Holladay, Utah

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This article is about the city in Utah. For the surname, see Holladay (surname).
Holladay, Utah
Interstate 215 as it passes along the eastern side of Holladay
Interstate 215 as it passes along the eastern side of Holladay
Location in Salt Lake County and the state of Utah.
Location in Salt Lake County and the state of Utah.
Coordinates: 40°39′23″N 111°49′10″W﻿ / ﻿40.65639°N 111.81944°W﻿ / 40.65639; -111.81944Coordinates: 40°39′23″N 111°49′10″W﻿ / ﻿40.65639°N 111.81944°W﻿ / 40.65639; -111.81944
Country United States
State Utah
County Salt Lake
Settled 1847
Incorporated November 29, 1999
Founded by John Holladay
 • Total 5.3 sq mi (13.8 km2)
 • Land 5.3 sq mi (13.8 km2)
 • Water 0.0 sq mi (0.0 km2)
Elevation 4,465 ft (1,361 m)
Population (2012)
 • Total 26,936
 • Density 4,816.4/sq mi (7,751.2/km2)
Time zone Mountain (MST) (UTC-7)
 • Summer (DST) MDT (UTC-6)
ZIP codes 84117, 84121, 84124
Area code(s) 385, 801
FIPS code 49-36070[1]
GNIS feature ID 1441810[2]

Holladay is a city in Salt Lake County, Utah, United States. It is part of the Salt Lake City, Utah Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 26,472 at the 2010 census,[3] a significant increase from 14,561 in 2000. The city was incorporated on November 29, 1999 as Holladay-Cottonwood, and the name was shortened to Holladay on December 14 of that year. It was reported in the 1990 census as the Holladay-Cottonwood CDP.


On July 29, 1847 a group of Mormon pioneers (members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints) known as the Mississippi Company, among them John Holladay of Alabama, entered the Salt Lake Valley. Within weeks after their arrival, they discovered a free-flowing, spring-fed stream, which they called Spring Creek (near what is now Kentucky Avenue). While most of the group returned to the main settlement in Great Salt Lake for the winter, two or three men built dugouts along this stream and wintered over. Thus, this became the first village established away from Great Salt Lake City itself. In the spring, a number of families hurried out to build homes and tame the land. There were numerous springs and ponds here and grasses and wild flowers were abundant, making this a most desirable area for settlement.

When John Holladay was named as the branch president of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, the village took upon itself the name of Holladay’s Settlement or Holladay’s Burgh. John Holladay's family dates to the early 18th century in Virginia. His ancestors were signers of the South Carolina Declaration of Independence and fought in the Revolutionary War. He is a cousin to Ben Holladay, The Stagecoach King, who traded with the LDS and ran his Denver-San Francisco stage line through Salt Lake. It is not known if they were in contact. John and his father Daniel, a Revolutionary War veteran, pioneered in Alabama before John's conversion to Mormonism. A year before the first LDS migration, in the spring of 1846, he departed west with his extended family joining other converts that made up the Mississippi Company led by John Brown. They had been led to expect to meet the main party on the trail but after going as far as Laramie without a sign of them they went south and wintered at Pueblo, Colorado where they were later joined by the Mormon Battalion sick detachments. They had not gotten the word that Brigham Young's departure had been delayed by a year.

Holladay is the oldest continuously inhabited settlement in Utah, since Salt Lake City was abandoned for a time in 1857 when Johnston's Army occupied the city.

Cottonwood, a nearby settlement, was always associated with "Holladay's Burgh," and the area was first designated "Big Cottonwood," and later, as one of Salt Lake County's unincorporated communities, as "Holladay-Cottonwood".

Another center of settlement is the area settled in the mid-19th century by Rasmus Knudsen, now known as Knudsen's Corner. This area lies in the extreme southeastern corner of the city and is split with neighboring Cottonwood Heights.

In the 1960s the Cottonwood Mall was constructed in Holladay, it being Utah's first enclosed shopping mall. The mall was closed down in 2007 after a plan to turn the mall into a European-style outdoor shopping village was announced.

The city was incorporated on November 29, 1999 as Holladay-Cottonwood, and the name was shortened to Holladay on December 14 of that year. Holladay City operated under the "strong mayor" form of government from 1999 until 2003, when the "council-manager" form was adopted. The mayors of Holladay have been Liane Stillman (1999 to 2001), Dennis Larkin (2001 to 2003) and Dennis Webb (2003 to present). The city's first manager is Randy Fitts (2003 to present). Members of the City Council have included Edward D.P. Lunt, Sandy Thackeray, Steven Peterson, Jim Palmer, Grant Orton, Daniel Bay Gibbons, Jeffrey Fishman, Hugo Diederich, Lynn Pace and Patricia Pignanelli. Known for its fine old homes, its heavily wooded lots and its beautiful watercourses, the controlling of commercial development and the preservation of open space have been the chief political issues in Holladay's recent history. It has also expanded its borders several times, the most significant expansion of which was in 2002.


Historical population
Census Pop.
1970 23,014
1980 22,189 −3.6%
1990 14,095 −36.5%
2000 14,561 3.3%
2010 26,472 81.8%
Est. 2012 26,936 1.8%

As of the census[1] of 2000, there were 14,561 people, 5,096 households, and 3,806 families residing in the city. The population density was 2,726.2 people per square mile (1,052.8/km²). There were 5,338 housing units at an average density of 999.4 per square mile (386.0/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 95.47% White, 0.46% African American, 0.19% Native American, 1.65% Asian, 0.20% Pacific Islander, 0.56% from other races, and 1.48% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.87% of the population.

There were 5,096 households out of which 33.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 63.3% were married couples living together, 8.4% had a female householder with no husband present, and 25.3% were non-families. 20.3% of all households were made up of individuals and 9.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.84 and the average family size was 3.33.

In the city the population was spread out with 26.7% under the age of 18, 10.8% from 18 to 24, 23.2% from 25 to 44, 24.0% from 45 to 64, and 15.2% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 37 years. For every 100 females there were 94.1 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 90.7 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $66,468, and the median income for a family was $77,736. Males had a median income of $54,216 versus $31,244 for females. The per capita income for the city was $35,685. About 2.6% of families and 3.0% of the population were below the poverty line, including 3.3% of those under age 18 and 2.9% of those age 65 or over.


  3. ^ Utah Trend Report 2: State and Complete Places (Sub-state 2010 Census Data). Missouri Census Data Center. Accessed 2011-02-26.
  5. ^ Census figures from 1970 to 1990 were enumerated prior to incorporation.
  6. ^ Census area enumerated as Holladay-Cottonwood CDP in 1990, but with smaller areal coverage than 1980.

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