  We present deep HST WFPC2 imaging of the Local Group dwarf irregular galaxy
IC 1613. The photometry is the deepest to date for an isolated dwarf irregular
galaxy. The resulting color-magnitude diagram (CMD) is analyzed using three
different methods to derive a star formation history (SFH). All three find an
enhanced star formation rate (SFR), from 3 to 6 Gyr ago, and similar
age-metallicity relationships (AMR). A comparison of the newly observed outer
field with an earlier studied central field of IC 1613 shows that the SFR in
the outer field has been significantly depressed during the last Gyr. This
implies that the optical scale length of the galaxy has been decreasing with
time and that comparison of galaxies at intermediate redshift with present day
galaxies should take this effect into account. We find strong similarities
between IC 1613 and the more distant Milky Way dSph companions in that all are
dominated by star formation at intermediate ages. In particular, the SFH and
AMR for IC 1613 and Leo I are indistinguishable. This implies that dIrr
galaxies cannot be distinguished from dSphs by their intermediate age stellar
populations. This type of a SFH may also be evidence for slower or suppressed
early star formation in dwarf galaxies due to photoionization after the
reionization of the universe by background radiation. Assuming that IC 1613 is
typical of a dIrr evolving in isolation, since most of the star formation
occurs at intermediate ages, these dwarf systems cannot be responsible for the
fast chemical enrichment of the IGM which is seen at high redshift. There is no
evidence for any large amplitude bursts of star formation in IC 1613, and we
find it highly unlikely that analogs of IC 1613 have contributed to the excess
of faint blue galaxies in existing galaxy redshift surveys.
