Wayne County, Utah

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County in Utah, United States

title: "Wayne County, Utah" type: doc version: 1 created: 2026-02-28 author: "Wikipedia contributors" status: active scope: public tags: ["wayne-county,-utah", "1892-establishments-in-utah-territory", "populated-places-established-in-1892"] description: "County in Utah, United States" topic_path: "general/wayne-county-utah" source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wayne_County,_Utah" license: "CC BY-SA 4.0" wikipedia_page_id: 0 wikipedia_revision_id: 0

::summary County in Utah, United States ::

::data[format=table title="Infobox U.S. county"]

Field	Value
county	Wayne County
state	Utah
ex image	Loa Tithing Office Loa Utah.jpeg
ex image size	220px
ex image cap	Tithing Office in Loa, Utah.
founded year	1892
founded date	March 10
seat wl	Loa
largest city wl	Loa
city type	town
area_total_sq_mi	2466
area_land_sq_mi	2461
area_water_sq_mi	5.8
area percentage	0.2
population_as_of	2020
population_total	2486
population_density_sq_mi	auto
time zone	Mountain
web	www.waynecountyutah.org
named for	Wayne County, Tennessee
district	2nd
::

Wayne County is a county in the U.S. state of Utah. As of the 2020 United States census, the population was 2,486, making it the fourth-least populous county in Utah. Its county seat is Loa.

History

Due to its remoteness and harsh terrain, settlements did not appear in the future Wayne County until the 1880s. By 1892, there was enough settlement and enough interest in a separate county (due mainly to the difficulty of accessing the Piute County seat), that Utah Territory passed an act (effective date March 10, 1892) to separate the east portion of Piute into a separate county. The county was named for Wayne County, Tennessee, itself named for Anthony Wayne. The county boundaries have remained unchanged since its creation.

Geography

The eastern border of Wayne County is delineated by the meanders of the Green River, which flows southward to discharge into the Colorado River. After the two rivers join, the combined southwestern flow forms the remaining portion of the county's eastern border. The central part of the county is drained by the Fremont River and Muddy Creek. The Fremont begins at Fish Lake in Sevier County and flows into Wayne County near its northwestern corner. It joins the Muddy near Hanksville to form the Dirty Devil River, which flows southeastward out of the county's southern border to discharge into Colorado. Wayne County terrain varies from rough forestland on the west to arid poor soil carved by drainages and rocky outcrops. The terrain slopes to the east and south; its highest point is Bluebell Knoll on Boulder Mountain at 11,317 ft ASL The county has a total area of 2466 sqmi, of which 2461 sqmi is land and 5.8 sqmi (0.2%) is water.

The Green River, passing through the canyons of Canyonlands National Park, forms the eastern boundary. The San Rafael Desert occupies the center of the county. Thousand Lake Mountain and Boulder Mountain flank Rabbit Valley on the western end of the county, where forests contrast with the deserts to the east. The small population of the county is centered in Rabbit Valley, with one town of 200, Hanksville, located in Graves Valley north of the Henry Mountains. Wayne County is also home to Capitol Reef National Park.

Major highways

Adjacent counties

Emery County - north
Grand County - northeast
San Juan County - east
Garfield County - south
Piute County - west
Sevier County (northwest)

National forests/parks

Lakes

Abes Knoll Reservoir
Alkali Lake
Bald Knoll Reservoir
Beaver Dam Reservoir
Beef Hollow Reservoir
Bicknell Reservoir
Big Hollow Reservoir
Black Point Reservoir
Blackburn Reservoir
Blind Lake (near Neff Reservoir)
Blind Lake (near Pear Lake)
Blue Lake
Bobs Hole
Brinkerhoff Pond
Buffalo Pond
Bull Roost Reservoir
Bullberry Lakes
Cameron Reservoir
Cedar Peak Lake
Coleman Reservoir
Cook Lake
Cub Lake
Curler Lake
Cyclone Co-op Reservoir
Cyclone Knoll Reservoir
Dead Horse Lake
Deadman Hollow Reservoir
Deep Creek Lake
Donkey Reservoir
Dry Lake Reservoir
East Bicknell Sand Wash Pond
East Gate Reservoir
Eightmile Reservoir
Emily Lake
Evans Reservoir
Fish Creek Reservoir
Flat Top Reservoir
Flatiron Lakes
Flossie Lake
Government Lake
Grass Lake (near Bobs Hole)
Grass Lake (near Torgerson Lake)
Green Lake
Gripe Reservoir
Hare Lake
Heart Lake
Honeymoon Lake
Hunt Reservoir
Jakes Knoll Reservoir
Jane Lake
Jay Pond
Jim Larson Reservoir
Lava Lake
Lee Lake
Left Hand Reservoir
Lightning Lake
Long Hollow Reservoir
Lost Lake
Lower Balsam Reservoir
Lower Reservoir
Meadow Gulch Reservoir
Middle Balsam Reservoir
Middle Reservoir
Mill Meadow Reservoir (part)
Miller Lake
Mitts Reservoir
Moroni Reservoir
Mud Lake
Ned Reservoir
Neff Reservoir
Ottos Reservoir
Parker Hollow Reservoir
Pass Reservoir
Pear Lake
Petes Pond
Pine Creek Reservoir
Pole Canyon Reservoir
Raft Lake
Right Fork Wildcat Reservoir
Rock Lake
Rock Point Reservoir
Round Lake (near Heart Lake)
Round Lake (near Lower Reservoir)
Sage Reservoir
Smooth Knoll Reservoir
Snow Lake
Snow Lakes
Solitaire Lake
Spray Reservoir
Square Reservoir
Tidwell Reservoir
Torgerson Lake
Twin Lakes
Upper Balsam Reservoir
Vance Reservoir
West Bicknell Pond
West Flat Top Reservoir Number 1
West Flat Top Reservoir Number 2
White Rock Reservoir
Wide Hollow Reservoir
Wildcat Reservoir
Woodys Reservoir

