The county's prehistoric Indian dwellers were part of the Anasazi Culture. Archaeologists have recorded hundreds of sites on Fifty Mile Mountain within the Glen Canyon National Recreation Area, but few have been excavated because of their remoteness. The Southern Paiutes occupied the county in historic times.
Several towns, including Kanab, were first settled in the mid-1860s and then abandoned. Kanab was resettled in 1870 by Levi Stewart and others at the request of Brigham Young. In March 1874 Young encouraged the formation of a United Order at Orderville. Although United Orders were organized in many Utah towns, including Kanab, the Orderville experiment in communal living was more successful and longer-lived, making this town unique among Utah settlements. By the 1880s Mormon church support had become lukewarm, and the United Order of Orderville was dissolved.
During the 19th and early 20th centuries a majority of the county's residents were farmers or ranchers. In 1922 when Deadwood Coach with Tom Mix was filmed in Kane County, the Parry brothers of Kanab led in the development of lodging, food, and other services for film crews, and by the 1930s Kanab was called Little Hollywood because so many movies were made there. The 1920s and 1930s also saw Kanab become a tourist center for visitors to Bryce Canyon, Zion, and Grand Canyon National Parks. During the construction of Glen Canyon Dam near Page, Arizona, which began in 1956, Kanab's population doubled and the economy boomed. The creation of Lake Powell, one of Utah's major recreational sites, brought new service industries connected with boating and fishing to the area, especially the Bullfrog Basin Marina in the extreme northeast corner of the county.
Enormous coal reserves in the Kaiparowits Plateau and Alton fields are Kane County's most important natural resource and may, when environmental issues are resolved, dictate a new economic future based on mining.
*Sources: Beehive History 14: Utah Counties. 1988. Utah State Historical Society, 300 Rio Grande, Salt Lake City, UT 84101-1182.
Geography
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 4,108 square miles (10,641 kmē), of
which, 3,992 square miles (10,339 kmē) of it is land and 116 square miles (302 kmē) of it (2.83%) is water. The
Colorado River, reformed as Lake Powell, forms its eastern boundary. Arizona lies on the southern boundary.
Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument covers much of the county. A rugged and inhospitable country of
deserts, mountains and cliffs makes up the terrain, with breath-taking scenery in every area. Parts of Bryce
Canyon National Park and Zion National Park extend into the northern and western portions of the county. The
eastern part of the county is comprised of part of the Glen Canyon National Recreation Area.
Neighboring Counties:
- Washington County, Utah - (west)
- Iron County, Utah - (northwest)
- Garfield County, Utah - (north)
- San Juan County, Utah - (east)
- Mohave County, Arizona - (southwest)
- Coconino County, Arizona - (south)
Cities and Towns:
| - Alton | town | Incorporated Area |
| - Big Water | town | Incorporated Area |
| - Glendale | town | Incorporated Area |
| - Kanab (County Seat) | city | Incorporated Area |
| - Orderville | town | Incorporated Area |
County Resources:
Enter County Resources and Information Here
