Uintah County, Utah

Uintah County (/juːˈɪntə/ yoo-IN-tə) is a county in the U.S. state of Utah. As of the 2020 United States Census the population was 35,620.[1] Its county seat and largest city is Vernal.[2] The county was named for the portion of the Ute Indian tribe that lived in the basin.

This article is about the Utah county. For the Wyoming county, see Uinta County, Wyoming. For the city in Weber County, see Uintah, Utah.

Uintah County
County
Quarry Visitor Center at Dinosaur National Monument.
Quarry Visitor Center at Dinosaur National Monument.
Map of Utah highlighting Uintah County
Location within the U.S. state of Utah
Map of the United States highlighting Utah
Utah's location within the U.S.
Coordinates: 40°08′N 109°31′W
Country United States
State Utah
FoundedFebruary 18, 1880
Named forUte Tribe
SeatVernal
Largest cityVernal
Area
 • Total4,501 sq mi (11,660 km2)
 • Land4,480 sq mi (11,600 km2)
 • Water22 sq mi (60 km2)  0.5%
Population
 (2020)
 • Total35,620
 • Estimate 
(July 1, 2021)
36,204
 • Density7.9/sq mi (3.1/km2)
Time zoneUTC−7 (Mountain)
 • Summer (DST)UTC−6 (MDT)
Congressional district1st
Websitewww.co.uintah.ut.us

Uintah County is the largest natural gas producer in Utah, with 272 billion cubic feet produced in 2008.[3]

The Vernal, UT Micropolitan Statistical Area includes all of Uintah County.

History

Archeological evidence suggests that portions of the Uinta Basin have been inhabited by Archaic peoples and Fremont peoples. By the time of recorded history, its inhabitants were the Ute people. The first known traverse by non-Indians was made by Fathers Domínguez and Escalante (1776), as they sought to establish a land route between California and Spanish America.[4]

The region was claimed by the Spanish Empire as the Alta California division of New Spain (1521-1821) and was later under Mexican control (1821-1848).

By the early nineteenth century, occasional fur trappers entered the Basin. In 1831-32 Antoine Robidoux, a French trapper licensed by the Mexican government established a trading post near present-day Whiterocks. He abandoned the effort in 1844.

In 1847 a contingent of Mormons under Brigham Young entered the Great Salt Lake Valley to the west of the Uintah region to establish what would become Salt Lake City. In 1861 Young dispatched an exploring party to the Uinta Basin; they reported "that section of country lying between the Wasatch Mountains and the eastern boundary of the territory, and south of Green River country, was one vast contiguity of waste and measurably valueless." Young made no further effort to establish communities in the area but nonetheless included it in their proposed State of Deseret.

The United States took possession under the 1848 Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo. In 1861 US President Abraham Lincoln created the Uintah and Ouray Indian Reservation, reserved for the use and habitation of Utah and Colorado Indians. In the 1880s, the Uncompahgre Reservation was created in the southern portion of present-day Uintah County. Ashley Valley was not part of either Reservation; by 1880, enough ranchers and farmers had settled there that the Territorial Legislature created Uintah County from portions of Sanpete, Summit, and Wasatch counties. They established the county seat at Ashley, a now-abandoned settlement three miles north of the present courthouse in Vernal.

Uintah County boundaries were altered in 1892 (Grand County created), in 1917 (adjustments with Duchesne and Summit county boundaries), in 1918 (Daggett County created), and in 1919 (the Daggett boundary line was adjusted). It has remained in its present configuration since 1919.[5]

Gilsonite was discovered in 1888 at Bonanza, in central Uintah County. This was on Reservation land, but miners pressured the US government to remove some 7000 acres (11 square miles (28 km2) for mining use. Mining and its associated activities (including relative lawlessness) rapidly boomed in that area.[6]

The northern boundary of Uintah County originally extended to the north border of Utah. In 1918, the extreme northern portion (lying north of the Uinta Mountain watershed divide) was split off to form Daggett County.

