Grafton, Utah, is a well-preserved ghost town just south of Zion National Park in Washington County, along the Virgin River. It is widely regarded as one of the most photographed ghost towns in the American West and has served as a filming location for several classic Western movies. Its history reflects the challenges and determination of Mormon pioneers during Utah’s “Cotton Mission” (or “Utah’s Dixie”) era.
NPS photo
Background: Mormon Settlement and the Cotton Mission
In 1847, Brigham Young and members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church, or Mormons) arrived in the Salt Lake Valley after fleeing religious persecution. Young sought to establish a self-sufficient society in what he envisioned as the state of Deseret. After the Mexican-American War, the area became the Utah Territory in 1850. Between 1847 and 1900, Mormons founded roughly 500 villages across the West to claim territory and resources.
Southern Utah’s warmer climate was seen as suitable for cotton production, reducing dependence on the United States. An experimental crop succeeded at Santa Clara in 1854. Young called this region “Utah’s Dixie.” The outbreak of the U.S. Civil War in 1861 made cotton even more critical. Settlements sprang up along the upper Virgin River where flat land and water for irrigation were available: Virgin (1857), Grafton (1859), Adventure (1860), Duncan’s Retreat and Northup (1861), and Shunesburg, Rockville, and Springdale (1862).
Founding and Early Years (1859–1862)
In late 1859 (often dated December), Nathan C. Tenney led five families from nearby Virgin—the Barneys, Davies, McFates, Platts, and Shirts—to a site about one mile downstream from the present townsite. They initially called the settlement Wheeler. The pioneers cooperated to plant crops (especially cotton), dig irrigation ditches, and build homes. The effort emphasized community and faith rather than profit.
The first year showed overzealous cotton planting at the expense of food crops such as corn and cane, leading to shortages. Settlers later shifted emphasis to food production, orchards, and gardens because survival demanded it in the arid environment beside the unpredictable Virgin River.
The Great Flood of 1862 and Relocation
In January 1862 (the night of January 8 is often cited), after prolonged heavy rains, a massive flood of the Virgin River—part of the broader Great Flood of 1862—destroyed most of the original town (and nearby settlements like Duncan’s Retreat, Adventure, and Northup). Houses, furniture, clothing, and other property floated downstream; some items, including barrels of molasses, were recovered. A child born during the chaos was reportedly named Marvelous Flood Tenney.
Undeterred, the settlers relocated about one mile upstream to higher ground (the current site) and rebuilt, naming the new town New Grafton (later simply Grafton) after Grafton, Massachusetts, the hometown of some settlers. The post office was sometimes still called Wheeler due to other Graftons elsewhere.
Growth and Daily Life (1862–1866)
By 1864, a church census recorded 28 families and about 168 people in Grafton. Each family typically farmed a narrow strip of roughly one acre along the river. They dug irrigation canals, planted cotton (later scaled back), orchards (some of which still exist), and gardens. Log houses, a post office, a church, and a combination school/community hall appeared.
Life remained difficult. The silty Virgin River frequently washed out dams (sometimes multiple times a year) and clogged ditches, which required constant dredging—“like household washing; it’s a weekly chore,” one settler remarked. Grafton was relatively isolated as the only community on the south bank of the river. Despite hardships, residents maintained social life with Friday-night dances, music, swimming, horseback riding, picnics, and religious services.
Grafton briefly served as the county seat of Kane County (January 1866 to January 1867); boundary changes later placed it in Washington County.
Hardships of 1866: Disease, Accident, and Conflict
1866 was catastrophic. The Grafton Cemetery records numerous deaths that year in a community of ~168 people:
- Multiple children and adults from diphtheria (e.g., York and Field family members).
- Two teenage girls (Loretta A. Russell, 14, and Elizabeth H. Woodbury, 13) killed when a homemade swing broke.
- Scarlet fever cases.
- Other illnesses and accidents.
Conflict with Native peoples intensified during the Black Hawk War (primarily 1865–1872, involving Utes and others, with local involvement of Southern Paiutes and Navajos). The upper Virgin River valley had long been inhabited by Southern Paiutes; competition for scarce land and resources created tension. Navajo groups faced pressure from settlements on both sides of the Colorado River.
