Beaver County, Utah

{{Infobox U.S. county

| county = Beaver County

| state = Utah

| ex image = Old Beaver County Ut courthouse.jpg

| ex image size = 220px

| ex image cap = Old Beaver County courthouse.

| seal =

| founded year = 1856|

| seat wl = Beaver

| largest city wl = Beaver

| area_total_sq_mi = 2592

| area_land_sq_mi = 2590

| area_water_sq_mi = 2.1

| area percentage = 0.08

| coordinates = {{coord|38.34|-113.23|display=inline,title|type:adm2nd_region:US-UT_source:UScensus1990}}

| census yr = 2020

| pop = 7072

| pop_est_as_of = 2024

| population_est = 7424 {{gain}}

| density_sq_mi = auto

| time zone = Mountain

| web = beaver.utah.gov

| named for = North American beaver

| district = 2nd

| pop_est_footnotes={{cite web|url=https://www.census.gov/data/tables/time-series/demo/popest/2020s-counties-total.html|title=County Population Totals and Components of Change: 2020-2024|publisher=United States Census Bureau|access-date=May 17, 2025}} }}

Beaver County is a county in west central Utah, United States. As of the 2020 United States census, the population was 7,072, up from the 2010 figure of 6,629.{{cite web|title=State & County QuickFacts|url=http://quickfacts.census.gov/qfd/states/49/49001.html|publisher=United States Census Bureau|access-date=December 29, 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110629014813/http://quickfacts.census.gov/qfd/states/49/49001.html|archive-date=June 29, 2011|url-status=dead}} Its county seat and largest city is Beaver.{{cite web|url=http://www.naco.org/Counties/Pages/FindACounty.aspx|access-date=June 7, 2011|title=Find a County|publisher=National Association of Counties|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120704084002/http://www.naco.org/Counties/Pages/FindACounty.aspx|archive-date=July 4, 2012}} The county was named for the abundance of beaver in the area.

History

Explorers of European descent first visited present-day Beaver County in the 1776 Domínguez-Escalante Expedition. The proposed territory of Deseret (soon changed to Utah Territory) began with the arrival of Mormon pioneers in 1847. After the immediate Great Salt Lake City area was settled, settlers moved into more outlying areas, including the future Beaver County area. The county was created by the Utah territorial legislature from a section of Iron County on January 5, 1856, before the settlement of Beaver town was founded later that year. The county was named for the animal, which was plentiful there.Van Cott, J. W., 1990, Utah Place Names, {{ISBN|0-87480-345-4}} The county boundary as delineated by that act included areas in present-day Colorado and Nevada. The defined boundary was altered on January 16, 1861, by the creation of two counties in present Nevada. The county area was effectively reduced on February 28, 1861, by the US Congress when it created Colorado Territory, taking all of the Beaver County areas east of 109 degrees longitude. The county's boundary was enlarged on January 17, 1861, by the addition of parcels from Millard, Sanpete, and St. Mary's counties. However, its west area was reduced by the creation of the Nevada Territory on July 14, 1862 (this adjustment was altered on May 5, 1866, by the action of the US Congress, effectively ceding all Beaver County area west of 114 degrees longitude to Nevada counties). The county area was also reduced on January 16, 1865, when Piute County was created from Beaver territory.{{Cite web |url=https://publications.newberry.org/ahcbp/documents/UT_Individual_County_Chronologies.htm |title=[[Newberry Library]]. Individual County Chronologies - Beaver County UT (accessed March 25, 2019) |access-date=March 25, 2019 |archive-date=March 6, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160306153326/http://publications.newberry.org/ahcbp/documents/UT_Individual_County_Chronologies.htm |url-status=dead }}

A quarter of the county's workers are employed by hog processor Smithfield Foods.{{Cite web |title=1 in 4 employees in this Utah county work for one company — and it's cutting jobs |url=https://www.sltrib.com/news/2022/06/14/employees-this-utah/ |access-date=June 15, 2022 |website=The Salt Lake Tribune |language=en-US}}

Geography

Image:beavercounty ut.png

Beaver County lies on the west side of Utah. Its west border abuts the east border of the state of Nevada. The west part of the county consists of low rolling hills punctuated by isolated mountains. The east edge of the county runs to the crest of a north–south-running mountain ridge.[https://www.google.com/maps/place/Beaver+County,+UT/@38.7468844,-112.658023,10.5z/data=!4m5!3m4!1s0x80b4fb2e790f0d6b:0xbc3ad87dc62dc956!8m2!3d38.3266376!4d-113.287085 Beaver County UT Google Maps (accessed 13 March 2019)] The terrain slopes to the west and north; its highest point is a mountain crest on its east border, at {{convert|12,011|ft|m|abbr=on}} ASL.{{Cite web |url=https://www.daftlogic.com/sandbox-google-maps-find-altitude.htm |title="Find an Altitude/Beaver County UT" Google Maps (accessed March 13, 2019) |access-date=March 14, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190521043409/https://www.daftlogic.com/sandbox-google-maps-find-altitude.htm |archive-date=May 21, 2019 |url-status=dead }} The county has a total area of {{convert|2592|sqmi}}, of which {{convert|2590|sqmi}} is land and {{convert|2.1|sqmi}} (0.08%) is water.{{cite web|url=http://www2.census.gov/geo/docs/maps-data/data/gazetteer/counties_list_49.txt|publisher=US Census Bureau|access-date=March 27, 2015|date=August 22, 2012|title=2010 Census Gazetteer Files}}

The Tushar Mountains lies on the eastern boundary of the county, reaching to {{convert|12000|ft|m}} in elevation and providing water for the farming communities of Beaver and Manderfield. To the west, barren desert valleys typify the scenery, separated by mountains lightly forested with junipers. {{citation needed|date=April 2015}}

=Adjacent counties=

Lincoln County, Nevada - west
Millard County - north
Sevier County - northeast
Piute County - east
Garfield County - southeast
Iron County - south

=Protected areas=

Fishlake National Forest (part)
Indian Peak State Game Management Area
Minersville National Forest (part)

Demographics

{{US Census population

| align = left

| 1860 = 785

| 1870 = 2007

| 1880 = 3918

| 1890 = 3340

| 1900 = 3613

| 1910 = 4717

| 1920 = 5139

| 1930 = 5136

| 1940 = 5014

| 1950 = 4856

| 1960 = 4331

| 1970 = 3800

| 1980 = 4378

| 1990 = 4765

| 2000 = 6005

| 2010 = 6629

| 2020 = 7072

| estyear = 2024

| estimate = 7424

| estref =

| align-fn = center

| footnote = US Decennial Census{{cite web|url=https://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/decennial-census.html|title=US Decennial Census|publisher=US Census Bureau|access-date=March 27, 2015}}
1790–1960{{cite web|url=http://mapserver.lib.virginia.edu|title=Historical Census Browser|publisher=University of Virginia Library|access-date=March 27, 2015}} 1900–1990{{cite web|url=https://www.census.gov/population/cencounts/ut190090.txt|title=Population of Counties by Decennial Census: 1900 to 1990|publisher=US Census Bureau|editor-last=Forstall|editor-first=Richard L.|date=March 27, 1995|access-date=March 27, 2015}}
1990–2000{{cite web|url=https://www.census.gov/population/www/cen2000/briefs/phc-t4/tables/tab02.pdf|title=Census 2000 PHC-T-4. Ranking Tables for Counties: 1990 and 2000|publisher=US Census Bureau|date=April 2, 2001|access-date=March 27, 2015}} 2010–2018 2019{{cite web|url=https://www.census.gov/quickfacts/fact/table/beavercountyutah/PST045218|title=QuickFacts. Beaver County, Utah|access-date=May 17, 2020}} 2020[https://www.census.gov/library/visualizations/interactive/2020-population-and-housing-state-data.html 2020 Population and Housing State Data | Utah]

}}

According to the 2020 United States census{{Cite web|url=https://www.census.gov/data/tables/2023/dec/2020-census-dhc.html|title=2020 Census Demographic and Housing Characteristics File (DHC)|author=United States Census Bureau|author-link=United States Census Bureau|accessdate=November 2, 2024}} and 2020 American Community Survey,{{Cite web|url=https://www.census.gov/data/developers/data-sets/acs-5year.2020.html|title=American Community Survey 5-Year Data (2009-2022)|author=United States Census Bureau|author-link=United States Census Bureau|accessdate=November 2, 2024}} there were 7,072 people in Beaver County with a population density of 2.7 people per square mile (1.1/km²). Among non-Hispanic or Latino people, the racial makeup was 5,717 (80.8%) White, 23 (0.3%) African American, 70 (1.0%) Native American, 32 (0.5%) Asian, 21 (0.3%) Pacific Islander, 8 (0.1%) from other races, and 135 (1.9%) from two or more races. 1,066 (15.1%) people were Hispanic or Latino.

There were 3,758 (53.14%) males and 3,314 (46.86%) females, and the population distribution by age was 2,162 (30.6%) under the age of 18, 3,862 (54.6%) from 18 to 64, and 1,048 (14.8%) who were at least 65 years old. The median age was 34.4 years.

There were 2,276 households in Beaver County with an average size of 3.11 of which 1,692 (74.3%) were families and 584 (25.7%) were non-families. Among all families, 1,368 (60.1%) were married couples, 140 (6.2%) were male householders with no spouse, and 184 (8.1%) were female householders with no spouse. Among all non-families, 497 (21.8%) were a single person living alone and 87 (3.8%) were two or more people living together. 900 (39.5%) of all households had children under the age of 18. 1,719 (75.5%) of households were owner-occupied while 557 (24.5%) were renter-occupied.

The median income for a Beaver County household was $66,705 and the median family income was $75,066, with a per-capita income of $24,540. The median income for males that were full-time employees was $53,514 and for females $36,696. 4.1% of the population and 2.9% of families were below the poverty line.

In terms of education attainment, out of the 3,871 people in Beaver County 25 years or older, 334 (8.6%) had not completed high school, 1,046 (27.0%) had a high school diploma or equivalency, 1,492 (38.5%) had some college or associate degree, 862 (22.3%) had a bachelor's degree, and 137 (3.5%) had a graduate or professional degree.

Politics and government

Beaver County voters have traditionally voted Republican. In no national election since 1964 has the county selected the Democratic Party candidate. Jimmy Carter in 1976 was the last Democrat to even come within ten points of winning Beaver County.

class="wikitable"

|+State elected offices

! colspan="2" style="text-align:center; vertical-align:bottom;" |Position

!District

! style="text-align:center;" |Name

! valign="bottom" |Affiliation

! style="vertical-align:bottom; text-align:center;" |First elected

style="background-color:{{party color|Republican Party (United States)}}" |

|Senate

|24

| style="text-align:center;" |Derrin Owens

| style="text-align:center;" |Republican

| style="text-align:center;" |2020{{Cite web|title=Senator Owens Utah Senate|url=https://senate.utah.gov/sen/OWENSD/|access-date=November 16, 2021|website=senate.utah.gov}}

style="background-color:{{party color|Republican Party (United States)}}" |

|Senate

|28

| style="text-align:center;" |Evan Vickers

| style="text-align:center;" |Republican

| style="text-align:center;" |2012{{Cite web|title=Senator Vickers Utah Senate|url=https://senate.utah.gov/sen/VICKEEJ/|access-date=November 15, 2021|website=senate.utah.gov}}

style="background-color:{{party color|Republican Party (United States)}}" |

|House of Representatives

|68

| style="text-align:center;" |Merrill Nelson

| style="text-align:center;" |Republican

| style="text-align:center;" |2012{{Cite web|title=Rep. Nelson, Merrill F.|url=https://house.utah.gov/rep/NELSOMF/|access-date=November 15, 2021|website=Utah House of Representatives|language=en-US|archive-date=November 15, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211115182841/https://house.utah.gov/rep/NELSOMF/|url-status=dead}}

style="background-color:{{party color|Republican Party (United States)}}" |

|House of Representatives

|73

| style="text-align:center;" |Phil Lyman

| style="text-align:center;" |Republican

| style="text-align:center;" |2018{{Cite web|title=Rep. Lyman, Phil|url=https://house.utah.gov/rep/LYMANP/|access-date=November 15, 2021|website=Utah House of Representatives|language=en-US|archive-date=November 15, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211115182904/https://house.utah.gov/rep/LYMANP/|url-status=dead}}

style="background-color: lightgrey}" |

|Board of Education

|14

| style="text-align:center;" |Mark Huntsman

| style="text-align:center;" |Nonpartisan

| style="text-align:center;" |2014{{Cite web|title=Mark Huntsman|url=https://www.schools.utah.gov/board/members/utah/markhuntsman|access-date=November 15, 2021|website=www.schools.utah.gov|archive-date=November 15, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211115183003/https://www.schools.utah.gov/board/members/utah/markhuntsman|url-status=dead}}

{{PresHead|place=Beaver County, Utah|source={{cite web|url=http://uselectionatlas.org/RESULTS|title=Atlas of US Presidential Elections|last=Leip|first=David|website=uselectionatlas.org|access-date=March 30, 2018}}}}

Communities

{{stack|File:Beaver County Utah incorporated and unincorporated areas.svg}}

=Cities=

Beaver (county seat)
Milford

=Towns=

Minersville

=Unincorporated communities=

=Former communities=

Recreation

The American Discovery Trail traverses the county running through both Beaver and Milford.
Elk Mountain is home to the Eagle Point Ski area.
Rock Corral Recreation Area, an area of geologic interest managed by the BLM

Education

There is one school district, Beaver School District.{{cite web|url=https://www2.census.gov/geo/maps/DC2020/PL20/st49_ut/schooldistrict_maps/c49001_beaver/DC20SD_C49001.pdf|title=2020 CENSUS - SCHOOL DISTRICT REFERENCE MAP: Beaver County, UT|publisher=U.S. Census Bureau|access-date=2024-09-28}} - [https://www2.census.gov/geo/maps/DC2020/PL20/st49_ut/schooldistrict_maps/c49001_beaver/DC20SD_C49001_SD2MS.txt Text list]

References

;Specific

;General

{{citation|first=Miriam B.|last=Murphy|contribution-url=http://www.uen.org/utah_history_encyclopedia/b/BEAVER_COUNTY.html|contribution=Beaver County|editor-last=Powell|editor-first=Allan Kent|year=1994|title=Utah History Encyclopedia|location=Salt Lake City UT|publisher=University of Utah Press|isbn=0874804256|oclc=30473917|access-date=October 30, 2013|archive-date=January 13, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170113105700/http://www.uen.org/utah_history_encyclopedia/b/BEAVER_COUNTY.html|url-status=dead}}