Geography

Uintah County lies on the east side of Utah. Its eastern border abuts the western border of the state of Colorado. The Green River flows southwestward through the central part of the county and forms the lower part of Uintah County's border with Duchesne County. Two miles south of Ouray, Utah, it is joined by the Duchesne River (flowing east-southeastward from Duchesne County), and three miles (4.8 km) farther down by the White River (flowing west-northwestward from Colorado). Ten miles farther downstream, it is joined by Willow Creek, flowing northward from the lower part of the county.[7] The county terrain slopes to the south and to the west, with its highest parts found on the crests of the Uinta Mountains, running east–west across the northern border. The maximum elevation along those crests is around 12,276 ft (3,742 m).[8] The county has a total area of 4,501 square miles (11,660 km2), of which 4,480 square miles (11,600 km2) is land and 22 square miles (57 km2) (0.5%) is water.[9]

Uintah County is centered in the Uintah Basin, which runs from western Colorado on the east to the Wasatch Mountains on the west and from the Uinta Mountains on the north to the Roan Plateau on the south. This basin was formed by a prehistoric lake ("Uinta Lake") during the late Tertiary period.

The county's geography ranges from high mountain terrain (Uinta Mountains) to the fertile Ashley Valley (site of the county seat), to a rugged and desolate canyonland which includes the Dinosaur National Monument, to desolate and largely uninhabited hills in the south ("The Bookcliffs" to locals; officially Roan Plateau).

Mines[7]

Major highways

Adjacent counties

Protected areas[7]

Lakes[7]
  • Alma Taylor Lake
  • Ashley Twin Lakes
  • Association Reservoir
  • Big Lake
  • Billeys Reservoir
  • Blue Lake
  • Bottle Hollow Reservoir
  • Box Reservoir
  • Brough Reservoir
  • Bullock Draw Reservoir
  • Bullwinkle Reservoir
  • Burns Bench Reservoir
  • Burton Reservoir
  • Butte Reservoir
  • Cement Reservoir
  • Chimney Rock Lake
  • Chokecherry Flat Reservoir
  • Counting Station Reservoir
  • Cow Wash Reservoir
  • Crouse Reservoir
  • Dead Lake
  • Deadman Lake
  • Dollar Lake
  • East Park Reservoir
  • Fish Lake
  • Flu Knoll Reservoir
  • Goose Lakes
    • Lower Goose Lake
    • Upper Goose Lake
  • Gull Lake
  • Hacking Lake
  • Hacking Reservoir
  • Hatch Reservoir
  • Herman-Sadlier Reservoir
  • Hopper Lakes
  • Johnson Lake
  • Julius Park Reservoir
  • Kibah Lakes
  • Kilroy Reservoir
  • Lake Wilde
  • Lily Lake
  • Lily Pad Lake
  • Little Elk Lake
  • Little Lake
  • Long Park Reservoir
  • Lower Grouse Reservoir
  • Lynn Haslem Reservoir
  • McCoy Reservoir Number 1
  • McCoy Reservoir Number 2
  • Matt Warner Reservoir
  • Merkley Reservoir
  • Mill Pond
  • Moap Lake
  • Montes Creek Reservoir
  • Mytoge Lake
  • Oaks Park Reservoir
  • Paradise Park Reservoir
  • Pariette East Dike Reservoir
  • Pariette Flood Control Reservoir
  • Paul Lake
  • Pearl Lake
  • Pelican Lake
  • Red Belly Lake
  • Red Fleet Reservoir
  • Sand Lake
  • Saucer Lake
  • Shiner Reservoir
  • Siddoways Reservoir
  • Stauffer Chemical Tailings Pond North
  • Steinaker Reservoir
  • Stewart Lake
  • Sunday School Reservoir
  • Teds Lake
  • Towave Reservoir
  • Twin Lakes
  • Warren Draw
  • Watkins Lake (part)
  • Whiterocks Lake
  • Wooley Lakes
  • Wooley Reservoir
  • Workman Lake (part)
  • Zelph Calder Reservoir

Demographics
Historical population
CensusPop.Note%±
1880799—
18902,762245.7%
19006,458133.8%
19107,0509.2%
19208,47020.1%
19309,0356.7%
19409,8989.6%
195010,3004.1%
196011,58212.4%
197012,6849.5%
198020,50661.7%
199022,2118.3%
200025,22413.6%
201032,58829.2%
202035,6209.3%
US Decennial Census[11]
1790–1960[12] 1900–1990[13]
1990–2000[14] 2010–2018[1] 2020[15]

2020 census

As of the 2020 United States Census, there were 35,620 people and 10,739 households in the county. The population density was 7.9 people per square mile (3.1 people/km2). There were 13,736 housing units at an average density of 3.06 units per square mile (1.18 units/km2). The racial makeup of the county was 87.9% White, 0.7% Black or African American, 7.9% Native American, 0.7% Asian, 0.4% Pacific Islander, and 2.05% from two or more races. 8.7% of the population was Hispanic or Latino of any race.

