Wayne County is a county in the U.S. state of Utah. As of the 2020 census, the population was 2,486, making it the fourth-least populous county in Utah. Its county seat is Loa.

Due to its remoteness and harsh terrain, settlements did not appear in the future Wayne County until the 1880s. By 1892, there was enough settlement and enough interest in a separate county (due mainly to the difficulty of accessing the Piute County seat), that Utah Territory passed an act (effective date March 10, 1892) to separate the east portion of Piute into a separate county. The county was named for Wayne County, Tennessee, itself named for Anthony Wayne. The county boundaries have remained unchanged since its creation.

The eastern border of Wayne County is delineated by the meanders of the Green River, which flows southward to discharge into the Colorado River. After the two rivers join, the combined southwestern flow forms the remaining portion of the county's eastern border. The central part of the county is drained by the Fremont River and Muddy Creek. The Fremont begins at Fish Lake in Sevier County and flows into Wayne County near its northwestern corner. It joins the Muddy near Hanksville to form the Dirty Devil River, which flows southeastward out of the county's southern border to discharge into Colorado. Wayne County terrain varies from rough forestland on the west to arid poor soil carved by drainages and rocky outcrops. The terrain slopes to the east and south; its highest area is near its NW corner, at 9,888 ft (3,014 m) ASL. The county has a total area of 2,466 square miles (6,390 km), of which 2,461 square miles (6,370 km) is land and 5.8 square miles (15 km) (0.2%) is water.

The Green River, passing through the canyons of Canyonlands National Park, forms the eastern boundary. The San Rafael Desert occupies the center of the county. Thousand Lake Mountain and Boulder Mountain flank Rabbit Valley on the western end of the county, where forests contrast with the deserts to the east. The small population of the county is centered in Rabbit Valley, with one town of 200, Hanksville, located in Graves Valley north of the Henry Mountains. Wayne County is also home to Capitol Reef National Park.

Historical population

Census	Pop.	Note	%±
1900	1,907		—
1910	1,749		−8.3%
1920	2,097		19.9%
1930	2,067		−1.4%
1940	2,394		15.8%
1950	2,205		−7.9%
1960	1,728		−21.6%
1970	1,483		−14.2%
1980	1,911		28.9%
1990	2,177		13.9%
2000	2,509		15.3%
2010	2,778		10.7%
2020	2,486		−10.5%
US Decennial Census 1790–1960 1900–1990 1990–2000 2010 2020

According to the 2020 United States census and 2020 American Community Survey, there were 2,486 people in Wayne County with a population density of 1.0 people per square mile (0.4/km). Among non-Hispanic or Latino people, the racial makeup was 2,267 (91.2%) White, 1 (0.0%) African American, 19 (0.8%) Native American, 16 (0.6%) Asian, 3 (0.1%) Pacific Islander, 5 (0.2%) from other races, and 79 (3.2%) from two or more races. 96 (3.9%) people were Hispanic or Latino.

There were 1,239 (49.84%) males and 1,247 (50.16%) females, and the population distribution by age was 536 (21.6%) under the age of 18, 1,334 (53.7%) from 18 to 64, and 616 (24.8%) who were at least 65 years old. The median age was 47.3 years.

There were 1,064 households in Wayne County with an average size of 2.34 of which 711 (66.8%) were families and 353 (33.2%) were non-families. Among all families, 601 (56.5%) were married couples, 49 (4.6%) were male householders with no spouse, and 61 (5.7%) were female householders with no spouse. Among all non-families, 307 (28.9%) were a single person living alone and 46 (4.3%) were two or more people living together. 290 (27.3%) of all households had children under the age of 18. 814 (76.5%) of households were owner-occupied while 250 (23.5%) were renter-occupied.

The median income for a Wayne County household was $49,299 and the median family income was $62,069, with a per-capita income of $23,184. The median income for males that were full-time employees was $50,625 and for females $34,653. 10.1% of the population and 6.8% of families were below the poverty line.

In terms of education attainment, out of the 1,822 people in Wayne County 25 years or older, 190 (10.4%) had not completed high school, 346 (19.0%) had a high school diploma or equivalency, 848 (46.5%) had some college or associate degree, 374 (20.5%) had a bachelor's degree, and 64 (3.5%) had a graduate or professional degree.

As of 2017 the largest self-identified ancestry groups/ethnic groups in Wayne County, Utah were:

Largest ancestries (2017)	Percent
English	45.5%
German	16.3%
Dutch	8.4%
Danish	7.6%
Irish	5.8%
Scottish	5.4%
Swedish	3.9%
American	2.3%
Welsh	1.7%
Polish	1.2%

• Bicknell
• Hanksville
• Loa (county seat)
• Lyman
• Torrey

• Fremont
• Teasdale

• Caineville
• Fruita
• Grover
• Notom

• Aldridge
• Eagle City
• Giles

Wayne County voters are traditionally Republican. In only one national election since 1948 has the county selected the Democratic Party candidate (as of 2020).

State elected offices

Position		District	Name	Affiliation	First elected
	Senate	24	Derrin Owens	Republican	2020
	House of Representatives	73	Phil Lyman	Republican	2018
	Board of Education	14	Mark Huntsman	Nonpartisan	2014

United States presidential election results for Wayne County, Utah

Year	Republican		Democratic		Third party(ies)
	No.	%	No.	%	No.	%
2020	1,229	75.40%	365	22.39%	36	2.21%
2016	966	67.74%	271	19.00%	189	13.25%
2012	1,089	82.06%	215	16.20%	23	1.73%
2008	940	70.04%	335	24.96%	67	4.99%
2004	1,062	78.09%	279	20.51%	19	1.40%
2000	953	77.80%	202	16.49%	70	5.71%
1996	741	64.89%	265	23.20%	136	11.91%
1992	706	57.63%	236	19.27%	283	23.10%
1988	784	68.59%	353	30.88%	6	0.52%
1984	930	80.24%	224	19.33%	5	0.43%
1980	835	76.05%	226	20.58%	37	3.37%
1976	555	59.11%	334	35.57%	50	5.32%
1972	597	71.75%	183	22.00%	52	6.25%
1968	511	62.85%	248	30.50%	54	6.64%
1964	400	49.26%	412	50.74%	0	0.00%
1960	446	53.86%	382	46.14%	0	0.00%
1956	499	63.81%	283	36.19%	0	0.00%
1952	536	66.09%	275	33.91%	0	0.00%
1948	367	44.16%	460	55.35%	4	0.48%
1944	325	43.05%	430	56.95%	0	0.00%
1940	380	43.13%	500	56.75%	1	0.11%
1936	329	38.52%	522	61.12%	3	0.35%
1932	398	49.26%	401	49.63%	9	1.11%
1928	422	68.17%	195	31.50%	2	0.32%
1924	331	57.27%	241	41.70%	6	1.04%
1920	396	61.97%	224	35.05%	19	2.97%
1916	225	35.89%	393	62.68%	9	1.44%
1912	282	52.03%	183	33.76%	77	14.21%
1908	279	49.91%	184	32.92%	96	17.17%
1904	310	53.26%	251	43.13%	21	3.61%
1900	324	52.94%	282	46.08%	6	0.98%
1896	78	16.15%	405	83.85%	0	0.00%

There is one school district, Wayne School District.

• National Register of Historic Places listings in Wayne County, Utah
• For additional History of Wayne County Utah see "Utah's Stolen Treasures" by Gene Covington ISBN 978-1-62516-335-6 (e-book) or ISBN 978-1-61897-954-4 (paperback)

• Official website

38°22′N 110°54′W / 38.36°N 110.90°W / 38.36; -110.90