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Fort Duchesne, Utah facts for kids

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Fort Duchesne, Utah
Location in Uintah County and the state of Utah
Location in Uintah County and the state of Utah
Country United States
State Utah
County Uintah
Area
 • Total 7.7 sq mi (19.8 km2)
 • Land 7.0 sq mi (18.2 km2)
 • Water 0.6 sq mi (1.7 km2)
Elevation
4,990 ft (1,521 m)
Population
 (2000)
 • Total 621
 • Density 88.5/sq mi (34.2/km2)
Time zone UTC-7 (Mountain (MST))
 • Summer (DST) UTC-6 (MDT)
ZIP code
84026
Area code(s) 435
FIPS code 49-26610
GNIS feature ID 1428039

Fort Duchesne (say "doo-SHAYN") is a small community in Uintah County, Utah, United States. It's called a census-designated place (CDP), which means it's a special area that the government counts for population, but it's not an official city or town. In 2010, about 714 people lived there.

Fort Duchesne started as a fort built by the United States Army in 1886. It was used by soldiers until 1912. The community grew up around this fort. It is located inside the Uintah and Ouray Reservation, which was set up in 1864. Around 1880, several groups of Ute people were moved to this reservation.

Today, Fort Duchesne is important because it's where the main offices of the Ute Indian Tribe are located. Their reservation covers a large part of Uintah and nearby counties.

Where is Fort Duchesne?

Fort Duchesne is located in Uintah County, Utah. The total area of the community is about 7.7 square miles (19.8 square kilometers). Most of this area is land, about 7.0 square miles (18.2 square kilometers). A smaller part, about 0.6 square miles (1.7 square kilometers), is water.

Who Lives in Fort Duchesne?

Historical population
Census Pop.
1990 655
2000 621 −5.2%
2010 714 15.0%
Source: U.S. Census Bureau

In 2000, there were 621 people living in Fort Duchesne. Most of the people living there, about 90%, are Native American.

Languages Spoken

Many different languages are spoken in homes in Fort Duchesne.

Languages (2000) Percent
Spoke English at home 75.82%
Spoke Colorado River Numic at home 19.86%
Spoke Shoshoni at home 2.59%
Spoke Navajo at home 1.73%

Population by Age

The population of Fort Duchesne is quite young. In 2000, about 40% of the people were under 18 years old. The average age was 24 years. This means many young people and families live in the community.

What's the Weather Like?

Fort Duchesne has a unique climate. It has very big differences between summer and winter temperatures. In summer, it can get very hot, often reaching 90 degrees Fahrenheit (32 degrees Celsius) or more. In winter, it gets very cold, often dropping below 0 degrees Fahrenheit (-18 degrees Celsius).

Even though it gets very cold, it's considered a cold semi-arid climate. This means it's quite dry. It doesn't get much rain or snow throughout the year. The late summer and early fall months usually get a little more rain than other times. However, no month averages more than 1 inch (2.5 cm) of precipitation.

Climate data for Fort Duchesne, Utah (1991–2020 normals, extremes 1887–1893, 1902–present)
Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Year
Record high °F (°C) 60
(16)
67
(19)
82
(28)
87
(31)
95
(35)
105
(41)
107
(42)
106
(41)
100
(38)
89
(32)
76
(24)
72
(22)
107
(42)
Mean maximum °F (°C) 44.0
(6.7)
52.9
(11.6)
69.1
(20.6)
80.5
(26.9)
87.3
(30.7)
97.3
(36.3)
99.9
(37.7)
98.6
(37.0)
93.4
(34.1)
80.7
(27.1)
63.4
(17.4)
48.6
(9.2)
101.4
(38.6)
Mean daily maximum °F (°C) 28.6
(−1.9)
37.5
(3.1)
53.2
(11.8)
63.2
(17.3)
73.0
(22.8)
84.6
(29.2)
92.0
(33.3)
89.2
(31.8)
79.2
(26.2)
64.4
(18.0)
47.2
(8.4)
31.7
(−0.2)
62.0
(16.7)
Daily mean °F (°C) 16.7
(−8.5)
25.2
(−3.8)
38.8
(3.8)
47.2
(8.4)
56.3
(13.5)
65.9
(18.8)
73.6
(23.1)
71.0
(21.7)
61.8
(16.6)
48.7
(9.3)
34.3
(1.3)
20.6
(−6.3)
46.7
(8.2)
Mean daily minimum °F (°C) 4.7
(−15.2)
12.9
(−10.6)
24.4
(−4.2)
31.1
(−0.5)
39.5
(4.2)
47.2
(8.4)
55.1
(12.8)
52.9
(11.6)
44.4
(6.9)
33.1
(0.6)
21.4
(−5.9)
9.5
(−12.5)
31.3
(−0.4)
Mean minimum °F (°C) −9.0
(−22.8)
−2.2
(−19.0)
10.6
(−11.9)
19.9
(−6.7)
28.1
(−2.2)
37.0
(2.8)
44.6
(7.0)
44.3
(6.8)
33.5
(0.8)
20.1
(−6.6)
9.6
(−12.4)
−7.3
(−21.8)
−12.5
(−24.7)
Record low °F (°C) −40
(−40)
−36
(−38)
−15
(−26)
3
(−16)
17
(−8)
21
(−6)
26
(−3)
30
(−1)
20
(−7)
−1
(−18)
−19
(−28)
−39
(−39)
−40
(−40)
Average precipitation inches (mm) 0.38
(9.7)
0.44
(11)
0.40
(10)
0.45
(11)
0.63
(16)
0.42
(11)
0.31
(7.9)
0.62
(16)
0.81
(21)
0.86
(22)
0.33
(8.4)
0.36
(9.1)
6.01
(153)
Average snowfall inches (cm) 2.7
(6.9)
2.8
(7.1)
1.2
(3.0)
0.4
(1.0)
0.0
(0.0)
0.0
(0.0)
0.0
(0.0)
0.0
(0.0)
0.1
(0.25)
0.2
(0.51)
0.7
(1.8)
3.0
(7.6)
11.1
(28.16)
Average precipitation days (≥ 0.01 in) 4.5 4.4 2.9 3.5 4.3 2.4 3.4 4.6 3.8 4.1 2.8 4.0 44.7
Source: NOAA

Famous People from Fort Duchesne

  • Danny Lopez – A world champion professional boxer. He is in the International Boxing Hall of Fame.
  • Ernie Lopez – Also a professional boxer and Danny Lopez's brother.

See also

A friendly robot In Spanish: Fort Duchesne (Utah) para niños

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Fort Duchesne, Utah Facts for Kids. Kiddle Encyclopedia.