Elko is a city in
Elko CountyElko County is located in the western U.S. state of Nevada. As of the 2000 census, the population was 45,291. As of July 1, 2007, the population of Elko County was estimated at 50,434. Its county seat is Elko. The county was organized on March 5, 1869, being taken from Eureka County...
,
NevadaNevada is a state located in the western region of the United States. The capital is Carson City and the largest city is Las Vegas. The state's nickname is Silver State, due to the large number of silver deposits that were discovered and mined there...
,
United StatesThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. The population was 16,980 at the 2000 census. It is the
county seatA county seat is a term for an administrative center for a county or civil parish, primarily used in the United States. In the Northeast United States, the statutory term often is shire town, but colloquially county seat is the term in use there...
of
Elko CountyElko County is located in the western U.S. state of Nevada. As of the 2000 census, the population was 45,291. As of July 1, 2007, the population of Elko County was estimated at 50,434. Its county seat is Elko. The county was organized on March 5, 1869, being taken from Eureka County...
.
Elko is the principal city of the
Elko Micropolitan Statistical AreaThe Elko Micropolitan Statistical Area, as defined by the United States Census Bureau, is an area consisting of two counties in Nevada, anchored by the city of Elko...
, a
micropolitan areaUnited States Micropolitan Statistical Areas , as defined by the Census Bureau and the Office of Management and Budget, are urban areas in the United States based around a core city or town with a population of 10,000 to 49,999. The micropolitan area designation was created in 2003...
that covers Elko and
EurekaEureka County is a county located in the U.S. state of Nevada. As of the 2000 census, the population was 1,651. Its county seat is Eureka.Eureka County is part of the Elko Micropolitan Statistical Area.-History:...
counties and had a combined population of 46,942 at the
2000 censusThe Twenty-Second United States Census, known as Census 2000 and conducted by the Census Bureau, determined the resident population of the United States on April 1, 2000, to be 281,421,906, an increase of 13.2% over the 248,709,873 persons enumerated during the 1990 Census...
.
Elko was first inhabited in 1868, when it was at the East end of the railroad tracks built by
Central Pacific RailroadThe Central Pacific Railroad was the California-to-Utah portion of the First Transcontinental Railroad in North America.Many proposals to build a transcontinental railroad failed because of the disputes over slavery in Washington; with the secession of the South, the modernizers in the Republican...
(the portion of the First Transcontinental Railroad built from California to Utah).
Elko is a city in
Elko CountyElko County is located in the western U.S. state of Nevada. As of the 2000 census, the population was 45,291. As of July 1, 2007, the population of Elko County was estimated at 50,434. Its county seat is Elko. The county was organized on March 5, 1869, being taken from Eureka County...
,
NevadaNevada is a state located in the western region of the United States. The capital is Carson City and the largest city is Las Vegas. The state's nickname is Silver State, due to the large number of silver deposits that were discovered and mined there...
,
United StatesThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. The population was 16,980 at the 2000 census. It is the
county seatA county seat is a term for an administrative center for a county or civil parish, primarily used in the United States. In the Northeast United States, the statutory term often is shire town, but colloquially county seat is the term in use there...
of
Elko CountyElko County is located in the western U.S. state of Nevada. As of the 2000 census, the population was 45,291. As of July 1, 2007, the population of Elko County was estimated at 50,434. Its county seat is Elko. The county was organized on March 5, 1869, being taken from Eureka County...
.
Elko is the principal city of the
Elko Micropolitan Statistical AreaThe Elko Micropolitan Statistical Area, as defined by the United States Census Bureau, is an area consisting of two counties in Nevada, anchored by the city of Elko...
, a
micropolitan areaUnited States Micropolitan Statistical Areas , as defined by the Census Bureau and the Office of Management and Budget, are urban areas in the United States based around a core city or town with a population of 10,000 to 49,999. The micropolitan area designation was created in 2003...
that covers Elko and
EurekaEureka County is a county located in the U.S. state of Nevada. As of the 2000 census, the population was 1,651. Its county seat is Eureka.Eureka County is part of the Elko Micropolitan Statistical Area.-History:...
counties and had a combined population of 46,942 at the
2000 censusThe Twenty-Second United States Census, known as Census 2000 and conducted by the Census Bureau, determined the resident population of the United States on April 1, 2000, to be 281,421,906, an increase of 13.2% over the 248,709,873 persons enumerated during the 1990 Census...
