Riverton, Wyoming facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Riverton, Wyoming
|
|
|---|---|
Downtown Riverton, looking east along W. Main Street.
|
|
| Motto(s):
"The Rendezvous City"
|
|
Location of Riverton in Fremont County, Wyoming.
|
|
 Riverton, Wyoming
Location in the United States
|
|
| Country | United States |
| State | Wyoming |
| County | Fremont |
| Area | |
| • Total | 10.34 sq mi (26.78 km2) |
| • Land | 10.34 sq mi (26.77 km2) |
| • Water | 0.01 sq mi (0.01 km2) |
| Elevation | 4,951 ft (1,509 m) |
| Population
(2020)
|
|
| • Total | 10,682 |
| • Density | 1,042.28/sq mi (402.42/km2) |
| Time zone | UTC−7 (Mountain (MST)) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC−6 (MDT) |
| ZIP Code |
82501
|
| Area code(s) | 307 |
| FIPS code | 56-66220 |
| GNIS feature ID | 1593489 |
| Website | www.rivertonwy.gov |
Riverton is a city located in Fremont County, Wyoming, in the United States. In 2020, about 10,682 people lived there. This makes Riverton the biggest city in Fremont County.
Contents
History of Riverton
Riverton was started in 1906. It became an official city in Wyoming. The city got its name because four rivers meet nearby. Riverton was built on land that used to be part of the Wind River Indian Reservation. This sometimes caused disagreements with the nearby Eastern Shoshone and Northern Arapaho tribes.
In 2017, a court decided that Riverton is not part of the reservation. This decision made it clear where the city's boundaries are.
Transportation History
The Riverton Regional Airport is now called Central Wyoming Regional Airport. It has a special office that forecasts weather for western and central Wyoming. This office uses a radar system called NEXRAD.
The Chicago & Northwestern Railway once had train tracks that went through Riverton. These tracks were part of the "Cowboy Line." In the 1970s, train services stopped in Riverton. The tracks were later taken apart.
People and Population
| Historical population | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Census | Pop. | %± | |
| 1910 | 483 | — | |
| 1920 | 2,023 | 318.8% | |
| 1930 | 1,608 | −20.5% | |
| 1940 | 2,540 | 58.0% | |
| 1950 | 4,142 | 63.1% | |
| 1960 | 6,845 | 65.3% | |
| 1970 | 7,995 | 16.8% | |
| 1980 | 9,562 | 19.6% | |
| 1990 | 9,202 | −3.8% | |
| 2000 | 9,310 | 1.2% | |
| 2010 | 10,615 | 14.0% | |
| 2020 | 10,682 | 0.6% | |
| Population 2020 and Historical | |||
How Many People Live Here?
In 2010, the census counted 10,615 people living in Riverton. There were 4,252 homes. Most people living in Riverton were White (83.5%). About 10.4% were Native American. Also, 9.0% of the population was Hispanic or Latino.
The average age of people in Riverton was 35.4 years old. About 23.9% of residents were under 18. The city had an equal number of males and females, with 50.0% being male and 50.0% being female.
Geography of Riverton
Riverton is located just north of the Wind River. Two main roads, U.S. Route 26 and Wyoming Highway 789, go through the city.
The city covers an area of about 9.87 square miles (25.56 square kilometers). Almost all of this area is land. Only a tiny part is water.
Climate in Riverton
Riverton has a cold semi-arid climate. This means it is usually dry and can have very cold winters. The hottest temperature ever recorded in Riverton was 104°F (40°C). This happened on July 12, 1954, July 22, 1982, and July 14, 2005. The coldest temperature ever was -46°F (-43°C). This was recorded on January 17, 1930, January 12, 1963, December 31, 1978, January 1, 1979, and December 23, 1983.
