See This Flight of Stairs Up the Bluff in Leeds

It is easy to drive past Southern Utah history without even realizing it. Tucked in a neighborhood across the freeway from Leeds are some rock buildings and a stairway that was built long before it was popular to put stairs up a bluff.

The Impact of the Civilian Conservation Corps

The Civilian Conservation Corps was started during the Great Depression to give young men to work and make money during those tough economic times. They improved area roads and made improvements to state and national parks.

One of these camps was near Leeds and some of the buildings have been preserved for history. Even though the structures were built in the 1930s, the rocks used for the walls were scavenged from previous buildings built in the 1860s when the silver mine was booming.

Exploring Historic Structures: Infirmary to Dragon Stairs

The buildings include an infirmary, the dispensary where they handed out paychecks, blacksmith shop, and a set of stairs that meander up the bluff. These were the original dragon stairs in Southern Utah and deserve their own race.

This CCC camp is a piece of history you probably have driven past hundreds of times. These men shaped parts of Southern Utah that we still enjoy today. The work they did not Zion National Park made the place accessible and let to its current popularity.

Southern Utah is drenched in history, but it can be easy to drive by without any knowledge. Take a minute to find petroglyphs, ghost towns, and the awesome historic sites scattered around the area.