Town file
Oakley, Utah
Oakley, Utah (Summit County, Utah) is the town in one episode of Small Town Murder, the comedy true-crime podcast: episode 349, "Blood Icicles" (29 December 2022). On 22 December 1990, three generations of the Tidwell family drove up to a cabin they owned in the mountains above Oakley, Utah, to spend Christmas together.
- Town
- Oakley
- County
- Summit County
- State
- Utah
- Country
- USA
- Episodes
- 349
- Approximate location
- 40.741, -111.274
Episode 349 / 29 December 2022 / 165 min / full
Blood Icicles
"We're going to Oakley, Utah ... this is in Summit County, Utah, area code 435, right outside Park City." about 0:04:57
The case: Murder of Kay Tidwell and Beth Potts at the Tidwell cabin (December 22, 1990). Read the case file.
The figures, as told in 2022
- Population
- 1,763
- Median age
- about 32.7
- Median household income
- $73,295
- Median home value
- $597,100
- Two-bedroom rent
- 1,176
- Cost of living
- 132
- Religious
- 59%
- Property crime
- ▼ about half the average rate
- Violent crime
- ▼ about one third
History, in brief
- The Ute Indians were in the area first, followed by the Mormon pioneers. about 0:05:43
- Parley P. Pratt was sent from Salt Lake City by Brigham Young in 1850 to look at settling along the Weber River near the Provo River; he reported 'a good valley, abundant grass, and plenty of water'. about 0:06:26
- Thomas Rhodes was the first white man to winter there, an explorer, trapper, prospector and farmer, a friend of Brigham Young who was called back from California when the church needed money. about 0:06:56
- Oakley's original name was Oak Creek; it was renamed Oakley in 1886, the name chosen by a contest among settlers. about 0:07:29
- At one time the town made a great deal of dairy products; more recently it has focused on cattle and horse feeding and haying. about 0:07:50
- The area is a big destination for outdoor recreation such as horseback riding, fishing and hiking. about 0:08:03
- In 1998 Mayor Doug Evans and the town discovered an underground aquifer holding water that had not seen the surface in at least 18,000 years. about 0:11:50
- The water was found nearly 1,900 feet below the surface in a layer of Mississippian limestone, among the purest ever tested, free of tritium and modern contamination, and the town uses it from the Humbug well for its municipal supply. about 0:12:28
The reviews read out
"Many people don't like the idea of living in a small town, but the reviewer loves it; they enjoyed a small high school where they knew everyone and hoped to move back when they grew up."about 0:13:25
Nearest Small Town Murder towns
- Holladay, Utah29 miles
- South Salt Lake, Utah33 miles
- Pleasant Grove, Utah35 miles
- American Fork, Utah37 miles
- Washington Terrace, Utah47 miles
- Payson, Utah54 miles
Everything here is as told in the episode, on the date it went out; figures and places may have changed since. Endings are covered: open an episode and use the spoiler switch to read them.