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Adair Spring
The Birthplace of Utah’s Dixie
Washington City, Utah

In early 1857 Brigham Young called a group of Southerners on a cotton mission to Southern Utah to raise cotton. Newton Adair, the leader of ten families, arrived at this spot April 15, 1857, after leaving Payson, Utah on March 3. They camped here a short time and then moved down near the Virgin River on what became known as the Sand Plot. Apostle Amasa M. Lyman who was passing through the area recommended that they move back to the spring area which they did. Robert Dockery Covington arrived here May 5 or 6, 1857, with 28 more Southern families. They left the Salt Lake area shortly after the LDS Spring Conference held around April 6. On May 6 or 7 a two day meeting was held at this site under the direction of Issac C. Haight, President of the Parowan Stake. They sang songs, prayed and selected Robert D. Covington to be the President of the LDS branch, and Harrison Pearce and James B. Reagan as assistants. Wm. R. Slade and James D. McCullough were appointed Justices of the Peace, John Hawley and James Matthews as constables, G. R. Coley as stray pound keeper and Wm. R. Slade, Geo. Hawley and G. W. Spencer as school trustees. They named their city Washington. It was too late to plant wheat, so they prepared the ground for corn and went right to work making dams and ditches to water their crops. Their first homes were their wagon boxes, willow and mud huts and dugouts dug in the bank east of this monument. Their new home soon was called “Dixie.”

Those who came in the spring of 1857 were:

Adair, George W.	Crawford, William H.	Johnson, Alfred	Rickey, James
Adair, John M.	Dameron, William	Lloyd, Robert	Slade, William R.
Adair, Joseph	Dodge, Enoch	Mangum, John	Smith, Joseph
Adair, Newton (L.N.)	Duggins, William (Dugus)	Mangum, William	Smith, Thomas W.
Adair, Samuel	Fream, William	Matheny, Sims B.	Spencer, George W.
Adair, Thomas	Freeman, John W.	Matthew, James Nichols	Sprouse, Balus (Spouse)
Clark, John W.	Hatfield, Joseph (Hadfield)	McCullough, James D.	Thomas, Preston
Coley, Gabriel Reynolds	Hawley, George	Pearce, Harrison	Tyler, Oscar
Couch, John Jr.	Hawley, John	Price, John	Wilkins, James B.
Couch, John Sr.	Hawley, William	Reagan, James B.	Young, William J.
Covington, Robert D.	Holden, J.	Rencher, Umpsted	and others

Correction:
It is recorded in the “John Mangum American Revolutionary War Soldier and Descendants” book that Samuel Jefferson Adair was the leader of the Adair group. It was not Samuel Newton Adair who was the son of Samuel Jefferson Adair. Apparently the father was known only as Samuel Adair since the property he owned was recorded as Samuel Adair. The name Samuel Adair and Samuel N. Adair were erroneously assumed to be the same person and the initial “N” omitted at various times. They both were in the original ten families that arrived here on 15 April 1857 but only the name Samuel Adair is listed as one of the original 1857 pioneers. This plaque is to correct the information as shown on the large plaque. Samuel Newton Adair did become a prominent person in Washington but was not the leader of the Adair Company. It was Samuel Jefferson Adair, his father, listed only as Samuel Adair, who led the Adair Company.