Snowflake, Arizona

Snowflake, Arizona
Town

The LDS Temple in Snowflake

Location in Navajo County and the state of Arizona
Snowflake

Location in the United States

Coordinates: 34°30′40″N 110°4′59″W / 34.51111°N 110.08306°W / 34.51111; -110.08306Coordinates: 34°30′40″N 110°4′59″W / 34.51111°N 110.08306°W / 34.51111; -110.08306
Country  United States
State  Arizona
County Navajo
Founded 1878
Founded by Erastus Snow and William Jordan Flake
Government
  Type Council-Manager
  Body Snowflake City Council
  Mayor Kelly Willis (R)
Area
  Total 30.9 sq mi (80 km2)
  Land 30.8 sq mi (79.8 km2)
  Water 0.1 sq mi (0.1 km2)
Elevation[1] 5,682 ft (1,732 m)
Population (2010)[2]
  Total 5,590
  Estimate (2014)[3] 5,644
  Density 180.55/sq mi (69.88/km2)
Time zone Mountain (UTC-7)
  Summer (DST) no DST/PDT (UTC−7)
ZIP codes 85937, 85942
Area code(s) 928
FIPS code 04-67800
GNIS ID(s) 34591, 2413301
Website Town of Snowflake
Historic Home, Snowflake, Arizona

Snowflake is a town in Navajo County, Arizona, United States. It was founded in 1878 by Erastus Snow and William Jordan Flake, Mormon pioneers and colonizers.[4] It has frequently been noted on lists of unusual place names.[5][6] According to 2012 Census Bureau estimates, the population of the town is 5,564.[7]

Snowflake is 25 miles south of Interstate 40 (formerly U.S. Route 66) via Highway 77. The Apache Railway provides freight service, from 1961 to 2012 serving the Snowflake Mill.

Geography

Snowflake is located at 34°30′40″N 110°4′59″W / 34.51111°N 110.08306°W / 34.51111; -110.08306 (34.511187, -110.082974).[8]

According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 30.9 square miles (80 km2), of which, 30.8 square miles (80 km2) of it is land and 0.1 square miles (0.26 km2) of it (0.16%) is water.

Demographics

Historical population
Census Pop.
1880275
1910494
192075853.4%
19301,25966.1%
1950929
19609825.7%
19701,977101.3%
19803,51077.5%
19903,6794.8%
20004,46021.2%
20105,59025.3%
Est. 20155,666[9]1.4%
U.S. Decennial Census[10]
2014 Estimate[3]

As of the census[11] of 2000, there were 4,460 people, 1,312 households, and 1,070 families residing in the town. The population density was 144.8 people per square mile (55.9/km²). There were 1,536 housing units at an average density of 49.9 per square mile (19.2/km²). The racial makeup of the town was 87.24% White, 0.27% Black or African American, 6.93% Native American, 0.49% Asian, 0.07% Pacific Islander, 3.00% from other races, and 2.00% from two or more races. 8.05% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.

There were 1,312 households out of which 46.5% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 69.5% were married couples living together, 9.1% had a female householder with no husband present, and 18.4% were non-families. 15.8% of all households were made up of individuals and 6.7% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 3.37 and the average family size was 3.81.

In the town the population was spread out with 37.9% under the age of 18, 9.8% from 18 to 24, 21.8% from 25 to 44, 19.8% from 45 to 64, and 10.7% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 28 years. For every 100 females there were 99.7 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 95.3 males.

The median income for a household in the town was $37,439, and the median income for a family was $42,500. Males had a median income of $30,517 versus $21,164 for females. The per capita income for the town was $13,391. About 10.4% of families and 15.0% of the population were below the poverty line, including 18.7% of those under age 18 and 14.1% of those age 65 or over.

Recently, the town and surrounding area have experienced steady growth, primarily to the east, west and south. An additional 9-holes were added to the 18-hole golf course where the Snowflake Arizona Temple was built by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in 2002. To the east of town, a substantial community of individuals suffering from multiple chemical sensitivity syndrome (MCS) has grown since the 1980s.[12] As of July 2016 there were approximately 20 households comprising this community of individuals.[13]

Seasonal events

Education

Snowflake is a part of the Snowflake Unified School District, consisting of Highland Primary School, Snowflake Intermediate School, Snowflake Junior High and Snowflake High School. Taylor Elementary School in the neighboring town of Taylor, Arizona is also part of the Snowflake Unified school District.

