Home Care In Sevier, UT

On a trip to Tennessee in June, I visited Dolly Parton's hometown of Sevierville.

Parton grew up in a log cabin in Locust Ridge, located southeast of Sevierville. She shared the two-room home with her parents and 11 siblings. While the original cabin is fenced off and closed to visitors, fans can step into a replica of her childhood home at Dollywood.

My first stop was Sevier County High School, Parton's alma mater.

Parton graduated from Sevier County High School in 1964.

The school was closed when I visited, but a local told me that Parton's old marching-band uniform is on display inside.

Parton has remained connected to her old high school through the years, funding scholarships and delivering virtual commencement speeches. I visited during the summer, when the school was closed.

Next, I visited LeConte Medical Center, where Parton has funded the Dolly Parton Center for Women's Services and the Dolly Parton Birthing Unit.

LeConte Medical Center opened in 2010 with the help of Parton's philanthropy and fundraising.

As of 2020, the Dolly Parton Birthing Unit has delivered over 10,000 babies.

"I am so proud to call LeConte Medical Center the hometown hospital for my people," Parton said at a 2020 event marking the hospital's 10th anniversary, CBS affiliate WVLT in Knoxville reported.

This brick building in downtown Sevierville once housed The Pines Theater, where Dolly Parton played her first paid gig.

The real Pines Theater closed in 1957, but it is currently being remodeled into an entertainment venue, according to ABC affiliate WATE.

Dollywood's re-creation of The Pines Theater, located in Jukebox Junction, can hold 1,000 audience members and hosts musical performances.

One of the main attractions in Sevierville is a bronze statue of Parton outside the Sevier County Courthouse.

The statue was dedicated by the people of Sevier County in 1987, a year after Dollywood opened.

Sculpted by Jim Gray, the statue depicts Parton perched on a rock, smiling and strumming a guitar.

"I've had the good fortune of getting to travel all over this world. I've had all kinds of wonderful awards. But I think probably one of the things I'm proudest of in my whole career, my whole life, really, is this statue of me in the courthouse yard in Sevierville," Parton said in a 2011 video.

There's even a butterfly on the neck of Parton's guitar.

Parton, who wrote a song called "Love is Like a Butterfly," often features butterflies in her outfits and staging.

The statue is part of the Tennessee Music Pathways series highlighting locations across the state that are part of its music history.

A project of Tennessee's Department of Tourist Development, the series includes birthplaces, grave sites, record shops, music venues, and historic markers for artists across genres with connections to Tennessee.

A boutique named Jolene's On Bruce Street sits around the corner from the statue.

The store's name is a nod to Parton's hit song "Jolene."

Jolene's sells a variety of Dolly Parton-themed apparel and souvenirs.

The shop sold smaller items like keychains and stickers, as well as T-shirts and denim jackets.

Across the street, a store called Smoky Mountain Wildflower references another Parton song.

Parton wrote "Wildflowers" and released it with Emmylou Harris and Linda Ronstadt on their joint 1987 album "Trio," which won a Grammy award.

A mural shows a young Parton ordering a hamburger at Red's Cafe, which used to be located on Bruce Street in downtown Sevierville.

Paul "Red" Clevenger opened Red's Cafe in 1946, the same year Parton was born. When she was six years old, Parton ate her first hamburger there.

While the original eatery is no longer open, Red's Drive-In at Dollywood recreates the magic of one of Parton's favorite hometown spots.

Another mural inspired by Parton, "Wings of Wander," provided a fun photo-op.

Created by Pinkie Mistry, the mural measures 16 feet high and 20 feet wide. As touristy as I felt, I couldn't resist the chance to pose for a picture there.

Located just 6 miles from Dollywood and all of its attractions, Sevierville is worth a stop.

With its landmarks, murals, and cute themed boutiques, Downtown Sevierville is a great place to spend an afternoon and get a glimpse into Parton's humble beginnings.

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SEVIER COUNTY, Utah — It can be seen from the interstate when driving through central Utah: A 600+ acre solar farm generating 80 megawatts of power back on the grid. It's just the latest in some two dozen to become operational here in Utah — the 11th-top state in the nation for solar production — as the federal government creates incentives to develop alternative energy.

Sevier County Economic Development Director Malcolm Nash said developers approached county leaders for the project.

"They said, 'Can you help us locate ground that’s single-owner? About 6-800 acres.' And we said, 'Well, there’s this one spot,'" Nash recalled.

He pointed them to a location just west of the town of Sigurd — out of the way, but right next to a major substation.

"The issue for a solar generating plant, or any power plant for that matter, is just access to the grid," Nash said.

Nash said initially, Sevior County commissioners were not in favor of the project but then changed their mind.

"It’s like any project. It has its pros it has its cons. For us, the pros outweighed the cons, so we went ahead and participated," he said.

