| Desert Lake, Utah | |
| Pushpin Map: | Utah#USA |
| Pushpin Label: | Desert Lake |
| Pushpin Label Position: | right |
| Subdivision Name: | United States |
| Established Title: | Founded |
| Established Date: | 1885 |
| Extinct Title: | Abandoned |
| Extinct Date: | 1910 |
| Elevation Ft: | 5577 |
| Elevation M: | 1700 |
| Coordinates: | 39.3733°N -110.7825°W |
| Blank Name: | GNIS feature ID |
Desert Lake is a ghost town in Castle Valley in northern Emery County, Utah, United States. It was inhabited from 1885 to about 1910.[1] [2]
In 1885, several families moved from the nearby town of Cleveland to an area they called Desert Lake, and built a 500feet embankment dam to impound a 300acres irrigation reservoir (Desert Lake).[3] In 1896, the dam broke, causing significant damage.[1] The LDS Church provided $1000 to rebuild the dam, and also to extend a ditch southwest to Cleveland.[3]
The 1900 United States Census reported Desert Lake's population at 127.[4] Six years after the Census was taken, in 1906, the Desert Lake area was surveyed. An LDS church, a general store, several frame homes, and a school were constructed. The general store also served as the town's post office.[5]
A problem throughout the valley occurred as farmers irrigated land, which dropped the water table and caused alkali in the soil to rise.[3] The alkaline soil eroded adobe structures and caused many crops to fail.[3] As the alkali in the soil concentrated, the residents of Desert Lake moved about 6miles away and founded the town of Victor. A few log homes make up what's left of the town of Desert Lake.[5]