In a numbers game, Davis County many times finds itself at the bottom of the heap. It is by far the smallest of Utah's 29 counties, with less than half the land mass of any other county in the state.
But this wasn't always so.
Although today Davis is only 268 square miles, far below the second-smallest county, Morgan, at 603 miles — in the early days Morgan and Davis were one single county.
According to Harris Adams, Layton historian, Morgan was settled by families from Davis County, and the two counties were one through much of the 1850s. However, eventually Morgan split apart from Davis, likely for geographical reasons.
"It was just geographic," Adams said.
The Wasatch Mountains to the east made a distinct natural wall, and even Weber Canyon was not an easy path into Morgan. Devil's Gate, another formidable barrier, meant a Parrish Canyon road had to be seasonally used as the best route to Morgan, when the Weber River was raging.
If Davis had retained Morgan County, it would have boasted some 871 square miles and ranked 24th largest, even ahead of Salt Lake County.
Davis County has also always suffered from the stigma as the "land in between." Located between Salt Lake and Ogden, the county is many times simply viewed as the space to traverse to go farther north or south.
According to Glen M. Leonard, author of "A History of Davis County," Davis County is also unique in that its original settlements grew out of herding camps. There were no carefully organized immigrant groups sent out to settle there, Davis was "a natural extension of the initial gathering place (Salt Lake)."
In fact, Bountiful has the honor of being Utah's second settlement behind Salt Lake City, in September of 1847. Although the city was eventually named after an ancient American city described in the Book of Mormon, Bountiful was also known as "Session's Settlement," "North Mill Creek Canyon," "North Canyon" and even "Stoker" in its early years.
Despite its pigmy size in land, Davis County still ranks third in total population among the 29 counties, behind Salt Lake and Utah counties. But what about Davis' other numerical quantities, qualities and rankings?
The listing at the right offers an offbeat look at Davis County — purely by numbers — a different way to illustrate the flavor and character of the smallest geographical county in Utah.
Few Wal-Marts but lots of restaurants and vehicles
1 — Davis County built Utah's first county courthouse in 1855 at Farmington.
2 — Utah's second settlement was established in Bountiful and was homesteaded in September 1847.
2 — Number of hospitals in Davis County.
2 — Number of Wal-Marts in Davis County. (A third is planned for Centerville.)
3 — Davis County's standing in total median household income. (Follows Summit and Morgan counties.)
3 — Davis' ranking in population among Utah's 29 counties.
4 — Number of bowling alleys
5 — Total public libraries in Davis County.
5 — Total Smith's Food and Drug stores in the county.
6 — Public swimming pools in the county.
6 — Total 7-Eleven stores in Davis.
6 — Total Albertsons grocery stores in the county.
7 — Number of Wendy's Restaurants in Davis County.
7 — Estimated percentage of county population growth rate each year.
8 —Total high schools in the county.
8 — Total significant rivers/streams.
9 — Number of Blockbuster Video stores in the county.
10 — Number of public golf courses in the county.
10 — Subway restaurants located in Davis.
11 — Number of McDonald's restaurants in Davis County.
13 — Number of America First Credit Union offices.
14 — Number of Maverik County Stores in the county.
15 — Total cities in Davis County.
15 — Total Mexican restaurants in the county.
15 — Junior highs in Davis.
20 — Amount of total annual average precipitation (in inches) received in downtown Farmington.
20 — Video stores in Davis.
20 — Number of canyons on the west side of the Wasatch Mountains in Davis.
21 — Number of motels and hotels.
24 — The typical snow depth, in feet, each winter at the "front door" on the west side of the Francis Peak
radar station.
24 — Median age in Davis County.
26 — Approximate miles from north to south on I-15.
30 — Number of grocery stores in the county.
38 — Total number of rides at Lagoon amusement park.
40 — Total round trips UTA bus No. 70 makes each day through Davis County.
41 — Total pizza outlets inside Davis County.
41 — Non-LDS Church buildings in Davis County.
42 — Theater movie screens in Davis county
51 — Total banks and credit unions in Davis County.
52 — Elementary schools in Davis.
56 — LDS Church stakes in Davis County.
63 — Convenience stores in the county.
65 — Total public parks in the county.
70 — Total new and used car dealers in the county.
75 — Number of public schools (excluding special education) in Davis County (K-12).
120 — Highest speed (in mph) of winds ever recorded in the county, Nov. 11, 1978, on the Bountiful bench.
141 — Total dentists who work in Davis County.
170 — Estimated LDS chapels inside Davis.
239 — Total restaurants, food outlets in the county.
258 — Total full-time employees for Layton city, the county's largest.
268 — Total land mass in square miles.
304 — Land area, in square miles, for all of Davis County. 475 — Total LDS Church wards in Davis.
490 — Estimated number of Boy Scout troops in Davis County.
600 — Approximate number of bison living on Antelope Island.
783 — Residents in Davis County reported to be earning $200,000 a year or more.
785 — Average persons living per square mile in the county. (Second only to Salt Lake County in Utah density.)
1,000 — Approximate deaths each year in the county.
1,403 — Total streets titled with a name, rather than a number in Davis.
2,000 — Approximate seasonal youth employees Lagoon hires each year.
2,497 — The average monthly wage, in dollars, for Davis County.
3,000 — Approximate births each year in Davis County.
3,099 — Estimated number of Davis County residents serving in the Armed Forces.
3,400 — Davis residents estimated to regularly use public transportation.
4,195 — The estimated lowest elevation (in feet) above sea level in the county — many sections on the Great Salt Lake's west side.
6,784 — Estimated number of unemployed persons in Davis County, age 16 and up.
7,000 — Estimated total employees for the Davis School District, the county's second-largest employer.
9,547 — Second-highest elevation (in feet) for the county (Francis Peak). Also the county's "highest" elevation residence, where radar station employees live year-round.
9,706 — Highest elevation (in feet) in Davis County (Thurston Peak.)
13,500 — Average number of vehicles each day using Highway 89 in Centerville.
22,000 — Number of vehicles entering Hill Air Force Base's South Gate each day.
25,000 — Estimated total employees at Davis County's largest employer, Hill Air Force Base.
26,900 — Total estimated vehicles using Kaysville's Main Street daily.
26,939 — Persons living with a reported disability in Davis County
35,025 — Total estimated vehicles a day using the Main Street and Hill Field Road intersection in Layton.
37,700 — Estimated total vehicles passing by the Davis Hospital on Layton's Antelope Drive each day.
40,200 — Average daily vehicles in the Layton Hills Mall area.
43,700 — Average number of vehicles using Highway 89 in Farmington each day.
60,000 — Estimated school kids in Davis County (K-12).
60,000 — The original cost in dollars for Bountiful's historic tabernacle, dedicated in 1863, and the oldest church meetinghouse in Utah that's still in use.
63,176 — Population estimated for Layton, Davis' largest city.
80,000 — Total estimated number of housing units in the county.
81,000 — Estimated school kids (K-12) in Davis County by the year 2020.
98,600 — Total estimated vehicles on I-15 each day in Layton.
111,000 — Approximate number of vehicles using I-15 in Sunset each day.
120,000 — Estimated "build out" population for Layton city.
150,300 — Average number of vehicles using I-15 daily in the Centerville area.
159,880 — The median home price (in dollars) for Davis County.
256,000 — Estimated population of Davis County.
375,000 — Approximate projected county population by the year 2020.
1,200,000 — Estimated annual visitors to Lagoon amusement park each season.
85,000,000 — Davis County's total operating budget, in dollars.
408,000,000 — Davis County School District's total budget, in dollars.
SOURCES: Davis County's Web site, www.daviscountyutah.gov; maps, telephone directories and Utah Department of Transportation statistics.
EDITOR'S NOTE: The latest statistics available were used for these estimates, though some may be from the 2000 Census.
Contributing: Larry Weist, Deseret Morning News
E-mail: lynn@desnews.com