The town of Leamington on the northern border of Millard County is situated in a small but fertile valley of the winding Sevier River. It is surrounded on the north, east, and south by the Wasatch range. Leamington is located on the south side of the Sevier River, about three miles below the mouth of Leamington Canyon. The town is 30 miles northeast of Oasis, 25 miles southwest of Juab, 46 miles from Fillmore, 12 miles north of Oak City, and 131 miles southwest of Salt Lake City.

The early settlers came to farm and ranch of their own accord. In 1871, settlers from Oak City built a small dam across the river, which washed away the next day. A second dam was constructed in 1872 based on a survey by Thomas Morgan. Though it broke each year, an extended ditch eventually solved the irrigation problem. Among the first settlers were Joe Weach, Thomas Morgan, Ole Jensen, John Radford, Richard Ross, Mell Ross, Niels Mortensen, Lars Nielson, Harry Millet, Christian Overson, John Dutson, Charles and John P. Johnson, Thomas and John Talbot, and Frank Young. Within a few years, the community numbered 100, with Richard Pay starting a store and saloon, and Christian Overson running a store and post office.

The first houses were built of logs—Harry Millet built a cedar post house, while Nels Mortenson and Nels Petersen built log homes. Frank Young built two log houses facing each other, Robert Hillhouse a two-room log house, and Thomas Morgan an old picket house on the riverbanks. The village developed as a “string town” with one principal street running east and west through the town, following parallel with the railroad tracks. The riverbanks were originally a mass of willows and brush, with grass covering the hills so thick and tall that flood waters could not wash holes or gullies in the ground.