.
History
Elko was first inhabited in 1868, when it was at the East end of the railroad tracks built by
Central Pacific RailroadThe Central Pacific Railroad was the California-to-Utah portion of the First Transcontinental Railroad in North America.Many proposals to build a transcontinental railroad failed because of the disputes over slavery in Washington; with the secession of the South, the modernizers in the Republican...
(the portion of the First Transcontinental Railroad built from California to Utah). When the railroad crews moved on, Elko remained, serving as a ranch and mining freight and supply center.
Elko is said to have been named by Charles Crocker, a superintendent of the
Central Pacific RailroadThe Central Pacific Railroad was the California-to-Utah portion of the First Transcontinental Railroad in North America.Many proposals to build a transcontinental railroad failed because of the disputes over slavery in Washington; with the secession of the South, the modernizers in the Republican...
. He was especially fond of animal names and added o to Elk. There is no definitive evidence of this naming history, but it has become the widely accepted version.
The first
Elko County CourthouseElko County Courthouse is an historic building listed on the National Register of Historic Places located at 571 Idaho Street in Elko, Nevada. The current building is a replacement built in 1910.- History :The original courthouse building was built in 1869....
was built in 1869.
In 1925, the Kelly Act (also known as the Airmail Act of 1925) authorized the
U.S. Post OfficeThe United States Postal Service is an independent agency of the United States government responsible for providing postal service in the United States. It is one of the few government agencies explicitly authorized by the United States Constitution. Within the United States, it is commonly...
to contract with private airlines for the feeder routes that fed the main transcontinental route. The first commercial airmail flight in the United States was on the 487 mile Airmail Route #5 from
Pasco, WashingtonPasco is a city in and the county seat of Franklin County, Washington, United States.Pasco is one of three cities that make up the Tri-Cities region of the state of Washington. The Tri-Cities is a mid-sized metropolitan area of approximately 230,000 people that also includes the cities of...
to Elko, Nevada on April 6, 1926. The flight was piloted by Leon D. Cuddeback and included a brief stop in
Boise, IdahoBoise is a city located in the Northwestern United States in the state of Idaho. Boise is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Idaho as well as the county seat of Ada County...
to pick up more mail.
The 1910 replacement for the original courthouse is listed on the
National Register of Historic PlacesThe National Register of Historic Places is the United States government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation...
. The US Post Office-Elko Main, built in 1933, is also listed.
Geography and climate
According to the
United States Census BureauThe United States Census Bureau is the government agency that is responsible for the United States Census. It also gathers other national demographic and economic data. As part of the United States Department of Commerce, the Census Bureau serves as the leading source of quality data about...
, the city has a total area of 14.5 square miles (37.5 km²), all land; though the path of the
Humboldt RiverThe Humboldt River runs through northern Nevada in the western United States. At approximately long, it is the longest river in the arid Great Basin of North America. It has no outlet to the ocean, but instead empties into the Humboldt Sink. It is the largest river in the United States, in terms...
fills from time to time.
January is normally the coldest month of the year, with an average maximum of and an average minimum of . July is normally the warmest month of the year, with an average maximum of and an average minimum of . There are an average of 42 days annually with a maximum of 90° (32°C) or higher, and an average of 193 days annually with a minimum of 32° (0°C) or lower. Annual precipitation averages , falling on an average of 79 days. Annual snowfall averages with . There are normally 130 sunny days each year. The highest temperature on record is on July 28, 1889, and the lowest on record is on January 21, 1937. The most rainfall in 24 hours was on April 22, 1925. The most rainfall in one month was in January 1916. The most rainfall in one year was in 1983. The least rainfall in one year was in 1919. The most snowfall in one month was in January 1996. The most snowfall in one year was in 1996.
