Green River, Utah

Green River, Utah
City
Aerial photograph of Green River.
Location in Emery County and the state of Utah.
Location of Utah in the United States
Coordinates:
Country	United States
State	Utah
County	Emery
Incorporated	1906
Named for	Green River
Area
• Total	12.6 sq mi (32.7 km2)
• Land	12.5 sq mi (32.4 km2)
• Water	0.1 sq mi (0.3 km2)
Elevation	4,078 ft (1,243 m)
Population (2012)
• Total	949
• Density	77.8/sq mi (30.0/km2)
Time zone	Mountain (MST) (UTC-7)
• Summer (DST)	MDT (UTC-6)
ZIP code	84525
Area code(s)	435
FIPS code	49-31670
GNIS feature ID	1428398

Green River is a city in Emery County, Utah, United States. The population was 1,132 at the 2010 census.

Geography

Green River is located on the banks of the Green River, after which the city is named. The San Rafael Swell region is to the west of Green River, while Canyonlands National Park lies to the south. Today located exclusively in Emery County, it was split between Emery and Grand counties until January 6, 2003, when Emery County's boundaries were expanded.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 12.6 square miles (32.7 km²), of which, 12.5 square miles (32.4 km²) of it is land and 0.1 square miles (0.3 km²) of it (1.03%) is water.

Crystal Geyser, a cold water "geyser"---actually a carbon-dioxide driven, erupting well---is located about nine miles southeast of town (Glennon, J.A. and Pfaff R.M. 2005).

Climate

According to the Köppen Climate Classification system, Green River has a semi-arid climate, abbreviated "BSk" on climate maps.

History

The 1829 to 1850's Old Spanish Trail trade route passed across the Green River in the area of modern Green River from 1829 into the 1850s.

Green River City started as a river crossing for the U.S. Mail. In 1876, a Mr. Blake set up a ferry on the East side of the river and a way station. It became a stopover for travelers with a ferry for transporting people, supplies, and animals across the river.

In 1883 the line commonly known as the Utah Division of the Denver and Rio Grande Western Railroad was built and a train station was opened. The west side of the river became known as Greenriver ( later changed to Green River) and the east side of the river became known as Elgin, and is still referred to by that name today. With the coming of the railroad, the town quickly went from a small farm hamlet to a boom town with workers coming to build the bridge and the road bed for the railroad. After completion of the railroad, Green River became a fueling, watering stop for the railroad, with switching yards and engine sheds. A hotel, called the Palmer House was built and became the scheduled meal stop for trains from both directions for many years. Green River enjoyed the railroad boom until 1892, when the railroad transferred most of its operations to Helper. The population of the town declined significantly.

Throughout the 1940s, 1950s, and 1960s the mining of uranium played a significant role in the economy of Green River. Several trucking companies hauled ore from mines in the Four-Corners Mining District west of Green River, the San Rafael Swell, the Henry Mountains, and the area that is now Lake Powell.

The U.S. Air Force built the Green River Launch Complex, just outside Green River, 1964. It was an annex of the U.S. Army's White Sands Missile Range. From 1964 to 1973 the U. S. Air Force launched 141 Athena Missiles from the Green River launching area, near the Crystal Geyser as part of research to improve nuclear missiles.

Transportation

Amtrak, the national passenger rail system, provides service to Green River station, operating its California Zephyr daily in both directions between Chicago and Emeryville, California.

Demographics

Historical population
Census	Pop.		%±
1890	375		—
1900	222		−40.8%
1910	628		182.9%
1920	645		2.7%
1930	474		−26.5%
1940	470		−0.8%
1950	583		24.0%
1960	1,075		84.4%
1970	1,033		−3.9%
1980	1,048		1.5%
1990	866		−17.4%
2000	973		12.4%
2010	952		−2.2%
Est. 2014	989		3.9%
U.S. Decennial Census

As of the census of 2000, there were 973 people, 329 households, and 238 families residing in the city. The population density was 77.8 people per square mile (30.0/km²). There were 376 housing units at an average density of 30.0 per square mile (11.6/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 88.28% White, 0.92% African American, 1.23% Native American, 1.23% Asian, 0.41% Pacific Islander, 7.09% from other races, and 0.82% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 19.63% of the population.

There were 329 households out of which 41.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 56.2% were married couples living together, 12.8% had a female householder with no husband present, and 27.4% were non-families. 24.0% of all households were made up of individuals and 11.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.96 and the average family size was 3.48.

In the city the population was spread out with 35.7% under the age of 18, 9.8% from 18 to 24, 26.2% from 25 to 44, 17.2% from 45 to 64, and 11.2% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 29 years. For every 100 females there were 93.8 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 93.2 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $28,000, and the median income for a family was $31,667. Males had a median income of $28,417 versus $16,477 for females. The per capita income for the city was $11,326. About 12.5% of families and 15.6% of the population were below the poverty line, including 19.8% of those under age 18 and 11.9% of those age 65 or over.

Economy

Located approximately 100 miles in either direction from Richfield, Utah and Grand Junction, Colorado, Green River's local economy primarily caters to serving passers-by on Interstate 70 since there are no services on I-70 westbound between Green River and Salina, 107 miles away. The economy relies heavily on hotels, fast food and a few other restaurants and gas stations. A large natural gas field has been discovered 3 miles south of the city. The field is operated by Delta Petroleum headquartered in Denver, Colorado.

Green River is famous for its melons, sold during the growing season.

Green River is also a popular freeride mountain biking spot. It can be seen in films such as New World Disorder 7.

Green River is the setting for the Bud Shumway mystery series by Chinle Miller, the first being "The Ghost Rock Cafe," named for a landmark on the San Rafael Swell.

Communications

Emery Telecom is the local telephone and high speed internet provider while Satview Broadband Ltd is the local cable television company.

Further reading

• Glennon, J.A., Pfaff, R.M. (2005). "The operation and geography of carbon-dioxide-driven, cold-water geysers," GOSA Transactions, vol. 9, pp. 184–192.

External links

• Official website
• John Wesley Powell River History Museum
• Cold Water Geysers (Crystal Geyser, Utah)