National Park Service: Highways in Harmony (Southwest Circle Tour Roads and Bridges)

Southwest Circle Tour Roads and Bridges
Zion, Bryce, Grand Canyon North Rim National Parks
Cedar Breaks, Pipe Spring National Monuments
Kaibab, Dixie National Forests

		SOUTHWEST CIRCLE TOUR ROADS AND BRIDGES TIMELINE OF DEVELOPMENTS

6-10 million years ago		Great uplift of Colorado Plateau and increased erosion begin to form Zion, Bryce, Grand Canyon, and Cedar Breaks.
200 B.C.		First known occupation of Zion and Grand canyons by Basketmaker people of the Anasazi culture; abandoned region by A.D. 1300
A.D. 1200		Paiute Indians occupy the region and develop early transportation routes.
1776		Dominguez and Escalante pass 25 miles west of Zion; find Parrusits Band of Southern Paiute Indians along Virgin River
1847		Brigham Young leads Mormon settlers to found Salt Lake City; expansion to Zion and Bryce region follows
1858		Southern Paiute Indian guides Mormon scout Nephi Johnson into Zion Canyon, the first European-American to see the wonders
1863		First Mormon settlers apply the names "Joseph's Glory," "Zion," and "Little Zion" to Zion Canyon
1870		John Wesley Powell names Zion Canyon and North Fork Virgin River "Mukuntuweap," a Southern Paiute name of lost meaning
1901-16		Operators of Zion lumber cable works maintain a rough wagon road into Zion Canyon as far as Weeping Rock
1909		President Taft proclaims Mukuntuweap National Monument (Zion Canyon); several hundred visitors arrive in wagons and buggies
1914		First automobile enters Mukuntuweap National Monument; State of Utah and counties begin to improve regional roads
1916		National Park Service established; first auto road completed to rim of Bryce Canyon; guest services established
1917		First automobile road and Wylie tourist camp built along Zion Canyon floor; annual visitation reaches 1,000
1919		Congress elevates Mukuntuweap NM to Zion National Park and Grand Canyon NM to Grand Canyon National Park during the 1910s, but primitive pioneer roads connecting the region's parks and monuments persisted into the 1920s.
1922		Union Pacific Railroad begins $5 million investment in regional tourism; begins branch line to Cedar City for bus service to parks.
1923		President Harding visits Zion National Park; proclaims Pipe Spring and Bryce Canyon national monuments
1925		NPS completes "Government Road" from Zion park entrance to Temple of Sinawava; Zion and Bryce lodges replace old camps
1925		National Park Service and Bureau of Public Roads sign agreement; BPR responsible for road construction in all national parks
1925		Roads of the circle tourism route lead to Zion, Bryce, Cedar Breaks, and Grand Canyon; 17,000 visit Zion National Park
1928		Congress establishes Bryce Canyon National Park; 30,000 visit regional parks and monuments
1930		NPS, State of Utah, and Bureau of Public Roads complete Zion-Mount Carmel Highway and tunnel
1932		NPS completes Zion's Floor of the Valley Road; 86,000 visit circle parks and monuments
1933		President Franklin D. Roosevelt proclaims Cedar Breaks National Monument
1930s		Civilian Conservation Corps maintains and improves roads in Zion, Bryce Canyon, Cedar Breaks, and Grand Canyon
1941		190,000 visit Zion National Park; World War II soon reduces visitation as well as road maintenance at regional parks
1956-66		Mission 66, a $1 billion NPS construction program, includes new 1960 entrance road and visitor center at Zion National Park
1993		NPS replaces Co-op Creek and Clear Creek bridges and widens small tunnel on Zion-Mount Carmel Highway
1993		Annual visitation to Zion approaches 3 million; NPS Historic American Engineering Record documents southwest circle tour roads & bridges

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