Boarded-up abandoned housing in Jeffrey City, Wyoming

Jeffrey City is a former

uranium Uranium is a chemical element with the symbol U and atomic number 92. It is a silvery-grey metal in the actinide series of the periodic table. A uranium atom has 92 protons and 92 electrons, of which 6 are valence electrons. Uranium is weak ...

mining

boomtown A boomtown is a community that undergoes sudden and rapid population and economic growth, or that is started from scratch. The growth is normally attributed to the nearby discovery of a precious resource such as gold, silver, or oil, although ...

located in Fremont County, in the central part of the

U.S. state In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its sover ...

Wyoming Wyoming () is a U.S. state, state in the Mountain states, Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It is bordered by Montana to the north and northwest, South Dakota and Nebraska to the east, Idaho to the west, Utah to the south ...

. The town is known in Wyoming and the

American West The Western United States (also called the American West, the Far West, and the West) is the region comprising the westernmost states of the United States. As American settlement in the U.S. expanded westward, the meaning of the term ''the Wes ...

as symbol of a boomtown that went "bust" very quickly, as the mine was shut down in 1982 and over 95% of the inhabitants left the town within three years.Home on the Range No More: The Boom and Bust of a Wyoming Uranium Mining Town 1957 -1958.
/ref> The population was 58 at the 2010 census, far lower than its onetime population of several thousand people. For statistical purposes, the United States Census Bureau has defined Jeffrey City as a

census-designated place A census-designated place (CDP) is a concentration of population defined by the United States Census Bureau for statistical purposes only. CDPs have been used in each decennial census since 1980 as the counterparts of incorporated places, such ...

(CDP).

History

Jeffrey City began in 1931 as "Home on the Range", the homestead of a

Nebraska Nebraska () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. It is bordered by South Dakota to the north; Iowa to the east and Missouri to the southeast, both across the Missouri River; Kansas to the south; Colorado to the southwe ...

couple named the Petersons, who relocated because Mr. Peterson was sick after having been gassed in World War I. Mrs. Beulah Peterson (later Walker) opened two gasoline pumps when

the highway A highway is a long road giving a relatively fast connection between two places. Highway may also refer to: Roads in England * The Highway (London) (previously Ratcliff Highway), a road in the East End of London * The Highway, a road in Br ...

came through, and began cooking for those who stopped. The post office at Split Rock, away, closed in 1943, and Mrs. Peterson took up the task of handling the ranchers' mail. She canceled the letters with "Home on the Range". She retired her post office cancellation stamp in 1957 when Home on the Range became Jeffrey City. Her family members are currently restoring the old Home on the Range post office site. Home on the Range became Jeffrey City when those who came to mine uranium sought to honor Dr. C. W. