Emery County received a fresh economic stimulus in the mid-1970s when Utah Power and Light Company began construction of two large steam-electric generating plants designed to use the extensive coal deposits in the region. The larger of the two, the Hunter Plant, is located two miles south of Castle Dale, and the mines that supply it are northwest of town in the ledges of the Wasatch Plateau. After a "boom" period during construction of the plants, Castle Dale has settled in recent years into a more stable community with a population more than double that of its historic level and with continuing improvement in public services. The town's population in 1990 was 1,704, plus an additional 1,459 in the "twin" community of Orangeville.

See: Emery County Daughters of Utah Pioneers, Castle Valley: A History of Emery County (1949); Allan Kent Powell, Emery County: Reflections on Its Past and Future (1979); Emery County Historical Society, Emery County, 1880-1980 (1981).

Edward A. Geary