Northland Pioneer College's Silver Creek campus extension is located in Snowflake.

Climate

Snowflake experiences a four season climate with a warm (sometimes hot) summer, mild autumn, mild to cold winter and cool, windy spring. Typical high temperatures hover around 90 °F (32 °C) during July and August and 30 to 55 °F (13 °C) in December/January.


Climate data for Snowflake, Arizona (1971-2000 normals)
Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Year
Record high °F (°C) 79
(26)
78
(26)
82
(28)
92
(33)
98
(37)
102
(39)
104
(40)
102
(39)
98
(37)
90
(32)
90
(32)
75
(24)
104
(40)
Average high °F (°C) 48.6
(9.2)
55.0
(12.8)
60.8
(16)
68.8
(20.4)
77.2
(25.1)
87.3
(30.7)
90.0
(32.2)
87.2
(30.7)
81.7
(27.6)
71.2
(21.8)
58.0
(14.4)
48.9
(9.4)
69.6
(20.9)
Average low °F (°C) 19.6
(−6.9)
22.9
(−5.1)
27.7
(−2.4)
32.7
(0.4)
39.9
(4.4)
47.6
(8.7)
56.2
(13.4)
55.1
(12.8)
47.6
(8.7)
36.0
(2.2)
26.1
(−3.3)
19.8
(−6.8)
35.9
(2.2)
Record low °F (°C) −30
(−34)
−17
(−27)
−5
(−21)
3
(−16)
17
(−8)
20
(−7)
27
(−3)
28
(−2)
22
(−6)
11
(−12)
−17
(−27)
−24
(−31)
−30
(−34)
Average precipitation inches (mm) 0.73
(18.5)
0.72
(18.3)
1.01
(25.7)
0.42
(10.7)
0.59
(15)
0.33
(8.4)
1.75
(44.4)
2.44
(62)
1.64
(41.7)
1.25
(31.8)
0.93
(23.6)
0.89
(22.6)
12.7
(322.7)
Average snowfall inches (cm) 2.6
(6.6)
2.9
(7.4)
2.2
(5.6)
1.1
(2.8)
0.3
(0.8)
0.0
(0)
0.0
(0)
0.0
(0)
0.0
(0)
0.4
(1)
1.9
(4.8)
3.8
(9.7)
15.2
(38.7)
Average precipitation days (≥ 0.01 inch) 4.3 4.4 4.9 2.6 2.7 2.2 8.3 9.4 5.8 4.4 3.7 3.9 56.6
Average snowy days (≥ 0.1 inch) 1.5 1.1 1.1 0.3 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.2 0.6 1.4 6.2
Source: NOAA (extremes 1898–present)[14]

Notable people

See also

References

  1. "Feature Detail Report for: Snowflake". Geographic Names Information System. United States Geological Survey.
  2. "American FactFinder". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved 2014-08-23.
  3. 1 2 "Population Estimates". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved July 11, 2015.
  4. History of Snowflake, AZ
  5. Thompson, George E. (2009). You Live Where?: Interesting and Unusual Facts about where We Live. iUniverse. p. 5.
  6. Gallant, Frank K. (2012). A Place Called Peculiar: Stories about Unusual American Place-Names. Courier Dover Publications. p. 18.
  7. "Snowflake(town) QuickFacts from the US Census Bureau". Quickfacts.census.gov. Retrieved December 8, 2013.
  8. "US Gazetteer files: 2010, 2000, and 1990". United States Census Bureau. 2011-02-12. Retrieved 2011-04-23.
  9. "Annual Estimates of the Resident Population for Incorporated Places: April 1, 2010 to July 1, 2015". Retrieved July 2, 2016.
  10. United States Census Bureau. "Census of Population and Housing". Retrieved August 23, 2014.
  11. "American FactFinder". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved 2008-01-31.
  12. In One Arizona Community, an Oasis in a Toxic World - New York Times
  13. "Allergic to life: the Arizona residents 'sensitive to the whole world'". The Guardian. Retrieved September 12, 2016.
  14. "Snowflake, AZ" (PDF). National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Retrieved December 11, 2013.
  15. Jerome Clark. The UFO Book: Encyclopedia of the Extraterrestrial. Visible Ink, 1998 ISBN 1-57859-029-9
  16. Travis Walton. "Human?" travis-walton.com

Further reading

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