OGDEN, UTAH

'Ogden' is the county seat of Weber County, Utah, United States. A 2005 estimate placed its population at 78,309. The city served as a major railway hub through much of its history, and still handles a great deal of freight rail traffic which makes it a convenient location for manufacturing and commerce. It is also known for its many historic buildings, close proximity to the Wasatch Mountains, and as the home of Weber State University.

Contents

History

Geography

Demographics

Transportation

Sites of interest

Sports and recreation

Renown

Birthplace of

Filming Location of

Media

See also

External links

History

Originally named Fort Buenaventura, the city of Ogden was the first permanent settlement by people of European descent in the region that is now Utah. It was established by the trapper Miles Goodyear in 1846 about a mile west of where downtown Ogden is currently located. In November 1847, Fort Buenaventura was purchased by the Mormon settlers for $1,950. The settlement was then called Brownsville, but was later named Ogden for a brigade leader of the Hudson Bay Company, Peter Skene Ogden, who had trapped in the Weber Valley a generation earlier. The site of the original Fort Buenaventura is now a Weber County park.

Ogden is the closest sizable city to the Golden Spike location at Promontory Summit, Utah, where the First Transcontinental Railroad was joined in 1869. Ogden was known as a major passenger railroad junction owing to its location along major east-west and north-south routes. Railroad passengers traveling west to San Francisco from the eastern United States typically passed through Ogden (and not through the larger Salt Lake City to the south). Ogden, however, is no longer served by Amtrak, the national passenger rail system, and passengers desiring to travel from Ogden by rail must travel by bus to Salt Lake City.
In 1972 The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints completed construction of and dedicated the Ogden Utah Temple in Ogden. The temple was built to serve the large LDS population in the area.
Because Ogden has historically been the second largest city in Utah it is home to a large number of historic buildings. However, by the 1980's, several Salt Lake City suburbs and Provo had surpassed Ogden in population.
The Defense Depot Ogden Utah operated from 1941 to 1997 in northern Ogden. Some of its 1,128 acres (4.6 km²) has since been converted into a commercial and industrial park called the Business Depot Ogden.

Geography

Ogden is located at (41.227744, -111.961193), at the foot of the Wasatch Mountains. It lies approximately 10 miles (15 km) east of the Great Salt Lake and 40 miles (60 km) north of Salt Lake City.
According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 69.0 km² (26.6 mi²), all land. Elevations in the city range from about 4300 feet to 5200 feet above sea level.
The Ogden and Weber Rivers, which originate in the mountains to the east, flow through the city and meet at a confluence just west of the city limits. Pineview Dam is located in the Ogden River Canyon 7 miles east of Ogden. The reservoir behind the dam provides over 110,000 acre-feet (140,000,000 m³) of water storage and water recreation for the area.
Prominent mountain peaks near Ogden include Mount Ogden to the east and Ben Lomond to the north.
Ogden's summers are hot and dry; winters bring snow.

Demographics

As of the census of 2000, there were 77,226 people, 27,384 households, and 18,402 families residing in the city. The population density was 1,119.3/km² (2,899.2/mi²). There were 29,763 housing units at an average density of 431.4/km² (1,117.4/mi²). The racial makeup of the city was 79.01% White, 2.31% African American, 1.20% Native American, 1.43% Asian, 0.17% Pacific Islander, 12.95% from other races, and 2.93% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 23.64% of the population.
There were 27,384 households out of which 35.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 48.4% were married couples living together, 13.1% had a female householder with no husband present, and 32.8% were non-families. 26.2% of all households were made up of individuals and 9.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.73 and the average family size was 3.32.
In the city the population was spread out with 28.8% under the age of 18, 14.6% from 18 to 24, 29.0% from 25 to 44, 16.3% from 45 to 64, and 11.3% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 29 years. For every 100 females there were 102.3 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 100.5 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $34,047, and the median income for a family was $38,950. Males had a median income of $29,006 versus $22,132 for females. The per capita income for the city was $16,632. About 12.6% of families and 16.5% of the population were below the poverty line, including 20.2% of those under age 18 and 9.3% of those age 65 or over.

Transportation

Interstates 15 and 84 serve the city. I-84 runs east-west through the southern suburbs, merging with I-15 near Riverdale. I-15 runs north-south near the city's western edge and provides connections to the rest of the Wasatch Front and beyond. Ogden is served directly by exits 341, 342, 343, and 344. U.S. 89 enters the city from the south, running through the city as Washington Boulevard, which serves as the main street of Ogden. It then continues north to Brigham City. Utah Highway 39 runs east-west through the city as 12th Street, and continues eastward through Ogden Canyon providing access to Pineview Reservoir and the mountain and ski resort town of Huntsville.
The Utah Transit Authority (UTA) operates 4 bus routes directly between Salt Lake City and Ogden, as well as numerous others that serve Weber and northern Davis Counties that connect into either the Ogden Intermodal Hub on the west edge of town or to Weber State University. It's also the source of the two routes that serve Brigham City, the northernmost extension of UTA's bus system. It also has a Greyhound bus stop along a line that runs north-south along I-15. The FrontRunner commuter rail is currently under construction between Salt Lake City and Pleasant View, just north of Ogden, and will include a stop at the Ogden Intermodal Hub. Completion is expected in spring 2008.
Ogden-Hinckley Airport, Utah's busiest municipal airport, is located just to the southwest of the city.

Sites of interest

★ Peery's Egyptian Theatre

★ Ogden Forest Service Building

★ Ogden Utah Temple

★ Ogden High School

★ Dee Events Center

★ Eccles Avenue Historic District

★ Jefferson Avenue Historic District

★ Bigelow-Ben Lomond Hotel

★ Union Station

★ Ogden/Weber Municipal Building

★ Historic 25th Street

★ Snowbasin Ski Area Alpine Skiing venue during the 2002 Winter Olympics

★ The Ice Sheet Curling venue during the 2002 Winter Olympics

★ The Junction Retail and residential complex

Sports and recreation

The mountains and rivers near Ogden offer diverse opportunities for outdoor recreation.
An extensive trail system, immediately adjacent to the city's eastern edge, gives residents and visitors immediate access to the foothills of the Wasatch Range. The foothill trails are used for hiking, running, mountain biking, and sometimes snowshoeing and cross-country skiing. Steeper trails climb eastward into the mountains, and many other mountain trails originate within a few miles of the city. A system of paved urban trails runs along the banks of the Ogden and Weber Rivers.
The quartzite cliffs above Ogden's foothills provide a variety of rock climbing routes. An extensive boulder field in the foothills is one of the most popular bouldering sites in the state.
On the mountains east of Ogden are three downhill ski areas: Snowbasin, Powder Mountain, and Wolf Mountain. Popular sites for cross-country skiing include Snowbasin and Weber County's North Fork Park.
Kayaking is a popular sport on portions of the Ogden and Weber Rivers. A developed kayak park lies on the Weber River in the western portion of the city. The reservoirs near Ogden are used for a wide variety of water sports.
Ogden is home to the minor league baseball team Ogden Raptors of the Pioneer League, and minor-league soccer team Ogden Outlaws of the Premier Development League.
Weber State University fields several intercollegiate athletic teams that attract spectators from among local residents. The university is especially known for its basketball team.

Renown

Two ships in the United States Navy have been named after the City of Ogden. The first, USS Ogden (PF-39), in 1943 and the second, USS Ogden (LPD-5), in 1964.
Ogden was the site of the infamous Hi-Fi Murders in 1974.

Birthplace of

★ Hal Ashby, Academy Award winning film director

★ Rodney Bagley, inventor of the catalytic converter

★ Solon Borglum, Sculptor

★ Fawn M. Brodie, Historian

★ John Moses Browning, Inventor and firearms designer

★ Tom Chambers, Basketball player

★ Bernard DeVoto, Historian

★ Byron Foulger, Actor

★ Kent James, Singer-Songwriter

★ J. Willard Marriott, Hotel magnate

★ Herbert B. Maw, Politician, Utah's 8th Governor

★ K. Gunn McKay, Politician, US House of Representatives

★ Wataru Misaka, Basketball player

★ Red Nichols, Jazz Musician / Big Band Leader

★ "The Osmonds": George, Jr. (Virl), Tom, Alan, Wayne, Merrill, Jay, Donny, Marie, Entertainers

★ Janice Kapp Perry, Songwriter

★ Brent Scowcroft, Politician, Former United States National Security Advisor

★ Ken St. Andre, Game designer

★ E. Parry Thomas, Banker

★ Olene S. Walker, Politician, Utah's 15th Governor

★ Gedde Watanabe, Actor

★ Byron Scott, Basketball player and coach

★ Tanoka Beard, Basketball player

★ Jason A. Huffer, Painter, Musician, Poet, Author

★ Colby Bockwoldt, Football player

Filming Location of

★ Some episodes of ''Touched by an Angel''.

★ ''Everwood'' mostly filmed in downtown Ogden.

★ ''Blind Guy''

★ ''Drive Me Crazy''

★ ''Con Air''

★ ''The Sandlot''

★ ''Three O'Clock High'', filmed mostly at Ogden High School.

★ ''Fletch (film)''

★ ''Dumb and Dumber''

★ Documentary short ''King of O-Town: Joe McQueen''

★ Halloween 2

Media

See also

★ Conoco Inc.

★ Ogden Standard-Examiner

External links

★ Ogden City web site

★ Ogden Pioneer Days

★ Envision Ogden Outdoor recreation directory

★ OgdenJunction.com: Facility that replaces the Ogden City Mall

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