Sevier County was able to negotiate with developers of this facility, and in return for some federal incentives offered, they got something back.

"We were able to get some money, some revenues, to help build student housing on the campus of Snow College," Nash said. "That’s one reason why we like the project here is because it opened that revenue stream."

"To Sevier County’s testament, they did a very good job of leveraging that investment to the long-term benefit of the community," said Stuart Clason, the regional growth director with the group Utah Association of Counties.

Clason says the group advises local leaders negotiating with developers on how to best utilize the influx of capital coming into areas that could really use it.

"They want to capture as much of that new tax revenue locally," he added.

There are projects now operational or in the works in Emery, Carbon, Beaver, Millard, Juab, Tooele, Box Elder, Rich, Iron and Washington counties.

"We need to have our eyes wide open and understand what these investments mean," Clason said.

Millions are spent on the project, usually by large corporations, and in the location in Sigurd, it is now owned by New York City-based hedge fund D.E. Shaw, who allowed FOX 13 on the property to get a closer look.

Meanwhile in Iron county, the Cedar City and Iron County economic development director Danny Stewart says they've known for a long time that they have a great solar resource. Iron County hosts the first utility-scale solar farm to go operational: the Utah Red Hills project that went online with its 340,000 photovoltaic panels in December 2015.

"It opened the floodgates for other solar development within the county," Stewart said.

The high altitude, cooler temperatures, available sunshine and affordable land made this region a prime location for this type of technology. They now have 13 projects that are operational and 17 power plants of various sizes. That's 6,000 acres of solar panels in Iron County with three new projects to be built by the first of next year. Stewart says they're expecting to deliver over 1,000 megawatts of power to the Rocky Mountain power grid.

"All the projects that are currently in production here in Utah are the photovoltaic power. They’re absorbing sunshine that’s already coming down. We don’t have any of the reflective power projects. I know that there’s been concern and fear about those, bird migration and different things. But this is a really safe, really clean energy," Stewart said.

But he says as far as providing jobs to these rural areas, they don't deliver.

"Rural economic development is interesting. We want jobs. We really need jobs in the rural areas of the state. And when we started looking at solar, we really started to evaluate: These aren’t huge job creators," he said. "I mean, they are for 12-18 months — a flurry of activity during the construction, but after that, it’s very minimal. Then you start looking at the other plusses. The ability to use the resource, the ability to generate some revenue that wouldn’t happen otherwise and utilize some property that is underutilized if at all. We found that for Iron County, it really meets a lot of our economic development needs here."

Nash said there were some philosophical issues with moving forward on a solar farm project in a county that hosts the largest coal mine in the state.

"On a number of levels, it makes sense. It helps with the country’s energy transition. It feels like the responsible thing to do," he said.

Thirty miles up Salina Canyon and just about a 40-minute drive from the solar farm in Sigurd, SUFCO is one of the longest continuously running and most productive underground longwall mines in the nation. It's also an economic engine and a major employer for this region — something Nash says this new project won't change.

"This one doesn’t look like it’ll be a threat. They’re going in across the country. We just as well participate," Nash added. "It’s just another feature on the landscape, if you will. You’ll drive by and take a look at it and say, 'That’s kind of neat.'"

He says the lifespan of these panels is about 25-30 years, with provisions in place for the developer to clean up the site and put the land back to its original condition if they do move on.

Nash, Clason and Stewart say the next challenge in the future of solar power in Utah is battery technology and energy storage.

Copyright 2021 Scripps Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

Crystal Peak Minerals’ Sevier Playa project is located in Utah, US.

The Sevier Playa project received the Record of Decision (ROD) in August 2019. Image courtesy of Crystal Peak Minerals.

The ROD enables Crystal Peak Minerals to secure financing for the project. Image courtesy of Chris Stewart, a US Congressman.

Crystal Peak Minerals’ Sevier Playa project is located in Utah, US.

Crystal Peak Minerals is developing the Sevier Playa potash project in Utah, US, at an estimated capital cost of $412m.

The pre-feasibility study (PFS) of the project was completed in 2013, while the feasibility study (FS) completed in February 2018. The US Department of the Interior granted the record of decision (ROD) for the Sevier Playa project in August 2019.

Crystal Peak proposes to begin project construction in 2019, upon securing funding and completion of detailed engineering while plant operations are expected to be commenced in 2022. The project is expected to create approximately 175 full-time jobs, in addition to 100 temporary jobs during the construction phase.

The potash project is expected to produce 27,500t of SOP during the first three years and reach full capacity of 337,500t in 2025. It is estimated to have a mine life of 30 years.

Sevier Playa potash project location, geology, and mineralisation

The Sevier Playa potash project is situated approximately 225km from Salt Lake City, Utah, near the towns of Delta and Milford.

