Sugarloaf, Or Dixie Rock, Gains National Park Listing Status

City council member and Washington County native Natalie Larsen is pretty pumped that St. George's very own Sugarloaf (or Dixie Rock, as it's known by some people), has received National Park Listing designation.

She posted the good news for Dixie Rock supporters Monday on social media.

It is official! The SUGARLOAF has been listed by the National Park Service. This has been a collaborative effort, in our community, to get this designation. The Pioneer Park Interpretative Trail is in the works and tell the history of this area and why "Dixie" is on the hillside.

Larsen went on to express gratitude to the parties involved in getting the designation.

I appreciate the efforts from citizens, former council members, current council members, county officials, Kyle Wells and many others who have supported this process. It is important to me we honor the Dixie Spirit and not use it to divide this area. For me the Dixie Spirit means community, we will work together in spite of our differences and be resourceful with what we have. The Dixie Spirit also means to forgive.

Larsen also added that St. George City Parks and Recreation Director Shawn Moore was instrumental in making the designation a reality.

Tourists and other visitors to St. George, often wonder about the "Dixie" on the hill and the origin of the name Dixie in Southern Utah.

Historians will tell you it as simple as early settlers in the area naming it Dixie as it was the "south" part of Utah and the original plan, like in the southern United States, was to grow cotton here.

While the cotton part didn't work out, a new pride or "Dixie Spirit" of service and volunteerism has come to embody Southern Utah.