Watson, Utah

Watson is a ghost town in Uintah County, at the extreme eastern edge of Utah, United States. Watson was founded on 19 November 1911,^[1] when an extension to the Uintah Railway moved the terminus of the line to Watson from Dragon.^[2]

Watson
Ghost town
Watson Location of Watson in Utah Show map of Utah Watson Watson (the United States) Show map of the United States
Coordinates: 39°52′54.8″N 109°09′30.6″W
Country	United States
State	Utah
County	Uintah
Established	19 November 1911
Abandoned	c. 1939
Named after	Wallace G. Watson
Elevation	5,378 ft (1,639 m)

Geography

Watson is located south of the White River along Evacuation Creek, just North of the ghost town Dragon and the Black Dragon Gilsonite mine. The present-day center of Gilsonite mining, Bonanza, is about 20 miles (32 km) to the north of Watson.

History

The Town was named after Wallace G. Watson, the Civil Engineer who designed the Uintah Railroad that ran from Dragon to Watson along Evacuation Creek. The town was made up of a rail depot, a few houses, a hotel, a post office, a school, a telephone office, and a warehouse. Without a railway north into Vernal, sending items through the mail was often cheaper, so many items came through the post office. The town once had around 750 people living there.^[3] The Hotel, named the Watson Hotel was owned by the Railway company.

Notable people

• Wallace G. Watson^[4]