There were 10,739 households of which 37.29% had children under 18 living with them, 70.3% were families (7,550), 58.07% were married couples living together, 9.38% had a female householder with no husband presents. 17.20% of all households were made up of individuals, and 31.8% had someone living alone who was 60 years of age or older. The average household size was 3.29, and the average family size was 4.08.

The county population contained 31.8% under the age of 18, 10.70% from 18 to 24, 25.40% from 25 to 44, 19.30% from 45 to 64, and 12.00% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 29 years. For every 100 females, there were 101 males. For every 100 females aged 18 and over, there were 95.90 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $34,518, and the median income for a family was $59,428. Males had a median income of $33,966 versus $21,199 for females. The per capita income for the county was $13,571. About 12% of families and 15% of the population were below the poverty line, including 18% of those under age 18 and 10% of those age 65 or over.

Economy

The extraction of natural resources, including oil, natural gas, phosphate, and gilsonite constitute primary economic activity of Uintah County. There is some agriculture in Uintah County, primarily focusing on raising cattle and sheep and cultivating alfalfa.

A significant portion of west Uintah County is taken up by the Uintah and Ouray Indian Reservation.[16] The Ute Tribe's headquarters is in Fort Duchesne. Much of the rest of the county is land owned by the Ashley National Forest and the Bureau of Land Management. There is relatively little private land in the county.

The Discovery of significant dinosaurs and other pre-historic remains on the eastern edge of the county caused nationwide interest, which culminated in the establishment of Dinosaur National Monument. In addition to the large Visitor Center at the Monument's Jensen site, a natural history museum, the Utah Field House of Natural History State Park Museum, showcasing some of the area's finds, was established in Vernal by the State of Utah.[17]

Transportation

Airport

Located in southeastern Vernal, the Vernal Regional Airport provides daily scheduled air service to Denver, Colorado via Denver International Airport. Service is provided through United Express, operated by Skywest airlines. Fixed-Base Operator (FBO) service is available.

Attractions

Special events

The Games, Animations, and More Convention (GAM) (formerly Games, Anime, and More (G.A.M.)), a biannual fan convention, is a multi-genre convention having retro video games (such as those for classic Nintendo and SEGA video game consoles), semi-contemporary video games (such as those for the Xbox 360 video game console), card games, cartoons, superhero costumes, miniatures, tournaments, tabletop gaming, and other gaming and "nerd culture" activities.

The GAM Convention is typically held once or more per year in Uintah County. In 2015 it was the first anime convention held in Vernal as well as the first video gaming convention held there, making it the first convention of its type in Vernal.[18] In 2016 it was held in Naples for the first time, making GAM the first convention of its type in the city of Naples. It has previously been sponsored by Showalter Ford, a local vehicle dealership.

Politics and government

Since 1896 when Utah was admitted to The Union, Uintah County has voted for the Democratic presidential nominee eight times: twice from 1896 to 1900, once in 1916, and five times from 1932 to 1948. Only once has the majority voted for a "third party" candidate, that being Theodore Roosevelt in 1912. Since 1948, like most of Utah, Uintah County has trended powerfully Republican.[19]