| Climate data for Riverton, Wyoming, 1991–2020 normals, extremes 1907–present | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Record high °F (°C) | 63 (17) |
71 (22) |
78 (26) |
87 (31) |
96 (36) |
102 (39) |
104 (40) |
103 (39) |
98 (37) |
90 (32) |
73 (23) |
65 (18) |
104 (40) |
| Mean maximum °F (°C) | 49.9 (9.9) |
55.5 (13.1) |
68.7 (20.4) |
78.5 (25.8) |
86.0 (30.0) |
93.6 (34.2) |
98.8 (37.1) |
96.5 (35.8) |
91.2 (32.9) |
79.9 (26.6) |
64.5 (18.1) |
53.1 (11.7) |
99.1 (37.3) |
| Mean daily maximum °F (°C) | 28.7 (−1.8) |
35.5 (1.9) |
49.2 (9.6) |
58.0 (14.4) |
67.4 (19.7) |
78.9 (26.1) |
87.9 (31.1) |
85.7 (29.8) |
74.4 (23.6) |
59.2 (15.1) |
42.7 (5.9) |
29.6 (−1.3) |
58.1 (14.5) |
| Daily mean °F (°C) | 16.4 (−8.7) |
22.5 (−5.3) |
35.7 (2.1) |
44.2 (6.8) |
53.8 (12.1) |
63.7 (17.6) |
71.3 (21.8) |
69.0 (20.6) |
58.4 (14.7) |
44.8 (7.1) |
29.9 (−1.2) |
17.6 (−8.0) |
43.9 (6.6) |
| Mean daily minimum °F (°C) | 4.2 (−15.4) |
9.6 (−12.4) |
22.2 (−5.4) |
30.5 (−0.8) |
40.3 (4.6) |
48.5 (9.2) |
54.8 (12.7) |
52.2 (11.2) |
42.5 (5.8) |
30.4 (−0.9) |
17.1 (−8.3) |
5.7 (−14.6) |
29.8 (−1.2) |
| Mean minimum °F (°C) | −16.8 (−27.1) |
−13.3 (−25.2) |
2.8 (−16.2) |
16.4 (−8.7) |
26.7 (−2.9) |
36.7 (2.6) |
45.7 (7.6) |
41.9 (5.5) |
29.3 (−1.5) |
13.4 (−10.3) |
−2.8 (−19.3) |
−14.0 (−25.6) |
−22.4 (−30.2) |
| Record low °F (°C) | −46 (−43) |
−45 (−43) |
−24 (−31) |
−18 (−28) |
15 (−9) |
26 (−3) |
30 (−1) |
29 (−2) |
9 (−13) |
−13 (−25) |
−28 (−33) |
−46 (−43) |
−46 (−43) |
| Average precipitation inches (mm) | 0.35 (8.9) |
0.43 (11) |
0.71 (18) |
1.31 (33) |
1.98 (50) |
1.09 (28) |
0.70 (18) |
0.45 (11) |
0.80 (20) |
0.93 (24) |
0.44 (11) |
0.31 (7.9) |
9.50 (241) |
| Average snowfall inches (cm) | 5.5 (14) |
7.4 (19) |
6.5 (17) |
7.2 (18) |
2.1 (5.3) |
0.0 (0.0) |
0.0 (0.0) |
0.0 (0.0) |
0.6 (1.5) |
4.4 (11) |
5.3 (13) |
5.3 (13) |
44.3 (111.8) |
| Average precipitation days (≥ 0.01 in) | 3.7 | 4.2 | 4.6 | 6.7 | 8.8 | 5.8 | 4.5 | 4.6 | 5.2 | 5.0 | 3.8 | 4.1 | 61.0 |
| Average snowy days (≥ 0.1 in) | 4.2 | 4.9 | 3.8 | 3.4 | 1.3 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.3 | 2.0 | 3.6 | 4.6 | 28.1 |
| Source 1: NOAA | |||||||||||||
| Source 2: National Weather Service | |||||||||||||
Economy
Brunton, Inc. is a company in Riverton. They make the Brunton compass, which is a special tool for navigation.
Education
Riverton has public schools managed by Fremont County School District #25. There are elementary schools for younger students. Riverton Middle School serves grades 6-8. Riverton High School is for grades 9-12.
Central Wyoming College is also in Riverton. It has other locations in nearby towns. Riverton also has a public library. It is part of the Fremont County Library System.
Language Schools
The Northern Arapaho Language Immersion School helps preserve the Northern Arapaho language. In 2009, it had 20 students. The school teaches mainly in the Arapaho language. It was inspired by similar programs in Hawaii and New Zealand. Another school, Arapahoe School, also has a program to teach the Arapaho language.
Emergency Services
Riverton has several groups that help in emergencies. These include the Riverton Police Department and the Riverton Volunteer Fire Department. Fremont County Fire Protection District Battalion 1 and Frontier Ambulance also provide services.
Notable People from Riverton
Many interesting people have connections to Riverton.
- Nick Bebout (born 1951) was a professional football player.
- Lance Deal (born 1961) competed in the Olympics four times for hammer throwing.
- John Bennett Herrington (born 1958) was the first Native American tribe member to fly in space.
- Bucky Jacobsen (born 1975) played professional baseball for the Seattle Mariners.
- David Love (1913–2002) was a geologist born near Riverton.
- Brett Newlin (born 1982) rowed for the United States Olympic team in 2008 and 2012.
- Kristen Newlin (born 1985) is an international basketball player.
- Chance Phelps (1984–2004) was a Marine whose story was made into an HBO movie called Taking Chance.
- Darrell Winfield (1929–2015) was known as the "Marlboro Man."
- Willie Wright (born 1968) was a professional football player.
- Ashlynn Yennie is an actress.
Infrastructure
Transportation
Transit
The Wind River Transportation Authority offers bus services. These services run throughout Fremont County.
Airline Service
You can fly from Central Wyoming Regional Airport to Denver every day. SkyWest Airlines provides this service as United Express. The airport also has car rental services from Hertz. You can also find general aviation services there.
Roadways
United States Highway 26
Wyoming State Highway 789
See also
In Spanish: Riverton (Wyoming) para niños
