10/24/2025
Virgin River
The Virgin River is a 162-mile (261 km) long tributary of the Colorado River, flowing through the U.S. states of Utah, Nevada, and Arizona. In 2009, it became Utahās first designated wild and scenic river, an honor timed with the centennial celebration of Zion National Park, through which much of the river flows.
The first recorded Euro-American encounter occurred in 1826, when explorer Jedediah Smith reached the river and initially named it āAdams Riverā in honor of President John Quincy Adams. Later, explorer John C. FrĆ©mont reported the river as āRio Virgen,ā though he did not specify the nameās origin.
Historian Hiram Chittenden suggested that the name honored Thomas Virgin, a member of Smithās party who was seriously wounded during an 1827 attack by Mohave people while crossing the Mojave Desert. Virgin eventually recovered but was later killed, along with most of Smithās companions, in an attack by Umpqua people in present-day Oregon.
Historically, the river played a role in regional travel networks, as the Old Spanish Trail followed portions of the Virgin Riverāfrom near St. George, Utah, to where the trail rose onto the Mormon Plateau and crossed toward the Muddy River in what is now Nevada.