Utah's 150 year old telegraph office

Utah is home to many beautiful national parks. If you’re planning to go to southern Utah this year, don’t check into a hotel that advertises itself as authentic and historical. If you really want to be at the mouth of zion canyon, stay in a little old house located in the town of Rockville.

Rockville is a small town located outside of Springdale, which is at the mouth of Zion canyon. The park entrance is a short drive from the house, which should only take around five minutes. The house itself is on the National Historic Registry, and was built in 1864. A year after the Gettysburg address was given by Abraham Lincoln.

In it’s historic days, the house was a telegraph office. The front room is the actual telegraph office, and contains vintage telegraph equipment. After people stopped using telegraphs to communicate, the building fell into disuse.

Later, around the early 1970’s, Roy Simmons and Tibby Simmons purchased the property and began to restore the worn house. They continued to restore, completing it in 1975. A few years later, the house burned down, and was again rebuilt by Roy and his wife. In 2013, Joshua Watkins purchased the property from his family as a place to stay when he visited southern Utah.

There are a variety of canyon hikes around the house, from short, leisurely hikes to technical slot canyons for climbing and repelling. Behind the house is a river, which is fun to play in on hot summer days. Grafton, a popular ghost town, is also close to the location. 

Sources:

Informational Plaque

National Historic Registry

The Watkins Family