Moran, Wyoming facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Moran
Unincorporated community
Moran Location in Wyoming Show map of Wyoming Moran Location in the United States Show map of the United States
Country	United States
State	Wyoming
County	Teton
Elevation	6,749 ft (2,057 m)
Time zone	UTC-7 (Mountain (MST))
• Summer (DST)	UTC-6 (MDT)
ZIP codes	83013
GNIS feature ID	1604433

Moran (also called Moran Junction) is a small, quiet community in Teton County, Wyoming, United States. It's not a city with its own government, but rather an unincorporated village. The official name was decided as "Moran" in 1970.

Moran is located inside the beautiful Grand Teton National Park. It's about 29 miles northeast of Jackson, which is the main town in Teton County. You can find Moran near where several major roads meet: U.S. Routes 26, 89, 191, and 287. The community sits at an elevation of 6,749 feet (2,057 meters). It's also home to one of the main places where visitors pay to enter Grand Teton National Park. Moran has a post office (ZIP code 83013) and a public elementary school, but not many other businesses.

Moran is part of the Jackson, Wyoming–ID Micropolitan Statistical Area. It's famous for being the coldest place in Wyoming where people live all the time. In the winter of 1933, the temperature dropped to an incredible -63°F (-52°C)! This happens because of Moran's high elevation and how heat escapes from the ground at night, making winters very harsh.

Education in Moran

Kids living in Moran go to public schools run by Teton County School District #1.

• Moran Elementary School serves students from kindergarten through 5th grade.
• Jackson Hole Middle School is for grades 6-8.
• Jackson Hole High School is where students attend for grades 9-12.

History of Moran

Moran has an interesting past, starting with early settlers and growing because of travelers and a famous artist.

Early Settlers and Hotels

In the 1890s, Ed "Cap" Smith and Clara Smith started a homestead in Moran. They soon realized many travelers were passing through, either heading to Yellowstone National Park or to Idaho. So, the Smiths built a two-story log hotel to host these visitors. Their neighbors, the Allens, also built a hotel called the Elkhorn Hotel, which included the local post office and a store. Sadly, the Smith hotel burned down around November 1900.

How Moran Got Its Name

The Allens named the town after Mount Moran. This mountain is one of the biggest and most noticeable peaks in the Teton Range, located just west of Moran across Jackson Lake. Mount Moran itself was named after Thomas Moran, a famous painter and explorer who visited the area in the 1870s.

Growth and the Teton Lodge Resort

Moran started to grow more after 1903. A man named Ben D. Sheffield bought two pieces of land along the Snake River. He built a business there called the Teton Lodge Resort, which helped people prepare for trips into the wilderness. Sheffield also ran a toll bridge over the Snake River, which was a very important way to cross the river back then. He even managed the Moran post office from 1907 to 1919.

The main building of Sheffield's ranch, which housed the post office, burned down in 1916. A new lodge was built around 1922. The Sheffield complex had many cabins and was the biggest part of the town. In 1928, Sheffield sold his property to the Snake River Land Company (SRLC). The SRLC improved and expanded the resort, which could then host up to 200 guests. However, the main lodge was destroyed by fire in 1935. Most of the remaining cabins were moved to Jackson Lake Lodge in 1955.

Dam Construction and Movie Filming

From 1910 to 1916, the building of Jackson Lake Dam made Moran a much busier place. The Reclamation Service set up a large camp for workers north of Sheffield's ranch.

Moran also has a connection to Hollywood! In 1930, the movie The Big Trail was filmed there. The area was very wild, and the cast and crew stayed in simple trapper cabins. They even helped build more cabins, some of which were used in the movie. This site later became the village of Moran.

Climate in Moran

Moran has a subarctic climate, which means it has very cold, long winters and short, cool summers.

The hottest temperature ever recorded in Moran was 93°F (34°C) on July 5, 2007. The coldest temperature ever recorded was an extreme -63°F (-52°C) on February 9, 1933.