Provo, Utah
From Free net encyclopedia
Provo is a city in Utah and the county seat of Utah County, located about 50 miles south of Salt Lake City along the Wasatch Front. It lies between the cities of Orem to the north and Springville to the south. It is perhaps best-known as home to the main campus of Brigham Young University.
Settled in 1849 by 33 families from Salt Lake City, Provo has grown to a population of 105,166 (2000 Census), although a 2004 Census Bureau estimate places its population at 99,624, which has been protested by the Mayor of Provo. In October 2005, The Census Bureau revised Provo's estimated population to be 111,718. This would make it the third largest city in Utah behind Salt Lake City and West Valley City. The joint Provo and Orem metropolitan area has 412,361 residents.
The site was named Fort Utah by the Mormon settlers, but re-named Provo in 1850 for Étienne Provost, an early French-Canadian trapper who arrived in the region in 1825.
Every July, Provo hosts the Stadium of Fire at BYU. It is held in LaVell Edwards Stadium, home to Brigham Young University's NCAA American football team. The Independence Day festivites are quite popular among local residents and have featured such notable figures as David Hasselhoff, Reba McEntire, Mandy Moore, Huey Lewis and the News and Sean Hannity.
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Geography
Image:UTMap-doton-Provo.PNG Provo is located at 40°14'40" North, 111°39'39" West (40.244421, -111.660804)Template:GR. It lies in the Utah Valley at an elevation of 4,549 feet (1,387 meters).
According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 108.2 km² (41.8 mi²). 102.7 km² (39.6 mi²) of it is land and 5.6 km² (2.2 mi²) of it is water. The total area is 5.14% water. [1]
![[1]](http://www.husseinsspace.com/pictures/200206utah/02utah33.jpg){kind=link}
The Wasatch Range contains many peaks within Utah County along the east side of the Wasatch Front. One of these peaks, known as Y Mountain, towers over the city. There is a large "Y" made of whitewashed concrete half-way up the steep mountain, built in the early part of the 20th century to commemorate Brigham Young University (original plans included construction of all three letters: BYU). Wild deer (and less frequently, cougars and moose) still roam the mountains (and occasionally the city streets). The scenery is generally considered enjoyable and allows for hiking, skiing, fishing and other outdoor activities.
Transportation
Interstate 15 runs along the west edge of Provo, connecting it with the rest of the Wasatch Front and much of Utah. U.S. 89 runs northwest to southeast through the city as State Street, while U.S. 189 connects U.S. 89 with I-15, BYU, and Orem to the north. Near the northeast edge of the city, U.S. 189 heads northeast into Provo Canyon, where it connects with Heber. Amtrak the national passenger rail system, provides daily service to Provo, operating its California Zephyr between Chicago, Illinois and Emeryville, California, across the bay from San Francisco. Provo also can be accessed by Greyhound Bus Lines and the extensive Utah Transit Authority (UTA) bus system. A commuter rail line is planned to be extended to the city by 2015.
Demographics
As of the censusTemplate:GR of 2000, there were 105,166 people, 29,192 households, and 19,938 families residing in the city. The population density was 1,024.3/km² (2,653.2/mi²). There were 30,374 housing units at an average density of 295.8/km² (766.3/mi²). The racial makeup of the city was 88.52% White, 0.46% Black or African American, 0.80% American Indian, 1.83% Asian, 0.84% Pacific Islander, 5.10% from other races, and 2.44% from two or more races. 10.47% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.
There were 29,192 households out of which 33.8% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 57.0% were married couples living together, 7.8% had a female householder with no husband present, and 31.7% were non-families. 11.8% of all households were made up of individuals and 4.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 3.34 and the average family size was 3.40.
22.3% of residents are under the age of 18, 40.2% from 18 to 24, 23.2% from 25 to 44, 8.6% from 45 to 64, and 5.7% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 23 years. For every 100 females there were 92.6 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 89.3 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $34,313, and the median income for a family was $36,393. Males had a median income of $32,010 versus $20,928 for females. The per capita income for the city was $13,207. 26.8% of the population and 12.5% of families were below the poverty line. 14.4% of those under the age of 18 and 4.3% of those 65 and older were living below the poverty line.