The site is located on 124,223 acres of land within 48 federal potassium leases owned by CPM and 11 federal potassium leases owned by LUMA Minerals (LUMA). The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) granted CPM and LUMA the access to the potassium leases in April 2011. CPM and LUMA entered a co-operative development agreement (CDA) in July 2011.

The Sevier Playa potash project is located within the Basin and Range physiographic province, covering more than 10% of the continental US.

The project is classified as an endorheic basin, or terminal hydrologic system, in which all surface water within the project watershed terminates at the Playa without affecting the exterior drainage.

Sevier Playa is mainly a terminal lakebed (playa) brine deposit of a sedimentary origin comprising a concentration of mineral salts in groundwater. The brine is contained within the unconsolidated Playa sediments, mostly filled with clay, marl, and carbonate-rich clay.

Sevier Playa potash project reserves

The Sevier Playa potash project is expected to contain mineral reserves of 8.525 million short tons (7.734 million metric tonnes).

Mining at Sevier Playa

The Sevier Playa project will be installed with solar evaporation ponds for the precipitation of potassium-bearing salts. The project stretch extends over 20,447 acres (82.8km²).

Brine recovery at Sevier Playa will be performed using stepped extraction trenches, as well as drilled wells to extract subsurface brine from the sedimentary basin.

Major components will include the extraction system featuring canals, trenches, and a recharge system consisting of canals, collectors, and trenches. It also will include wells, a series of evaporation ponds, and a tailing management area (TMA).

Processing

Processing activity at Sevier Playa begins with the recovery of potassium-bearing Playa brine from the extraction trenches and wells. The recovered material will be taken to the solar pre-concentration ponds for gangue material precipitation.

The pre-concentrated brine is then taken to the harvest ponds where the brine chemistry is controlled in addition to the precipitation of potassium-bearing minerals and a quantity of gangue material. The precipitated solids will be harvested and transmitted to the processing plant by haul trucks.

At the processing plant, the salts will be crushed, slurried and pumped so that they are converted into a single potassium-bearing mineral. The output will be conveyed to a flotation circuit, where it will be upgraded and recovered.

The recovered potassium-bearing salt will be forwarded to the SOP crystallisers, wherein MOP brine will be added followed by re-crystallisation as K₂SO₄. The resultant overflow is proposed to be used throughout the process.

The K₂SO₄ produced will be dried, screened and forwarded to either the compactor or load-out or to the bagging plant to produce granular, standard, or water-soluble products. The dry SOP product will be loaded onto haul trucks for transport to the rail load-out facility.

Sevier Playa potash project infrastructure

Power supply for the project will be from the Black Rock substation, located approximately 74km to the north-east of the processing plant. PacifiCorp subsidiary Rocky Mountain Power owns the Black Rock substation.

Freshwater will be collected from wells and transferred to the water tank at the processing plant. Water from the processing plant is transported by tanker trucks to a storage tank at the rail load-out facility located approximately 15 miles (24.1km) away.

Water required for non-potable needs will be sourced from the storage tank while bottled water is supplied for consumption and other potable water needs.

Main process buildings include those for salts crushing and slurrying, wet processing, drying, compaction and bagging while the non-process buildings include warehouse and maintenance, administration, potable water treatment system building, and the main control room.

Diesel required for the operations will be delivered through trucks and stored at the 25,000 gallons (94.6m³) capacity storage tank.

Contractors involved

Novopro Projects, Norwest Corporation, and CH2M HILL Engineers prepared the FS. Consultants from Novopro Projects and Norwest Corporation were also engaged in preparing the NI 43-101 technical report for the Sevier Playa potash project.

SEVIER COUNTY, Utah — A Sevier County family is sharing their gratitude after people across the country started fundraising events to help their little boy, who was hospitalized after a terrible accident with a horse.

Many of these people don’t know Houston Hampton, but they want to help the 4-year-old with his recovery.

Standing outside Primary Children’s Hospital Monday, husband and wife Trent and Kodi Hampton looked down at a photo on Kodi’s phone. It showed a candid picture of them as the family of four sat in a tractor.

Trent said they were unloading and stacking hay.

“Sometimes that’s what date night looks like for our family,” Kodi said, with a little chuckle.

It’s now a precious memory for the two parents. The photo was only taken last Thursday, but their lives have changed dramatically since then.

Just the next day, Houston was playing at his grandma’s when the couple said he was walking up the side of a horse pen. The family lives in Redmond, a small town in Sevier County.

Houston loves to ride horses, Trent and Kodi explained and is around them all the time.

“He kept walking up the side and spooked the young horse in the wrong spot at the wrong time, and got kicked right in the head,” Trent explained.