On April 2, 1866, Robert M. Berry (24), his wife Isabella (or Mary Isabella) Hales Berry (about 19–20, reportedly pregnant), and Robert’s brother Joseph S. Berry (22) were killed by raiders (accounts vary between Navajo and Paiute) near Short Creek (present-day Colorado City area) while traveling. Robert was described by attackers as a “heap brave fighter.” Their bodies were brought to Grafton for burial (it was then considered the county seat); the graves remain prominent, enclosed by a wooden fence.
Brigham Young ordered southern Utah villages to consolidate into settlements of at least 150 people for safety. Grafton was evacuated; residents moved to Rockville. Farmers returned daily (often armed and in groups) to tend fields and livestock. Grafton effectively became a ghost town for the first time (1866–1868). By 1868, as the immediate threat subsided, residents returned.
Later Years and Decline (1868–1945)
Resettlement occurred, though population never fully recovered to earlier peaks. The 1870 U.S. census counted only a handful of families. Flooding continued to damage fields and infrastructure. In 1886, residents built the distinctive two-story adobe schoolhouse/church/community hall still standing today: adobe bricks from local clay, foundation of lava rock, and lumber hauled ~75 miles from Mount Trumbull on the Arizona Strip. It hosted school, worship, plays, music, and dances; people from surrounding areas attended Friday-night socials.
Utah achieved statehood in 1896. The decisive blow came with the completion of the Hurricane Canal in 1906, which delivered Virgin River water to the broad, fertile Hurricane bench ~20 miles downstream. Many Grafton families (some even relocating entire houses) moved to Hurricane for better farmland and fewer flood problems. School enrollment dropped; the last classes were held around 1918–1919 with only nine students, after which children attended school in Rockville. The local LDS branch was discontinued in 1921.
Population continued to dwindle (census figures show decline after 1910). The last permanent residents, Frank Russell and his wife Ellen (or Mary Ballard Russell in some accounts), left in 1944 or 1945. Modern amenities such as electricity, indoor plumbing, and culinary water were never installed.
Film History and Modern Preservation
In the mid-20th century, the largely abandoned but intact town attracted filmmakers. Notable productions include:
- In Old Arizona (1929) — the first outdoor talkie, with Warner Baxter winning an Academy Award for Best Actor as the Cisco Kid.
- The Arizona Kid (1930).
- Ramrod (1947).
- Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid (1969) — the famous bicycle scene with Paul Newman, Robert Redford, and Katharine Ross was filmed here.
Other films and productions have also used the site. In 1946, movie producer Harry Sherman reportedly purchased the town from a descendant of an early settler.
In 1997, the Grafton Heritage Partnership Project was formed to protect, preserve, and restore the townsite in cooperation with former residents, the Utah State Historical Society, the Bureau of Land Management, and others. Restored or stabilized structures include the 1886 schoolhouse/church, the Alonzo Haventon Russell Home (used in Butch Cassidy), the Louisa Foster (or Marie Russell) Home, the John Wood Home, and the Berry fence in the cemetery. About 150 acres of farmland were acquired to maintain an agricultural appearance. The site was added to the National Register of Historic Places. It remains under surveillance, and annual reunions of former residents and descendants continue (typically the last Saturday in September).
The Cemetery
Located a short distance from the townsite, the Grafton Cemetery (active roughly 1862–1924) holds an estimated 74–84 graves, many unmarked. It includes pioneers, children lost to disease and accidents, victims of the 1866 violence, and some Southern Paiute individuals who lived and worked alongside settlers. The Berry family plot is the most prominent.
Legacy
Grafton’s story encapsulates the perseverance required for pioneer settlement in a harsh desert river environment: floods, silt-clogged ditches, limited arable land, disease, conflict over resources, and eventual economic shifts that favored larger, better-watered communities. Today the quiet townsite, with its adobe and wooden buildings framed by the dramatic cliffs of Zion, stands as a tangible reminder of that era. It is accessible via a short dirt road from Rockville (across the historic bridge over the Virgin River) and is open to respectful visitors. For the most current information on visits and preservation, the Grafton Heritage Partnership Project is the primary resource.