The population of Provo is heavily Mormon (LDS). According to one report, Provo is 88% LDS.[2]
Companies in Provo
- Software company Novell, Inc. was founded and originally headquartered in Orem but soon after developed and moved into a facility in Provo. Novell continues to operate and employ around 2000 at the Provo facility.
- Translation firm, MultiLing Corporation.
- Genealogy and family networking company MyFamily.com, Inc.
Politics
Provo tends to be a conservative city. Local discussion of national politics tends to fall within the spectrum of moderately conservative to arch-conservative thought, with a few leftists mostly represented by student groups or university professors. However, Utah's 3rd Congressional District, of which Provo is a part, elected Democrat Bill Orton to three consecutive terms during the 1990s. Oddly, although Provoans tend to have a keen interest in national politics, they tend to pick and choose local issues to follow. One of the hot-button topics in recent years has been scrutiny of the city's zoning laws.
Brigham Young University
Perhaps the most notable thing about Provo is that it is the location of Brigham Young University, a private university operated by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (also known as the LDS Church or Mormon church). BYU is the second largest private university in the country, with more than 34,000 students. The large population of students makes Provo a "college town." Provo's ambiance differs from other college towns, however, since the majority of its students are LDS - the church strongly discourages the consumption of alcohol, and BYU is consistently rated the most "stone-cold sober" university in the United States.
Most BYU students live near BYU's campus. BYU requires that single students live in approved, non-coed housing, and new rules will keep apartments from being "BYU-approved" if they are more than two miles from the center of campus. Many students live either in on-campus housing north of the University or just south of campus, in an area dedicated to student apartments and condos.
Notable Residents
- Soben Huon, Miss Utah USA 2006
- The Osmond family has several members who live in Provo
Interesting facts
- Provo is home to the LDS Church's largest Missionary Training Center (MTC). It is here that a large number of LDS missionaries go for a period of training before they depart for their mission field. The center in Provo was built in the 1970s.
- The LDS Church operates the Provo Utah Temple in Provo. It is in an elevated location, near the mouth of Rock Canyon.
- Provo owns and operates iProvo a Fiber to the Home network.
Points of interest
- Brigham Young University
- Brigham Young University Arboretum
- The Peaks Ice Arena, hockey venue for the 2002 Winter Olympic Games
External links
- Provo City Home Page
- Brigham Young University Home Page
- Missionary Training Center Homepage
- iProvo fiber network - Provo's public private partnership to provide a fiber optic network to all residents and businesses
- ProvoCitizens.net - Provo city government watchdog group
- ProvoPodcast.com A podcast of local Provo Musicians.
- ProvoPulse.com - a student-run community weblog featuring news, discussion, and lots of Provo-related information.
- Photographic virtual tour of Provo.
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| Image:Flag of Utah.svg |
State of Utah | Image:UTmap.GIF |
|---|---|---|
| State Capital: | ||
| Regions: |
Cache Valley | Dixie | Great Salt Lake | Great Salt Lake Desert | Uinta Mountains | Wasatch Back | Wasatch Front | Wasatch Range | |
| Metropolitan Areas
(with constituent cities): |
Ogden-Clearfield - Bountiful | Kaysville | Layton | Roy Provo-Orem - American Fork | Lehi | Pleasant Grove | Spanish Fork | Springville Salt Lake City - Cottonwood Heights | Draper | Holladay | Midvale | Murray | Park City | Riverton | Sandy | South Jordan | Taylorsville | Tooele | West Jordan | West Valley City | |
| Micropolitan Areas: |
Brigham City | Cedar City | Heber | Price | Vernal | |
| Counties: |
Beaver | Box Elder | Cache | Carbon | Daggett | Davis | Duchesne | Emery | Garfield | Grand | Iron | Juab | Kane | Millard | Morgan | Piute | Rich | Salt Lake | San Juan | Sanpete | Sevier | Summit | Tooele | Uintah | Utah | Wasatch | Washington | Wayne | Weber | |
