In scenic red rock
country, 15 miles northwest of sunny St. George lies
the 240-acre Gunlock Reservoir where year-round
boating, water sports and quality fishing for bass
and catfish attract visitors. Facilities include
boat launching ramp and pit privies.
The name Gunlock is the
same as the small farming community one mile to the
north. William Haynes Hamblin (nicknamed Will or
Bill), a Mormon pioneer born in Ohio, settled in the
present area of the lake in 1857.
Gunlock Will was a good hunter and sharpshooter, and was skillful in
repairing gunlocks, which are the firing mechanisms for muzzleloaders.
His brother, Jacob Hamblin, was actually the more well known of the two.
He was a Mormon settler and a missionary to the Indians of southern Utah
and northern Arizona, particularly the Shivwits tribe of the Paiute
Indians, who still live in this area. The county road to the park
is the Old Spanish Trail used by horsemen and raiders from Sante Fe, New
Mexico to Los Angeles from the 1820 s until the gold fields became the
destination after 1849 and a shorter route was taken. Gunlock
Reservoir dam was constructed in 1970 for irrigation water and flood
control.
For updated information regarding
facilities for the physically challenged, contact the park.
Gunlock State Park
P.O. Box 140
Santa Clara, Utah 84765-0140
(435) 628-2255
