Millard County
If you are looking for a small town atmosphere and friendly service with a smile, then Fillmore, Utah is the place for you.
The city boasts a population of about 2,250 and is conveniently located between Salt Lake City and St. George along the I-15 corridor. Fillmore, the county seat, is the second largest incorporated city in Millard County and is nestled snugly at the foot of the majestic Pahvant Mountain Range.
Fillmore was established as the first territorial capital of Utah and the original Statehouse still grandly stands. It is a magnificent architectural beauty that you will fall in love with and want to visit again and again. You may even discover one of your ancestors among the many portraits lining the hallways.
While in Fillmore go on the Historic Walking Trail and visit unique homes. Stop for a picnic at one of four beautifully maintained city parks; reserve one for a family gathering or business meeting. Take time to play a round of golf at the local course, which features 85 acres of gorgeous playable area. Pay respects to local heroes at the Veterans Memorial. You will find well-maintained RV parks and excellent motels, enjoy restaurant dining, or choose from an assortment of fast food outlets.
The pristine mountains offer many stimulating and exciting outdoor experiences. Enjoy world famous ATV trails, do some mountain biking, or just spend the day hiking along the many trails with panoramic views where you will find unique rock formations and even petroglyphs. Take a deep breath of invigorating clean fresh air and soak up the ambience of the sights and sounds of nature. Plan ample time to relax with the rod and reel if you like trout fishing. Sit back and enjoy the peace and quiet of the campground facilities along the banks of the stream that flows through beautiful Chalk Creek Canyon. Whether you are a camera buff or an avid hunter you will thrill to the sights of deer, elk, cougar, and wild turkeys.
Delta is one of Utah’s few towns that was not founded as a pioneer settlement. It was founded in the first decade of the 20th century under the Carey Act of 1894. Public lands were for sale under a system much like the Homestead Act. Before finally settling on the name “Delta,” this small city was known as Aiken, Burtner, and Melville. One person could “prove up” on up to 320 acres to be put to agricultural use. Water rights on the Sevier River turned this desert area into a farming oasis. Flood irrigation beckons thousands of wading birds to the fields for visitors to enjoy. Common sights during the irrigation season include White-faced ibis, Black-necked stilts, Killdeer, Curlews and many others.
Delta is the gateway to the wide-open expanses of high deserts of the Great Basin. Adventures begin stretching as far as the Utah/ Nevada state line. Great Basin National Park lies a mere 100 miles to the west.
Delta is home to the Great Basin Historical Society Museum (/attraction/great-basin-museum). Next door is the Topaz Museum chronicling the events at the Topaz WWII Japanese-American Internment Camp located a few miles west of Delta. Topaz Camp remains a monument to those interned during the war.
Nearby geologic activity over the eons created an outdoor paradise in the surrounding desert. Delta makes a great home-base for rock hounds, fossil hunters and gemologists. Rock, mineral and fossil specimens are short driving distances away from town. Sunstone Knoll offers the opportunity to gather a few semi-precious labradorite crystals. To the northwest is Topaz Mountain offering topaz crystals. Trilobites can be found in the House Range 50 miles west.
Rock climbers and OHV enthusiasts are only a short distance from desert grandeur and solitude. The Tule Valley features a world-renowned marble climbing face on the Ibex Hardpan. A 2000-foot limestone cliff underlies magnificent Notch Peak. Amasa Valley offers great rides and superb views in a pink granite setting.
Other nearby attractions include Fort Deseret—a pioneer era adobe fort on the way to the Great Stone Face. The Great Stone Face is a basalt chimney overlooking the Sevier desert.
Getting Here
Take U.S. 50 west from I-15 at Fillmore, Hwy 257 north from Milford, U.S. 6 west from Nephi at I-15, or U.S. 6 & 50 east from the Utah/Nevada border.
Topaz Museum
Topaz Internment Camp
Great Basin Museum
Gunnison Bend Reservoir—waterskiing, boating, fishing, birdwatching and sunbathing
Clear Lake Wildlife Management Area--birdwatching
Pahvant Butte (Sugarloaf)—extinct volcano
Fort Deseret—1865 adobe fort built for pioneer protection during Blackhawk War
Gunnison Massacre site—U.S. Army Corps of Engineers clash with local Paiute Indians in 1853
Days of the Old West Rodeo—third weekend in June
Old-fashioned 4th of July Celebration
Gunnison Bend Reservoir—swimming, boating, and fishing.
An 18-hole golf course; a skate park, a beautiful city park, well-maintained RV parks and excellent motels; restaurant dining and fast food outlets; and all other needed services are here for you. Lat 39.352361 Lon -112.574730
Fillmore City
Founded in 1851, Fillmore was Utah’s first capital. Named after President Millard Fillmore to curry favor for early statehood, Fillmore lay at the center of the proposed state of Deseret. That state stretched from San Bernardino, CA, through much of the Great Basin into Idaho, Wyoming, Utah, Arizona and Nevada. A territorial capitol building was begun in 1852 at the center of this empire. Long before statehood in 1896 the state capital was moved to Salt Lake City. Fillmore remains the county seat of Millard County.
Fillmore is located in central Utah almost geographically at the center of the Great Basin. It is 148 miles south of Salt Lake City and 162 miles north of St. George on I-15. Fillmore is the second largest incorporated city in Millard County with a population of 2250. It is nestled snugly at the foot of the majestic Pahvant Mountain Range.
This charming city has many 19th century houses still standing. The only completed wing of the Territorial Statehouse houses a wonderful pioneer museum. You may even discover one of your ancestors among the many portraits lining the hallways.
Camping and fishing are readily available in the nearby canyons of the Pahvant Range. ATV trails abound in the Pahvant.
Nearby volcanic activity allows visitors to explore lava tubes, lava flows, and an extinct volcano—Pahvant Butte, or Sugarloaf as it is known to locals. South of Fillmore near the small town of Meadow one can take a dip in the hot springs. Indian petroglyphs record their thoughts in an unknown language on the volcanic basalt in Devil’s Kitchen. Cove Fort, constructed of black basalt in 1867, lies miles to the south along I-15. The fully restored pioneer fort is open to visitors year-round.
Area Highlights
Territorial Statehouse Museum
Devil’s Kitchen
Paiute ATV Trail system
National ATV Jamboree—4th week of June
Meadow Hot Springs
The Old Capital Arts and Living History Festival—first weekend of September
Old-fashioned 4th of July Celebration
Pahvant Butte (Sugarloaf) volcano
Veterans Memorial
A small town atmosphere and friendly service with a smile makes Fillmore the place for you. Fillmore offers four beautifully maintained city parks; a Historic Walking Trail highlighting unique homes;A gorgeous 85-acre golf course; well-maintained RV parks and excellent motels; restaurant dining and fast food outlets; and all other needed services are here for you. Lat 38.968861 Lon -112.323692
The rugged desert mountains in Millard County, Utah attract rockhounds from around the world. The Antelope Springs area is one of the best places in the world to find trilobites. Gem-quality topaz comes from Topaz Mountain. Sunstone Knoll is the place to find interesting sunstone. Countless other sites yield rare and interesting rocks, fossils and minerals.
Please note that it is illegal to collect Indian or historical artifacts on public lands without a permit. This includes arrowheads, pottery, rock art, old bottles, etc. Metal detectors can be used anywhere except historical sites.
You can collect common invertebrates (without skeletal structures; hard or soft bodied animals such as insects or trilobites) in reasonable quantities but it is illegal to sell those finds. Dinosaur and other vertebrate fossils may not be collected on any federal or state lands except by permits issued to accredited institutions.
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