The 1920s and
1930s also saw Kanab become a tourist center for visitors to Bryce Canyon,
Zion, and Grand Canyon national parks. During the construction of Glen
Canyon Dam near Page, Arizona, which began in 1956, Kanab's population
doubled and the economy boomed. The creation of Lake Powell, one of
Utah's major recreational sites, brought new service industries connected
with boating and fishing to the area, especially the Bullfrog Basin
marina in the extreme northeast corner of the county.
Enormous coal
reserves in the Kaiparowits Plateau and Alton fields are Kane County's
most important natural resource and may, if environmental issues are
resolved, dictate a new economic future based on mining.
Miriam B. Murphy