Harrisburg
Harrisburg was a small pioneer settlement tucked into the foothills southeast of Silver Reef, where families built homes along the creek and tried to make a life in the shadow of the red cliffs. Though the town never grew large, its story is one of determination, faith, and survival in a rugged landscape. This article offers a welcoming introduction to the people who lived in Harrisburg, the challenges they faced, and the traces of their community that can still be found today.
The Beginnings
The story of Silver Reef begins with the neighboring towns of Harrisburg and Leeds. In 1859, after spending the winter near the town of Washington (next to St. George), the Harris party, which consisted of nine families, selected a site near the confluence of Quail Creek. This site is now covered by Quail Creek Reservoir. This site proved to be unsuccessful because the land was only marginal and was difficult to irrigate. A disastrous fire added to the discouragement and, in 1860, the families moved away.
However, a year later, the families returned. This time however, they selected another site to settle three miles up the creek. They later called it Harrisburg. Today, this is the general area where Quail Creek passes underneath Interstate 15.
The site they picked was more level, the warm climate was ideal, and was located along a well-traveled wagon road, which would later become US 91 and, later still, I-15. By 1862, friends and family of the original party joined them, and the population of Harrisburg grew to 41. By 1864, the population grew to 16 families or 128 people.
Harrisburg Ditch
1865 or 66 a diversion dam was built about a mile north of current day Silver Reef. It diverted water out of Leeds Creek and into a 5-mile-long irrigation canal ending in Harrisburg. The water greatly helped farming but the soil was still too rocky and there wasn’t much room for the farms to expand.
By 1867, the Harrisburg settlers that a place called Road Valley, just to the north, was more suitable for farming and was closer to the water source of the Harrisburg Ditch. Slowly, families began to relocate to Road Valley, which would later become named Bennington, then in 1869, the town was renamed to Leeds.
The Adams Home
Today, two houses remain from Harrisburg’s heyday of the early 1860s. One is the Jolly Home that’s seen near the entrance of the Harrisburg Estate Community along Old Hwy 91. The other is the Adams House that’s seen along the road leading up to the Red Cliffs Recreation Area.
The Adams House, built in 1863, played a significant role in the discovery of silver at Silver Reef. This is the house that attracted prospector John Kemple to spend the winter. He would go on to dig one of the first silver mines in the area near the Adams House.
 | See the separate article on John Kemple and his discovery of silver |
Today, the Adams House is preserved by the BLM and the Red Cliffs Reserve. There are still fixtures in its interior.
Map
Location of Harrisburg, along with other nearby sites, in relation to the town of Silver Reef. Click points on map to reveal locations of Harrisburg-related places.