| Monthly Normal and Record High and Low Temperatures |
| Month |
Jan |
Feb |
Mar |
Apr |
May |
Jun |
Jul |
Aug |
Sep |
Oct |
Nov |
Dec |
| Rec High °F |
65 |
70 |
78 |
86 |
97 |
104 |
108 |
107 |
99 |
88 |
78 |
65 |
| Norm High °F |
37.0 |
42.9 |
51.2 |
59.3 |
68.6 |
79.9 |
89.6 |
88.1 |
78.2 |
65.0 |
48.1 |
38.2 |
| Norm Low °F |
14.1 |
19.7 |
26.0 |
29.9 |
36.9 |
43.5 |
48.7 |
47.0 |
38.2 |
28.4 |
20.9 |
13.9 |
| Rec Low °F |
-43 |
-37 |
-9 |
-2 |
10 |
23 |
30 |
20 |
9 |
1 |
-12 |
-38 |
| Precip (in) |
1.14 |
0.88 |
0.98 |
0.81 |
1.08 |
0.67 |
0.30 |
0.36 |
0.68 |
0.71 |
1.05 |
0.93 |
| Source: NCDC The United States National Climatic Data Center in Asheville, North Carolina is the world's largest active archive of weather data.The Center has more than 150 years of data on hand with 224 gigabytes of new information added each day...
|
Demographics
As of the
censusA "census" is the procedure of systematically acquiring and recording information about the members of a given population. It is a regularly occurring and official count of a particular population.In other words every 10 years...next one would be in 2010 The term is used mostly in connection with...
of 2000, there were 16,708 people, 8,505 households, and 5,287 families residing in the city. The
population densityPopulation density is a measurement of population per unit area or unit volume. It is frequently applied to living organisms, and particularly to humans. It is a key term used in geography....
was 1,153.3 people per square mile (445.2/km²). There were 6,948 housing units at an average density of 479.6/sq mi (185.1/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 81.5% White, 0.3% African American, 5.4% Native American, 1.0% Asian, 0.1% Pacific Islander, 8.6% from
other racesRace and ethnicity in the United States Census, as defined by the United States Census Bureau and the Federal Office of Management and Budget , are self-identification data items in which residents choose the race or races with which they most closely identify, and indicate whether or not they are...
, and 2.94% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 19.4% of the population.
There were 8,505 households out of which 40.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 54.8% were
married couplesMarriage is a social union or legal contract between individuals that creates kinship. It is an institution in which interpersonal relationships, usually intimate and sexual, are acknowledged by a variety of ways, depending on the culture or demographic...
living together, 9.8% had a female householder with no husband present, and 29.8% were non-families. 23.5% of all households were made up of individuals and 5.7% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.72 and the average family size was 3.26.
In the city the population was spread out with 31.1% under the age of 18, 9.8% from 18 to 24, 31.2% from 25 to 44, 21.0% from 45 to 64, and 7.6% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 31.5 years. For every 100 females there were 104.6 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 105.3 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $48,656, and the median income for a family was $52,263. Males had a median income of $42,155 versus $26,823 for females. The
per capita incomePer capita income means how much each individual receives, in monetary terms, of the yearly income generated in the country. This is what each citizen is to receive if the yearly national income is divided equally among everyone. Per capita income is usually reported in units of currency per year...
for the city was $19,680. About 6.1% of families and 8.2% of the population were below the poverty line, including 8.9% of those under age 18 and 8.4% of those age 65 or over.
Transportation
Elko is the largest city between Salt Lake City and
RenoReno is a city in and the county seat of Washoe County, Nevada, United States. The population was 180,480 at the 2000 census; in 2008, its population was estimated at 217,016, making it the fourth-largest city in the state after Las Vegas, Henderson and North Las Vegas, and the largest outside of...
located along
Interstate 80Interstate 80 is the second-longest Interstate Highway in the United States . It connects downtown San Francisco, California, to Teaneck, New Jersey, a suburb of New York City. I-80 is the interstate that most closely approximates the route of the Lincoln Highway, the first auto trail to cross the...
. Passenger service to Elko is available on
Greyhound LinesGreyhound Lines, Inc., based in Dallas, Texas, USA, is an intercity common carrier of passengers by bus serving over 3,700 destinations in the United States and Canada, operating under the well-known logo of a leaping greyhound. It was founded in Hibbing, Minnesota, USA, in 1914 and incorporated...
,
AmtrakThe National Railroad Passenger Corporation, doing business as Amtrak , is a government-owned corporation that was organized on May 1, 1971 to provide intercity passenger train service in the United States. "Amtrak" is a blend of the words "America" and "track". It is headquartered at Union Station...
's twice-daily
California ZephyrThe California Zephyr is a 2,438-mile long passenger train route operated by Amtrak in the Midwestern and Western United States....
, and from
SkyWest AirlinesSkywest Airlines Pty Ltd is a regional airline company based in Perth, Western Australia, Australia; servicing key towns in the state of Western Australia and Darwin, Northern Territory; as well as charter flights to Bali, Indonesia.-History:...
