Hanksville, Utah

History

The town was settled in 1882 and known for a time for the name given to the surrounding area, Graves Valley. It took the name of Hanksville in 1885, after Ebenezer Hanks, an early settler. It was incorporated in 1999.

The Rural Electrification Administration brought electricity to the community in 1960. Today agriculture, mining, and tourism are the main drivers to the local economy. Tourism is particularly important with people coming for recreation at Lake Powell, Capitol Reef National Park, the Henry Mountains, the San Rafael Swell, Goblin Valley State Park, Factory Butte, and the solitude of the surrounding deserts and slot canyons.

Hanksville was a supply post for Butch Cassidy and the Wild Bunch, who would hide out at Robbers Roost in the desert southeast of town.

During the uranium mining frenzy following World War II, Hanksville became a supply center for the prospectors and miners scouring the deserts of the Colorado Plateau. Many abandoned mines can be found in the deserts surrounding the town.

Demographics

As of the 2010 census, 219 people lived in the town. There were 94 housing units. The racial makeup of the town was 98.2% White, 0.5% Asian, and 1.4% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.9% of the population.

Climate

According to the Köppen climate classification system, Hanksville has an arid climate, abbreviated "BWk" (cold desert) on climate maps. It has a mean annual temperature of 53.9 F and an annual mean rainfall of 6.16 in.

|Jan record high F = 69 |Feb record high F = 75 |Mar record high F = 88 |Apr record high F = 98 |May record high F = 107 |Jun record high F = 110 |Jul record high F = 114 |Aug record high F = 110 |Sep record high F = 105 |Oct record high F = 97 |Nov record high F = 82 |Dec record high F = 70

|Jan avg record high F = 57.4 |Feb avg record high F = 65.3 |Mar avg record high F = 78.8 |Apr avg record high F = 87.5 |May avg record high F = 96.9 |Jun avg record high F = 104.4 |Jul avg record high F = 108.0 |Aug avg record high F = 104.3 |Sep avg record high F = 98.5 |Oct avg record high F = 88.2 |Nov avg record high F = 70.4 |Dec avg record high F = 57.4 |year avg record high F = 108.4

|Jan avg record low F = 1.2 |Feb avg record low F = 6.8 |Mar avg record low F = 16.4 |Apr avg record low F = 23.6 |May avg record low F = 33.1 |Jun avg record low F = 42.1 |Jul avg record low F = 51.1 |Aug avg record low F = 48.8 |Sep avg record low F = 35.7 |Oct avg record low F = 22.0 |Nov avg record low F = 10.7 |Dec avg record low F = 2.6 |year avg record low F = -2.3

|Jan record low F = -35 |Feb record low F = -33 |Mar record low F = 4 |Apr record low F = 10 |May record low F = 23 |Jun record low F = 31 |Jul record low F = 38 |Aug record low F = 35 |Sep record low F = 24 |Oct record low F = -6 |Nov record low F = -8 |Dec record low F = -24

|access-date = February 20, 2023 |access-date = February 20, 2023

References

References

1. "2019 U.S. Gazetteer Files". United States Census Bureau.
2. {{gnis. 2412723. Hanksville
3. (May 2023). "Census Bureau profile: Hanksville town, Utah". [[United States Census Bureau]].
4. "Henry Mountains Field Station".
5. Van Cott, John W.. (1990). "Utah Place Names". [[University of Utah Press]].
6. [https://www.census.gov/popest/geographic/boundary_changes/geo3.php Geographic Change Notes: Utah] {{webarchive. link. (May 2, 2008 , [[United States Census Bureau]], 2007. Accessed March 4, 2009.)
7. "Census of Population and Housing". Census.gov.
8. "U.S. Census website". [[United States Census Bureau]].
9. "Hanksville Climate".