Deweyville, originally called Empey Springs and then Dewey Springs, is named after John C. Dewey, a Mormon immigrant from England and one of the original permanent settlers in the town.
Deweyville has experienced significant boom and bust cycles in its population since shortly after its founding almost 150 years ago. Decade-to-decade population changes are regularly on the order of plus or minus 25% with plus or minus 45% happening several times.
The town is now primarily centered around farming and ranching, but around the turn of the 19th century it was an important railroad shipping point for the Bear River Valley.