Demographics

|1900= 1907 |1910= 1749 |1920= 2097 |1930= 2067 |1940= 2394 |1950= 2205 |1960= 1728 |1970= 1483 |1980= 1911 |1990= 2177 |2000= 2509 |2010= 2778 |2020= 2486 |estref= |align-fn=center |footnote=US Decennial Census 1790–1960 1900–1990 1990–2000 2010 2020

2020 census

According to the 2020 United States census and 2020 American Community Survey, there were 2,486 people in Wayne County with a population density of 1.0 people per square mile (0.4/km2). Among non-Hispanic or Latino people, the racial makeup was 2,267 (91.2%) White, 1 (0.0%) African American, 19 (0.8%) Native American, 16 (0.6%) Asian, 3 (0.1%) Pacific Islander, 5 (0.2%) from other races, and 79 (3.2%) from two or more races. 96 (3.9%) people were Hispanic or Latino.

There were 1,239 (49.84%) males and 1,247 (50.16%) females, and the population distribution by age was 536 (21.6%) under the age of 18, 1,334 (53.7%) from 18 to 64, and 616 (24.8%) who were at least 65 years old. The median age was 47.3 years.

There were 1,064 households in Wayne County with an average size of 2.34 of which 711 (66.8%) were families and 353 (33.2%) were non-families. Among all families, 601 (56.5%) were married couples, 49 (4.6%) were male householders with no spouse, and 61 (5.7%) were female householders with no spouse. Among all non-families, 307 (28.9%) were a single person living alone and 46 (4.3%) were two or more people living together. 290 (27.3%) of all households had children under the age of 18. 814 (76.5%) of households were owner-occupied while 250 (23.5%) were renter-occupied.

The median income for a Wayne County household was $49,299 and the median family income was $62,069, with a per-capita income of $23,184. The median income for males that were full-time employees was $50,625 and for females $34,653. 10.1% of the population and 6.8% of families were below the poverty line.

In terms of education attainment, out of the 1,822 people in Wayne County 25 years or older, 190 (10.4%) had not completed high school, 346 (19.0%) had a high school diploma or equivalency, 848 (46.5%) had some college or associate degree, 374 (20.5%) had a bachelor's degree, and 64 (3.5%) had a graduate or professional degree.

Ancestry and ethnicity

As of 2017 the largest self-identified ancestry groups/ethnic groups in Wayne County, Utah were:

::data[format=table]

Largest ancestries (2017)	Percent
English	45.5%
German	16.3%
Dutch	8.4%
Danish	7.6%
Irish	5.8%
Scottish	5.4%
Swedish	3.9%
American	2.3%
Welsh	1.7%
Polish	1.2%
::

Communities

Towns

Bicknell
Hanksville
Loa (county seat)
Lyman
Torrey

Census-designated places

Unincorporated communities

Former communities

::figure[src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/66/Scenery_north_of_Hanksville,_Utah.jpg" caption="Factory Butte]] in background."] ::

Politics and government

Wayne County voters are traditionally Republican. In only one national election since 1948 has the county selected the Democratic Party candidate (as of 2024).

::data[format=table title="State elected offices"]

Position	District	Name	Affiliation	First elected
Republican Party (United States)}}"		Senate	24	Derrin Owens
Republican Party (United States)}}"		House of Representatives	73	Phil Lyman
	Board of Education	14	Mark Huntsman	Nonpartisan
::

Education

There is one school district, Wayne School District.

References

"Wayne County, Utah". [[United States Census Bureau]].
"Find a County". National Association of Counties.
"[[Newberry Library]]. Individual County Chronologies - Wayne County UT (accessed March 25, 2019)".
""History". This narrative says the county was established in May 1892 (possibly referring to the date its government was organized). Wayne County website (accessed 25 March 2019)".
Murphy, Miriam B.. (January 1999). "A History of Wayne County". Utah State Historical Society.
[https://www.google.com/maps/place/Wayne+County,+UT/@38.3099803,-110.5835397,10.46z/data=!4m5!3m4!1s0x87361facee9b0009:0x611fc1f154bb0861!8m2!3d38.3337024!4d-110.8076084 ''Wayne County UT'' Google Maps (accessed 24 March 2019)]
(August 22, 2012). "2010 Census Gazetteer Files". US Census Bureau.
"US Decennial Census". US Census Bureau.
"Historical Census Browser". University of Virginia Library.
(March 27, 1995). "Population of Counties by Decennial Census: 1900 to 1990". US Census Bureau.
(April 2, 2001). "Census 2000 PHC-T-4. Ranking Tables for Counties: 1990 and 2000". US Census Bureau.
"State & County QuickFacts". United States Census Bureau.
[https://www.census.gov/library/visualizations/interactive/2020-population-and-housing-state-data.html 2020 Population and Housing State Data. Utah]
United States Census Bureau. "2020 Census Demographic and Housing Characteristics File (DHC)".
United States Census Bureau. "American Community Survey 5-Year Data (2009-2022)".
"American FactFinder - Results".
"Senator Owens Utah Senate".
"Rep. Lyman, Phil".
"Mark Huntsman".
Leip, David. "Atlas of US Presidential Elections".
"2020 CENSUS - SCHOOL DISTRICT REFERENCE MAP: Wayne County, UT". [[U.S. Census Bureau]].

::callout[type=info title="Wikipedia Source"] This article was imported from Wikipedia and is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Content has been adapted to SurfDoc format. Original contributors can be found on the article history page. ::