State elected offices
Position District Name Affiliation First elected
  Senate 26 Ronald Winterton Republican 2018[20]
  House of Representatives 55 Scott Chew Republican 2014[21]
  Board of Education 12 James Moss Jr. Republican 2020[22]
United States presidential election results for Uintah County, Utah[19]
Year Republican Democratic Third party
No. %No. %No. %
2020 13,261 86.28% 1,663 10.82% 446 2.90%
2016 9,810 76.26% 995 7.73% 2,059 16.01%
2012 10,421 89.75% 997 8.59% 193 1.66%
2008 8,441 82.84% 1,462 14.35% 286 2.81%
2004 8,518 85.55% 1,266 12.71% 173 1.74%
2000 6,733 80.18% 1,387 16.52% 277 3.30%
1996 4,743 63.55% 1,714 22.96% 1,007 13.49%
1992 3,505 45.09% 1,374 17.67% 2,895 37.24%
1988 5,341 74.00% 1,799 24.92% 78 1.08%
1984 7,337 85.57% 1,186 13.83% 51 0.59%
1980 6,045 82.45% 1,049 14.31% 238 3.25%
1976 4,017 69.18% 1,342 23.11% 448 7.71%
1972 4,712 80.30% 716 12.20% 440 7.50%
1968 3,034 65.64% 1,145 24.77% 443 9.58%
1964 2,437 53.22% 2,142 46.78% 0 0.00%
1960 2,882 67.62% 1,380 32.38% 0 0.00%
1956 2,840 77.60% 820 22.40% 0 0.00%
1952 2,806 71.18% 1,136 28.82% 0 0.00%
1948 1,513 47.99% 1,622 51.44% 18 0.57%
1944 1,479 49.30% 1,519 50.63% 2 0.07%
1940 1,624 47.78% 1,773 52.16% 2 0.06%
1936 1,193 36.62% 1,986 60.96% 79 2.42%
1932 1,355 42.48% 1,778 55.74% 57 1.79%
1928 1,589 64.00% 880 35.44% 14 0.56%
1924 1,296 60.90% 716 33.65% 116 5.45%
1920 1,354 60.47% 817 36.49% 68 3.04%
1916 712 31.28% 1,459 64.10% 105 4.61%
1912 545 28.40% 566 29.49% 808 42.11%
1908 778 48.44% 683 42.53% 145 9.03%
1904 753 50.40% 630 42.17% 111 7.43%
1900 639 45.13% 773 54.59% 4 0.28%
1896 112 11.18% 890 88.82% 0 0.00%

Communities

Cities

Census-designated places

Unincorporated communities

Ghost Towns

Sister cities

Australia Barkly, Northern Territory, Australia

See also

References
  1. "State & County QuickFacts". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved November 14, 2022.
  2. "Find a County". National Association of Counties. Retrieved June 7, 2011.
  3. "Annual natural gas production in MCF by the top 7 producing counties in Utah" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on November 7, 2010. Retrieved September 12, 2010.
  4. In his diary Escalante called the basin "a fine plain abounding in pasturage and fertile, arable land, provided it were irrigated."
  5. "[[Newberry Library]]. Individual County Chronologies/Uintah County UT (accessed March 26, 2019)". Archived from the original on March 6, 2016. Retrieved March 26, 2019.
  6. Fuller, Craig (1994), "Uintah County", in Powell, Allan Kent (ed.), Utah History Encyclopedia, Salt Lake City UT: University of Utah Press, ISBN 0874804256, OCLC 30473917, archived from the original on October 10, 2013
  7. Uintah County UT Google Maps (accessed 26 March 2019)
  8. Highest Peaks in Uintah Counties (accessed 26 March 2019)
  9. "2010 Census Gazetteer Files". US Census Bureau. August 22, 2012. Retrieved June 26, 2015.
  10. "Uintah County, Utah Mines". Archived from the original on July 20, 2011. Retrieved May 31, 2011. Western Mining History
  11. "US Decennial Census". US Census Bureau. Retrieved June 26, 2015.
  12. "Historical Census Browser". University of Virginia Library. Retrieved June 26, 2015.
  13. Forstall, Richard L., ed. (March 27, 1995). "Population of Counties by Decennial Census: 1900 to 1990". US Census Bureau. Retrieved June 26, 2015.
  14. "Census 2000 PHC-T-4. Ranking Tables for Counties: 1990 and 2000" (PDF). US Census Bureau. April 2, 2001. Retrieved June 26, 2015.
  15. 2020 Population and Housing State Data | Utah
  16. "Home. Ute Indian Tribe". www.utetribe.com. Retrieved March 31, 2018.
  17. It was authorized in 1946 and opened to the public in 1948.
  18. Best, Liberty (August 18, 2015). "First anime convention held in Vernal". Vernal Express. Uintah Basin Media. Retrieved March 6, 2016.
  19. Leip, David. "Atlas of US Presidential Elections". uselectionatlas.org. Retrieved May 31, 2018.
  20. "Senator Winterton Utah Senate". senate.utah.gov. Retrieved November 16, 2021.
  21. "Rep. Chew, Scott H." Utah House of Representatives. Retrieved November 17, 2021.
  22. "James Moss Jr". www.schools.utah.gov. Retrieved November 16, 2021.
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