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Native American and European American cultures were the first to settle down in what is known today as Zion National park. Archeologists have identified sites and artifacts from the Archaic culture that date from around 7000 bce.
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During the Archaic period, small groups hunted game and collected wild plants, seeds, and nuts across the broad expanse of the Great Basin and western Colorado Plateau. The Archaic toolkits also included flaked stone knives, drills, and stemmed dart points. The dart points were hafted to wooden shafts and propelled by throwing devices, called atlatls.
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Around 500 BCE permanent villages called pueblos were being put up by European settlers. Archaeologists call this the Archaic period and it lasted until about 500 BCE. There are many artifacts that have been dated back to this period such as sandals, baskets, cordage nets, and yucca fiber.
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there are two distinctive horticultural groups, the Virgin Anasazi and Parowan Fremont, appear in the archeological record of Zion National Park. They established year-round habitation sites (often called “pueblos, the Spanish word for “village.” Sedentary lifestyles encouraged the production of plain and painted ceramic vessels.
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The Numic language speakers were the only occupants of the Zion landscape. They depended on a wide array of wild plants and animals, moving seasonally to hunt game or collect ripe seeds and nuts. Some, particularly the Southern Paiute, also planted fields of corn, sunflowers, and squash to supplement their collected wild foods. These more sedentary groups made brownware vessels that were for storage and cooking.
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The exploration and settlement of southern Utah by Euro-Americans. Initial explorations by traders from New Mexico blazed the Old Spanish Trail, which followed the Virgin River for a portion of its length. During the next century, fur trappers and government surveyors added new overland travel routes across the region. John Wesley Powell explored the areas around Zion Canyon. The early pack trails soon became well-used wagon roads, connecting Santa Fe to the California markets.
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Zion's first settler, Isaac Behunin lived in a log cabin near where Zion Lodge is today. Mormon settlers left their mark, which gave them the name of Zion. The Mormons like the immense beauty of the canyon, referred to it as, "Zion" since its magnificence reminded them of a heavenly city described in the Little Zion.
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The canyon was declared a National Monument by President Taft after receiving the survey results. As a result of this decision was that farming of the canyon by Mormon settlers came to an end.
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On 1919 Congress declares the Monument to be Zion National Park, becoming Utah's oldest National Park. Woodrow Wilson signed the bill which allowed it to become a park attracting over 3 million visitors in the first year.
