When traveling to Utah, most vacationers have majestic geography and camping on their minds. Others may be thinking of the state’s historic ghost towns. Not many have plans to see memorable art. But that, as well as some of Utah’s best preserved pioneer-era buildings, are precisely what they’ll find in Spring City.
Fly into Salt Lake City for an urban trip that’s populated with exceptional Mexican food, world-class genealogical resources and a window into Mormon (LDS) culture, all overlooking the towering Wasatch Mountains. But just over 100 miles south, tiny Spring City is a destination that will take you out of the city into a charming rural community that looks much as it did in the 1880s.
Why? When U.S. Route 89 was built in 1957, it went right past Spring City. Its location protected it from the progress that might have modernized its buildings with settlements of Baby Boomer families eager to bring their hometown into the 20th century.
Take in the art and architecture of Spring City
Spring City is a permanent home to just over 1,000 souls. But it punches way above its weight class when it comes to its artistic community and its historic appeal. Spring City Arts is the place where creatives from all around Sanpete County converge to show off their wares in juried shows inside what was once Strate’s Garage. But the city has been known for its settlement of masterpiece producers since the 1970s. Today, Spring City Arts hosts workshops for emerging artists and events such as an annual plein-air painting competition, giving visitors a way to take home a landscape of the snow-capped Wasatch Mountains or a tableau of area farm animals.
Nearby Horseshoe Mountain Pottery showcases the work of world-renowned potter Joe Bennion. There, travelers will meet the artist himself and have the opportunity to buy his stoneware intended for home use. To some, the circa-1905 building is still identified with Arthur Johnson Meat Market, which opened in 1916.
Spring City Chapel, also known as Spring City Ward House, is noted as a paragon of LDS religious architecture. Composed of oolitic limestone, the church has a unique, craggy exterior. Once inside, visitors will see wood rafters and plaster-finished walls that give the building an appropriately OId-West feel. Constructed between 1897 and 1911, the site may not be as old as East Coast historic churches, but the structure is a window into an era.
Get the most out of your Spring City visit
