Kanab, Utah

Description

The area where Kanab is located was first settled in 1864, and the town was founded in 1870 when 10 Mormon families moved into the area. Named for a Paiute word meaning "place of the willows," Fort Kanab was built on the east bank of Kanab Creek in 1864 for defense against attack and as a base for exploration of the area. The population was 4,683 at the 2020 census.

Kanab is situated in the "Grand Circle" area, centrally located among Vermilion Cliffs National Monument, Bryce Canyon National Park, the Grand Canyon (North Rim), Zion National Park, Pipe Spring National Monument, Monument Valley Navajo Tribal Park, and Lake Powell. Other nearby attractions include Grand Staircase–Escalante National Monument, Coral Pink Sand Dunes State Park, the privately owned Moqui Cave, and the largest animal sanctuary in the United States, Best Friends Animal Society.

Referring to Kanab's proximity to the many spectacular rock formations, a welcome sign to the town calls it "The Greatest Earth on Show."

Locals refer to Kanab as "Little Hollywood" due to its history as a filming location for many movies and television series, prominently Westerns such as Stagecoach (1939), The Lone Ranger, Death Valley Days. Gunsmoke, Daniel Boone, El Dorado (1966), Planet of the Apes (1968), Mackenna's Gold, WindRunner: A Spirited Journey, Western Union (1941), The Desperadoes (1943), In Old Oklahoma (1943), Buffalo Bill (1944), Westward the Women (1952), The Yellow Tomahawk (1954), Tomahawk Trail (1957), Fort Bowie (1958), Sergeants Three (1962), Duel at Diablo (1966), Ride in the Whirlwind (1965), Convict Stage (1965), The Shooting (1966), and The Outlaw Josey Wales (1976).

Demographics

As of the 2010 census, 4,312 people, 1,729 households, and 1,130 families resided in the township. The population density was 308 people per square mile (98.2/km2). The 1,999 housing units had an average density of 141.8 per square mile (41.1/km2). The racial makeup of the town was 96.2% White, 0.3% African American, 1.0% Native American, 0.3% Asian, 0.8% from other races, and 1.4% from two or more races. Hispanics or Latinos of any race were 4.2% of the population.

Of the 1,729 households, 25.7% had children under 18 living with them, a decrease of 6.4% compared to the 2000 census; 65.4% were married couples living together, 6.7% had a female householder with no husband present, and 34.6% were nonfamilies, an increase of 7.9% over the 2000 census. 30.9% of all households were made up of individuals, and 13% had someone living alone who was 65 or older. The average household size was 2.44 and the average family size was 3.08.

The median income for a household in the town was $42,286, and for a family was $48,008. Males had a median income of $30,018 versus $22,205 for females. 4.0% of families and 5.6% of the population were below the poverty line, including 4.6% of those under 18 and 4.9% of those 65 or over.

Geography and climate

Kanab is located on the western Colorado Plateau. U.S. Routes 89 and 89A meet in the center of town. US 89 leads north 21 mi to Orderville and southeast 74 mi to Page, Arizona, while US 89A leads south 7 mi to Fredonia, Arizona.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 37.9 sqkm, of which 0.09 sqkm, or 0.24%, is covered by water. The city's downtown sits on flat ground to the east of Kanab Creek, which flows south to meet the Colorado River in the Grand Canyon.

Kanab has a borderline semiarid climate (Köppen BSk), more typical of exposed regions around Arizona's Mogollon Rim. The town is rather wetter, especially during the winter, and hotter than the typical Mountain West cool, semiarid climate. The dry spring season from April to June is warm to hot during the day and very clear, but the hot sun and thin air typical of Utah mean that nights remain cool and frosts can occur even in May. In the summer, monsoon thunderstorms break up the dry weather between July and October. The winters are mild during the day and cold at night, but get more snow than most places in southern Utah. Snowfall varies a considerably from year to year, with some years receiving almost none to 74.5 in falling in 2001. On average, 70.9 days will reach 90 F and 7.6 will reach 100 F. Although Kanab is in hardiness zone of 7A with an average yearly low of just under 5 F, only 1.5 days fail to climb above freezing on average.

|Jan record high F = 72 |Feb record high F = 77 |Mar record high F = 85 |Apr record high F = 90 |May record high F = 101 |Jun record high F = 107 |Jul record high F = 108 |Aug record high F = 106 |Sep record high F = 104 |Oct record high F = 94 |Nov record high F = 81 |Dec record high F = 74 |Jan record low F = −20 |Feb record low F = −12 |Mar record low F = 1 |Apr record low F = 8 |May record low F = 16 |Jun record low F = 23 |Jul record low F = 31 |Aug record low F = 35 |Sep record low F = 24 |Oct record low F = 9 |Nov record low F = -4 |Dec record low F = −12

Transportation

Kanab is served by the Kanab Municipal Airport, a general aviation facility. U.S. Route 89 (US 89) passes through the city and U.S. Route 89A within Utah is entirely within the city limits and has its northern terminus at US 89.

National Park Express provides bus service from Kanab to St. George and Las Vegas.

Jackson Flat Reservoir

In 2010, construction began on the Jackson Flat Reservoir under the direction of the Kane County Water Conservancy District. The reservoir had been in various stages of planning for 19 years. Completion of the reservoir took two years of construction, and one year of filling. The dam structure is composed of 800,000 yards of clay, dirt, and rock. The project was supervised by four engineering firms, including the Utah state engineer of Dam Safety and the Army Corps of Engineers. The 4,228 acre-feet reservoir is an off-stream site fed by a 24-inch pipe capable of transferring 23 acre-feet of water per day. The average depth of the reservoir is 28 ft, with a conservation pool that will sustain a 400 acre-foot pool of water. In April 2015, the reservoir reached 3,000 acre-feet of water. Water volumes vary throughout the year as reserves are tapped during summer to supplement local irrigation needs, and are then refilled during the winter based on annual rainfall. The reservoir is located directly south of Kanab, east of the municipal airport, and is visible from Highway 89A.

During planning and construction, crews discovered 10 sites of prehistoric Anasazi ruins, including human remains. Sites that would be below the water line were fully excavated and remains turned over to the local Paiute tribe for proper care and burial ceremonies. Sites above the projected water line remain unexcavated.

The Jackson Flat Reservoir has been stocked with trout, catfish, and bluegill fish varieties. The site supports nonmotorized boating, fishing, swimming, concerts, and stargazing.

Controversies

Natural Family Resolution

On January 10, 2006, then-mayor Kim Lawson and the city council unanimously passed Resolution 1-1-06R, titled "The Natural Family: A Vision for the City of Kanab":

The nonbinding resolution was formulated by the Sutherland Institute, a conservative advocacy group in Salt Lake City. Hundreds of tourists canceled trips to Kanab after learning about the resolution.

In Arthur Frommer's monthly travel column, Frommer called the city "homophobic" and urged readers to boycott the city.

A local civic group, the Kanab Boosters, published an open letter to ask Frommer to reconsider his boycott, making it clear that "only a small number of people agree with our city council regarding the Natural Family Proclamation." The Boosters also designed and provided stickers for citizens and resident business owners opposed to the resolution. The stickers featured a string of rainbow-colored human figures underneath the red rocks of Kanab and the words "Everyone welcome here".

In response to the criticism of the resolution, the Sutherland Institute clarified, saying that the resolution said that children are reared properly when a mother is home a significant amount of time and that a gay relationship is not a natural family.

Bikini ban

In June 2008, Kanab's city council voted to prohibit the wearing of bikinis and men's swim briefs at the city's new swimming pool. The ban was rescinded within a month.

Kanab ambersnail

Three Lakes, a privately owned wet meadow near Kanab, is one of only two natural habitats for the Kanab ambersnail, a species listed as endangered in 1992 by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and as a species of conservation priority for the Arizona Game and Fish Department.

Notable people

• LaVoy Finicum – born here
• Jacob Hamblin
• William Thomas Stewart
• Kelly Sweet
• Mary Elizabeth Woolley

Gallery

Kanab,_Utah_01.jpg|Moqui Cave Kanab,_Utah_04_Parry_Lodge.jpg|Parry Lodge, Historic Movie Motel Kanab,_Utah_02_Little_Hollywood_museum_of_western_film_sets.jpg|Little Hollywood Museum of Western Film Kanab, Utah Post Office.jpg|Kanab Post Office

References

References

1. Gannett, Henry. ''[https://books.google.com/books?id=9V1IAAAAMAAJ&pg=PA172 The Origin of Certain Place Names in the United States]''. Government Printing Office. 1905. ASIN B003T9UQDA. p. 172.
2. "2019 U.S. Gazetteer Files". United States Census Bureau.
3. "[https://www.census.gov U.S. Census website]". ''[[United States Census Bureau]]''. Retrieved January 31, 2008.
4. "[http://geonames.usgs.gov US Board on Geographic Names]". ''[[United States Geological Survey]]. ''. October 25, 2007. Retrieved January 31, 2008.
5. "[http://www.naco.org/Counties/Pages/FindACounty.aspx Find a County] {{webarchive. link. (2011-05-31 ". ''National Association of Counties''. Retrieved June 7, 2011.)
6. "[http://kanab.utah.gov/2185/About-Kanab About Kanab]". ''Kanab, Utah''. Retrieved April 14, 2017.
7. "About Kanab {{!}} Kanab, UT".
8. "Kanab city, Utah".
9. D, Carol. (2021-12-02). "Kanab – "The Greatest Earth on Show"".
10. Maddrey, Joseph (2016). ''The Quick, the Dead and the Revived: The Many Lives of the Western Film''. McFarland. Page 178. {{ISBN. 9781476625492.
11. "[https://web.archive.org/web/20110717001549/http://www.thegrandcanyons.com/this-is-the-west.html Kanab, Utah - This is the West]". ''Office of Tourism and Film Commission''. Kane County, Utah. Archived from [http://www.thegrandcanyons.com/this-is-the-west.html the original] on July 17, 2011.
12. "[https://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/decennial-census.html Census of Population and Housing] ". ''United States Census Bureau''. Retrieved June 4, 2015.
13. "HISPANIC OR LATINO, AND NOT HISPANIC OR LATINO BY RACE (2020)". U.S. Census Bureau.
14. "HISPANIC OR LATINO, AND NOT HISPANIC OR LATINO BY RACE (2010)". U.S. Census Bureau.
15. "Utah: 2000". U.S. Census Bureau.
16. "Utah: 1990". U.S. Census Bureau.
17. "General Population Characteristics: Utah". U.S. Census Bureau.
18. "Summary of Monthly Normals 1991-2020".
19. "National Weather Service - NWS Salt Lake City".
20. (August 17, 2023). "One-Way Shuttle Service Tours | National Park Express, Vegas".
21. "[https://kcwcd.com/jackson-flat-reservoir/ Jackson Flat Reservoir]". ''Kane County Water Conservancy District''.
22. [http://www.archaeologicalconservancy.org/jackson-flat-reservoir/ Jackson Flat Reservoir (Utah)]". ''The Archaeological Conservancy''. June 12, 2014.
23. Havnes, Mark. "Kanab endorses 'natural' families - City Council resolution: Opponents call the declaration outmoded and discriminatory: Kanab votes for family declaration". ''The Salt Lake Tribune''. January 18, 2006.
24. "[https://web.archive.org/web/20090323184919/http://kanab.utah.gov/artman/publish/council/article_187.shtml Kanab, Utah City Council Meeting: Meeting Minutes]". ''Kanab City Council''. City of Kanab, Utah. January 10, 2006. Archived from [http://kanab.utah.gov/artman/publish/council/article_187.shtml the original] on March 23, 2009.
25. The symbolic resolution created controversy within the city.Havnes, Mark. "'Natural family' stand stirs Kanab". ''The Salt Lake Tribune''. January 20, 2006.
26. Havnes, Mark. "Kanab 's 'natural family' decree spawns tourism backlash: Tourists steer clear of Kanab". ''The Salt Lake Tribune''. February 5, 2006.
27. Emerson, Judy. "City in Utah worries about issue's effect on tourism". ''Rockford Register Star'' (Rockford, Illinois). February 19, 2006.
28. Dobner, Jennifer. "'Natural family' resolution greeted with boycott". ''Associated Press''. Houston Chronicle. March 24, 2006.
29. Havnes, Mark. "Kanab businesses burned by boycott". ''The Salt Lake Tribune''. April 1, 2006.
30. "[https://www.nytimes.com/2006/04/30/us/30kanab.html?_r=0 Welcome to Our Town. Or, Maybe Not]". ''The New York Times''. April 30, 2006.
31. "[http://archive.sltrib.com/story.php?ref=/ci_3655874 Letter from Kanab Boosters to travel writer Arthur Frommer]". ''The Salt Lake Tribune''. March 30, 2016.
32. Havnes, Mark. "[http://archive.sltrib.com/story.php?ref=/ci_3638519 Kanab businesses open arms to all with new sticker]". ''The Salt Lake Tribune''. March 25, 2006.
33. Smart, Christopher; Eddington, Mark. "'Natural family' resolution reworked". ''The Salt Lake Tribune''. April 5, 2006.
34. "Utah city to repeal poolside bikini ban". ''Daily Herald'' (Everett, Washington). June 13, 2008.
35. Robinson, Doug. "[https://web.archive.org/web/20110118072119/http://www.deseretnews.com/article/700239474/Bikini-ban-fun-while-it-lasted.html Bikini ban fun while it lasted]". ''[[Deseret News]]''. July 1, 2008. Retrieved April 8, 2017.