Phyllis Lawton Oral History Interview

In an interview conducted on March 30, 2024, at the Washington County Library, Phyllis Hinton Lawton, director of the Hurricane Museum since 1994, discussed her life in Hurricane, Utah. Born in Phoenix, Arizona, Lawton moved to Hurricane in 1975 after graduating from BYU. She shared her deep connection to the town's history, noting that her grandparents helped settle Hurricane, a community founded by Mormon pioneers from England seeking higher ground due to annual floods in Virgin. Lawton highlighted the importance of preserving Hurricane's history, particularly the story of the canal crucial to its existence. She emphasized that the close-knit community and its people are what make Hurricane special, though she observed a decline in neighborly interaction and a shift in attitude regarding self-sufficiency in younger generations. Lawton also discussed the benefits of rural life, such as opportunities for children to learn to work, and challenges like the loss of green spaces and the increasing cost of housing due to rapid growth. She expressed a desire for controlled growth in Hurricane to preserve its character and ensure resources like water are sufficient for its expanding population.