Join us for upcoming Grafton events
Annual Grafton Reunion, Saturday, September 28, 11 a.m. to 2 p.m.
The reunion will be held at the usual location, east past the church/schoolhouse and Russell home. In the event of rain, the alternate plan is to meet at the Rockville Community Center (43 E. Main Street). The grounds will be open from 11 a.m. through 2 p.m. We encourage participants to bring their own lunch and camp chairs. It will include some musical numbers, including the classic “I’m My Own Grandpa.” If you have ideas for the program, or would like to participate, please contact Ron Morris, 801-360-9039 or ronmorris39@gmail.com. We encourage anyone to set up their own family displays. We would love to see any historic photos you have.
Family Search Activity at the Reunion
One of the activities participants at the reunion will do this year is find out how they’re related to other participants through the Family Search Family Tree App. If you don’t have the app already, you should download it before the reunion by going to Apple App Store or Google Play Store and download it. Once it is downloaded, sign in using your FamilySearch username and password.
After opening the app a Pedigree Chart will appear showing your ancestors. At the bottom right of the page is an icon that looks like a hamburger. Click on this icon and a menu of choices will appear. Click on “Relatives Around Me.” If others around you also have their FamilySearch Tree App open and ready then you will begin to see a list of relatives near you to whom you can introduce yourself!
Butch Cassidy 10k/5K on Saturday, November 9
The Butch Cassidy 10K/5K race has been a staple in Springdale, Rockville and Grafton for over 40 years. Honoring the memory of the most famous movie that used Grafton as a backdrop, Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid, the race has always ended in Grafton. In addition to the race itself, it includes a “Catch Butch” competition, a selfie contest, and a Butch Cassidy look-alike, among other additions.
Some of the proceeds of the race go towards Grafton and we appreciate their continued support! To register, visit: https://www.raceentry.com/races/butch-cassidy-10k-5k-/2024/register.
Grafton Heritage Partnership Project Welcomes New Executive Director
The Grafton Heritage Partnership Project recently named Reuben Wadsworth, a local historian and educator, as its new executive director. Wadsworth is a history teacher at Hurricane Middle School as well as an adjunct history instructor at Utah Tech University. He has extensively explored, researched and written about Southern Utah as author of the St. George News “Days Series,” which highlights the history of interesting places around the region.
Two sets of Wadsworth’s third great grandparents, Alonzo and Louisa Russell and John Harvey and Charlotte Ballard, as well as a set of second great grandparents, Edward (Ep) and Louisa Russell Ballard, lived in Grafton.
Wadsworth is excited to take on this responsibility of assisting in preserving Grafton and its history for future generations. If you have any questions about Grafton, please contact him at graftonheritage@gmail.com.
Schoolhouse only open for special events
Recently, we put up a closed sign on the Grafton schoolhouse/church. We’ve noticed visitors trying to open the church door, which is nearly always locked. In order to preserve the schoolhouse, we feel it best to close it and show a picture of what it looks like on the inside.
We will, however, open the schoolhouse on special occasions such as the Grafton Reunion and Butch Cassidy 5K/10K race mentioned on the front page. If you want to see the inside of the schoolhouse, we encourage you to come to those two events. The other nearby Grafton buildings are open for visitors to explore the inside.
Grafton Heritage Is On Social Media!
To keep up to date on what’s going on with Grafton, we encourage you to follow the Grafton Heritage Partnership
Project on social media, both on Instagram and Facebook. We will post historical tidbits as well as news of upcoming events. Please scan the QR codes to follow us on social media!
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/graftonheritage
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/people/Grafton-Heritage-Partnership-Project