, which serves
Elko Regional AirportElko Regional Airport , formerly known as Elko Municipal Airport, is a city-owned public-use airport located one mile west of the central business district of Elko, a city in Elko County, Nevada, United States. This airport serves much of northeastern Nevada.The airport was named J.C. Harris Field...
from Salt Lake City.
Culture
Each January, Elko is the host to the National Cowboy Poetry Gathering. This festival is a week-long celebration of life in the rural West, featuring the contemporary and traditional arts that arise from lives lived close to the land. Poetry, music, stories, gear, film, photography, food – all contribute to the texture of an event that has become an annual ritual for thousands of people who value the people and cultures that live and work in the American West.
Elko is the home to the Western Folklife Center, which is regional nonprofit organization that works to expand our understanding of the everyday traditions of people who live and work in the American West. The Western Folklife Center is located Downtown in the old Pioneer hotel.
Every July, Elko is host to the National Basque Festival. The Basque people are a rich culture that has roots deep in the Elko community. The "Basco Fiasco" as it is humorously referred to, is a celebration on traditional Basque culture and its ties to the Elko community. The festival includes strong man competitions, a running of the bulls, traditional food and wine, and Basque Dancing.
Elko is home to a number of casinos, including Stockmen's, the Commercial, the High Desert Casino, Gold Dust West, the Red Lion, and the Gold Country Motor Inn. The Commercial Casino is notable for having a stuffed ten foot tall polar bear on display. For many years the Red Lion brought gamblers to Elko from many parts of the country through flights on Casino Express. The flights to Elko ended in February 2006.
Elko is also home to legal prostitutes and contains active brothels. Under
NevadaNevada is a state located in the western region of the United States. The capital is Carson City and the largest city is Las Vegas. The state's nickname is Silver State, due to the large number of silver deposits that were discovered and mined there...
law, any county with a population of less than 400,000 is allowed to license brothels if it so chooses.
Cultural references in art
- Elko was the main setting for Roland Smith
Roland Smith is an American author of young adult fiction as well as nonfiction books for children.Smith graduated from Portland State University and, following a part-time job at the Oregon Zoo in Portland, began a 20-year career as a zookeeper, both at the Oregon Zoo and the Point Defiance Zoo...
's novel Zach's Lie.
- Elko was one of the settings and filming locations of the 2005 film Don't Come Knocking
Don't Come Knocking is a 2005 film, a comedy-drama road movie directed by German director Wim Wenders and written by Wenders and actor/playwright Sam Shepard...
, directed by Wim WendersErnst Wilhelm "Wim" Wenders is a German film director, playwright, author, photographer and producer.-Early life:Wenders was born in Düsseldorf. He graduated from high school in Oberhausen in the Ruhr area. He then studied medicine and philosophy in Freiburg and Düsseldorf...
, and co-written by Wenders and Sam ShepardSam Shepard is an American playwright, actor, and television and film director. He is author of several books of short stories, essays, and memoirs, and received the Pulitzer Prize for Drama in 1979 for his play, Buried Child...
. The character Howard Spence (Shepard), a troubled actor in western films, runs off from a film set and visits his mother in Elko.
- Elko and Elko County are major settings in Dean Koontz's novel "Strangers".
- Elko is where the ill-fated brothers end up in Willy Vlautin's first novel, "The Motel Life"
Newspapers
Television
- Elko Television District
- KENV-TV (NBC
The National Broadcasting Company is an American television network and former radio network headquartered in the GE Building in New York City's Rockefeller Center with additional major offices in Burbank,California...
channel 10)
Radio
- KELK 1240 AM (Adult contemporary)
- KTSN 1340 AM (Talk radio
Talk radio is a radio format containing discussion about topical issues. Most shows are regularly hosted by a single individual, and often feature interviews with a number of different guests. Talk radio typically includes an element of listener participation, usually by broadcasting live...
)
- KLKO 93.7 FM (Jack FM
Jack-FM is the moniker and on-air brand of 60 radio stations in Canada, the United States, the United Kingdom, and Russia. Jack stations play a mix of 1960s, 1970s, 1980s, and 1990s hits with some current hot adult contemporary singles...
)
- KRJC 95.3 FM (Country music
Country music is a blend of popular musical forms originally found in the Southern United States and the Appalachian Mountains...
)
- KHIX 96.7 FM
External links