About Brian Head

History

For generations, this breathtaking alpine landscape was home to numerous pioneer cabins, established through the Federal Homestead Act of 1862. Signed by President Abraham Lincoln, this act granted Americans up to 160-acre parcels of public land, facilitating the expansion of the western territories. Among the early settlers in the upper mountain regions of Iron County, within and around Aspen Meadows, were families bearing notable local names such as Burton, Lyman, and Adams, along with many others.

In the years that followed, the land surrounding Aspen Meadows and Brian Head was incorporated into Dixie National Park in 1906. By the late 19th and early 20th centuries, the broader Brian Head area had earned the nickname "Little Ireland," a nod to the Adams family of Irish descent, who used the land for dairying and as summer grazing grounds for sheep and horses. Residents from Cedar City and Parowan City fondly recall visiting the area in the 1940s and 1950s, feeding two horses, Prince and Ranger, in the pastures near the entrance to Aspen Meadows along Old State Highway 143. Portions of Aspen Meadows and adjacent lands extending into U.S. Forest Service territory were also once sites for logging operations and a cheese factory.

Over the past 60 years, this land has remained in private hands, passing through three different ownership groups of the Brian Head Resort. Each group shared a vision of the land's future as a site for recreational activities and expanded ski terrain, dating back to Burt Nichols in the early 1960s. Locals still cherish memories of "Burt’s Road to Nowhere," now known as Aspen Meadows Drive, a name that continues to honor Burt’s legacy.