Paiute, Paiute for canyon) is a deep and narrow gorge in southwestern Utah, Utah, United States, carved by the North Fork of the Virgin ...
to the land east of the park and making it easier to visit
Grand Canyon
The Grand Canyon is a steep-sided canyon carved by the Colorado River in Arizona, United States. The Grand Canyon is long, up to wide and attains a depth of over a mile ().
The canyon and adjacent rim are contained within Grand Canyon Nati ...
and
Bryce Canyon
Bryce Canyon National Park () is a List of national parks of the United States, national park of the United States located in southwestern Utah. The major feature of the park is Bryce Canyon, which despite its name, is not a canyon, but a colle ...
National Parks.
Geology

The north–south trending Sevier Fault is east of the main highway through Mount Carmel Junction. Sandstone cliffs lie to the south and the White Cliffs of the
Grand Staircase
The Grand Staircase is an immense sequence of sedimentary rock layers that stretches south from Bryce Canyon National Park and Grand Staircase–Escalante National Monument, through Zion National Park, and into Grand Canyon National Park.
C ...
can be seen to the east. About halfway between Mount Carmel Junction and Kanab are the
Coral Pink Sand Dunes
Coral Pink Sand Dunes State Park is a state park in southwestern Utah, United States, located between Mount Carmel Junction and Kanab, south and west of U.S. Highway 89 in Kane County. The park features uniquely pink-hued sand dunes located b ...
. North on
U.S. Route 89
U.S. Route 89 (US 89) is a north–south United States Numbered Highway with two sections, and one former section. The southern section runs for from Flagstaff, Arizona, to the southern entrance of Yellowstone National Park. The northern sectio ...
are hoodoo formations similar to those in
Bryce Canyon
Bryce Canyon National Park () is a List of national parks of the United States, national park of the United States located in southwestern Utah. The major feature of the park is Bryce Canyon, which despite its name, is not a canyon, but a colle ...
and
Cedar Breaks. The Middle Jurassic
Carmel Formation
The Carmel Formation is a geologic formation in the San Rafael Group that is spread across the U.S. states of Wyoming, Utah, Colorado, north east Arizona and New Mexico. Part of the Colorado Plateau, this formation was laid down in the Middle Ju ...
, named after Mount Carmel, is well exposed in this area.
References
Mount Carmel area historyLong Valley HistorySpectrum*
John Wesley Powell
John Wesley Powell (March 24, 1834 – September 23, 1902) was an American geologist, U.S. Army soldier, explorer of the American West, professor at Illinois Wesleyan University, and director of major scientific and cultural institutions. He ...
. ''
Exploration of the Colorado River and Its Canyons'' (1875)
*
External links
*
*
{{Kane County, Utah
Orderville, Utah
Populated places established in 1864
U.S. Route 89
Transportation in Kane County, Utah