Trent’s brother is an EMT and was able to help in those first critical moments until LifeFlight arrived from Richfield.

From there, they flew Houston and Trent to Primary Children’s Hospital in Salt Lake City, while Kodi and her parents drove up. They’ve stayed by his side ever since.

“He’s still in critical condition, but he’s stable right now,” Kodi said, getting emotional. “And we could just really use all the prayers. Yeah, we just need all the prayers.”

She said they’ve felt the prayers pouring in every single day, and they’ve also felt their community and people from all over rallying around them.

Many who don’t even know the family or little Houston have started to organize fundraisers in Utah and other states to help with medical bills and his recovery.

“It’s just really touching,” Kodi said, choking up. “It’s amazing. People are so good.”

On Friday, July 7, Time for Style Hair Salon at 131 E Main in Salina, Utah, is hosting “Haircuts for Houston,” with $25 cuts and $35 cuts/styles from 9 am to 5 pm to raise money for the family.

On Wednesday, July 19, organizers created the benefit event “Hats off for Houston,” which includes team roping, raffle, auction, and dinner. Entry is $5. It’s at 6 pm at Blackhawk Arena in Salina, Utah.

In Idaho Falls, Idaho, on Saturday, July 29, Nashville country artist Drew Baldridge will perform at a concert at 6992 N 5th E, which the couple indicated includes a fundraiser for Houston.

The couple said they got calls from Texas and New Mexico from outfitters offering day hunts to raise money. The outfitter in Texas, they said, sold out 10 minutes after posting about the fundraiser. The outfitter is now running more raffles for several hunting trips, including a trip to Africa.

A Utah photographer offered mini sessions to raise money for the Hamptons and quickly filled all spots.

“We just can never thank them enough,” Trent said.

“There’s no words. There truly aren’t,” Kodi echoed. “It’s just been totally mind-blowing to see all the support we’ve received. And I know Houston feels it, too. We’re just so grateful for everybody.”

It’s making all the difference for mom and dad, as Houston hangs in there. The couple said doctors are waiting for brain swelling to go down, and hope to do an MRI in a few days to see what things are looking like for Houston.

“Houston is our little cowboy,” Trent said.

“We need him to come home,” Kodi added.

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Daily Covid-19 admissions in the Sevier County area

About the data

Data is from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Hospitalization data is a daily average of Covid-19 patients in hospital service areas that intersect with Sevier County, an area which may be larger than Sevier County itself.

The number of daily hospital admissions shows how many patients tested positive for Covid in hospitals and is one of the most reliably reported indicators of Covid’s impact on a community.

Total population

Ages 65 and up

Total population

Ages 65 and up

An updated vaccine is recommended for adults and most children. Statewide, 2% of vaccinations did not specify a home county.

Nearby hospitals

Share of I.C.U. beds occupied

About this data Source: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Notes: The hospitals map shows the average I.C.U. occupancy at nearby hospitals in the most recent week with data reported. The data is self-reported to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services by individual hospitals. It excludes counts from hospitals operated by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs and the Indian Health Service. Numbers for hospitalized patients are based on inpatient beds and include I.C.U. beds. Hospitalized Covid-19 patients include both confirmed and suspected Covid-19 patients. The C.D.C. stopped reporting data on cases in May 2023.

How trends have changed in Sevier County

About this data Source: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Notes: Weekly county death data prior to Jan. 2021 was not reported by the C.D.C. and is sourced from reporting by The New York Times. Hospitalization data is a weekly average of Covid-19 patients in hospital service areas that intersect with Sevier County. Hospitalization numbers early in the pandemic are undercounts due to incomplete reporting by hospitals to the federal government.

Historical trends in Sevier County

The data in these charts has been archived and they are no longer being updated.

About this data Source: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The data in these charts has been archived and they are no longer being updated. Weekly county case data prior to Jan. 2021 was not reported by the C.D.C. and is sourced from reporting by The New York Times. The C.D.C. stopped reporting data on cases in May 2023. Test positivity data is based only on test results reported to the federal government and is a seven-day average.

By Jon Huang, Samuel Jacoby, Jasmine C. Lee, John-Michael Murphy, Charlie Smart and Albert Sun. Additional reporting by Sarah Cahalan, Lisa Waananen Jones, Amy Schoenfeld Walker and Josh Williams. See a full list of contributors to The Times’s Covid-19 data reporting here.

About the data

Data on this page is reported by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Population and demographic data is from the U.S. Census Bureau. Hospitalization data is reported by individual hospitals to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, and it includes confirmed and suspected adult and pediatric patients. The C.D.C. does not provide complete vaccinations data for some counties and caps its vaccination rate figures at 95 percent.

The C.D.C. may make historical updates as more data is reported.

The C.D.C. stopped reporting data on Covid cases in May 2023.