The heights of community: Cottonwood Heights is Utah's newest incorporated city

Vaughan Butler vividly remembers Halloween when he was growing up in Butlerville.

"There were only five houses from the top of the hill to the mouth of the canyon," he said. "We had to walk miles to get five pieces of candy, and probably two of the houses didn't answer their door."

Decades later, this sparsely populated farming and mining community has been transformed into a booming residential neighborhood and Utah's newest incorporated city, Cottonwood Heights.

In the late 1800s, Butler's great-grandfather, Leander Butler, and his five brothers settled the area just south of Holladay. Another prominent family, the McGees, settled the area, as well. When the town met to vote on a name, the six Butler brothers outnumbered the five McGee brothers and the town took on the majority's namesake.

Many early settlers to this section of Salt Lake County worked in mines, saw mills or lumber yards up the canyon and built modest homes at the top of the hill. The population topped out at about 50 in the early 1900s.

Now, the mostly residential area sits at the base of Big Cottonwood Canyon, dotted with large houses and new apartment complexes. Most residences in this affluent area, which is fast becoming a popular nesting ground for politicians and people of prominence, boast household incomes of more than $60,000 according to 2000 census results.

And although the population is steadily creeping toward 40,000, it still maintains the camaraderie and small-town feel that once separated Butlerville from its more-populated neighbors. Butler, who has lived in the area all but 18 months of his life, said one of the characteristics that makes this city so strong is the city leaders who are committed to keeping the legacy of Butlerville intact.

"They're able to maintain that same feeling that the community has developed over a period of time," said Butler, who grew up in Butlerville along with three City Council members. "Communities take on a personality of their own based on the concerns of the area. That particular area has

been committed to families and values, helping those in need. Those (City Council members) raised in that type of atmosphere are in a better position to carry on the pulse of the city."

The heart of Cottonwood Heights lies in its primarily older demographic. Butler said he has neighbors he's known since the 1940s. What makes the city unique, however, is its growing population of young families and newlyweds.