St. George, Part IV

Okay... this is my last post regarding St. George. No more boring play-by-plays. I have a feeling this small trip we took was a bit more fun for me than my readers. Alas, my need to finish what I started will result in this final blog post... and I will share a few pics of local points of interest.

As I mentioned before, St. George was established by early Mormon settlers in an effort to start cotton plantations out here in the Western regions. When you look at the town and rural areas outside of St. George, one would wonder where these large cotton farms would reside. St. George primarily consists of red rock, cactus, and palm trees and it seems nearly impossible to farm anything in this type of terrain.

Now it appears as if this town is thriving on travellers and small business ownership. This perfect circle of economic trade allows this town to live, succeed and potentially grow. I was amazed by how many small businesses made up main street and the majority of the town. Restaurants, gas stations, boutiques, bakeries, ice cream shops and anything you can imagine... it can be found as a privately owned business.

Speaking of thriving, the faith of St. George (which is primarily LDS) is bustling and can be found in almost every aspect of the town. You can see the Mormon Temple from the highway and at night, it is lit up in all it's splendor. The Tabernacle is cared for and loved, in spite of being nearly one-hundred and forty years old. Privately owned coffee shops are impossible to come by, yet custard and ice cream is found on every corner. The people are kind and loving and you sense their deep love of community. Children run amok and are tended to by stranger and family alike. All of this due to the beliefs and cultural standards of the Mormon Church.

I was deeply impressed by this small, out-of-the-way town and intrigued by it's ability to be special and yet not. St. George was a place to find warmth, easiness and peace of mind... a place where people smile and encourage you to have a great day.

St. George Tabernacle - Est. 1871

St. George Community Park

St. George LDS Temple - Est. 1877

*St. George's LDS Temple was the first operating temple of the Mormon religion and the only completed during the lifetime of Brigham Young.