WASHINGTON COUNTY HISTORICAL SOCIETY (Washington County, Utah)

LEEDS, UTAH

(formerly called Bennington)

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Miscellaneous

Histories

LOCATION

In the area around Interstate 15, Exits 22-23.

37° 14' 9" North Latitude, 113° 21' 47" West Longitude
37.236° North Latitude, 113.363° West Longitude
3,440 feet (1,048 meters) MSL

HISTORY

By 1867 the Harrisburg pioneers realized that a place called "Road Valley," just to the north, was more suitable for diverting water and cultivating farmland. Amidst controversy, but with direction from Mormon leader Erastus Snow, many families moved from Harrisburg to Road Valley. An irrigation ditch was dug and water was brought to the site. The town was organized on December 1, 1867, and named Bennington, in honor of the town's bishop, Benjamin Stringham. Bishop Stringham later requested that the town be named after Leeds, England, where he had served as a Mormon missionary. In May of 1869, Bennington became Leeds.

Originally, raising grapes and selling wine was the main business in Leeds. Then they provided support services for Silver Reef. After Silver Reef faded away, a number of different crops were raised in Leeds. Cane sugar was raised for sorghum. There was also cattle ranching.

Electricity came to Leeds after the citizens got together to bring it in. It cost $75 to get it to each home. Telephone poles were run down the center of Main Street with wires then running out to each house. On August 21, 1916, a meeting of citizens was held where it was decided to move the poles out of the street to the west side of the street.

Leeds was incorporated in May of 1953.

In 1991, Leeds passed a Historical Preservation Ordinance.

Population:
2003 576

Mayors:
Clair Stirling (1953 - 1954)
A. A. Eastman (1954 - 1957)
Willard G. McMullin (1958 - 1961)
Frank Eagar (1962 - 1965)
Glenn Beal (1966 - 1969)
Ross Savage (1970 - 1977)
Clynn Davenport (1978 - 1981)
Carl Seierup (1982 - 1985)
Stanley Roberts (1986 - 1993)
Brent DeMille (1994 - 1997)
Mike Empey (1998 - 2001)
Norma Gier (2002 - 2005)
Trudy Law (2006 - 2009)
Hyrum D. Lefler (2010 - September 2011)
Alan Roberts (September 2011 - February 13, 2013)
Angela Rohr (February 13, 2013 - 2014)
Wayne Peterson (2014 - )

PHOTOS

WCHS photos:
WCHS-00490 Photo of a group of people in Leeds UT
WCHS-01160 Photo of silver mines near Leeds in 1939 or 1940

Other photos on the internet:
Leeds and Silver Reef photo tour
Photo of a service station in a southern Utah town, maybe Leeds
1941 photo of Leeds Creek flowing towards Oak Grove Campground, 8 miles west of Leeds
1941 photo of a lady and yucca in bloom among live oak shrubs near Leeds Creek on the road to
Oak Grove Campground
1941 photo of water cascading down Leeds Creek
1941 photo of a lady and flowering cactus along Leeds Creek
Photo of a concrete dam and retaining wall near Leeds, likely built by CCC enrollees from the Leeds CCC Camp
Photo of the main gate of the Leeds Cemetery
Photo of the cemetery directory stand at the Leeds Cemetery
Photo of some plots in the Leeds Cemetery

Also see the undigitized photos in the Mark A. Pendleton Photograph Collection.

REFERENCES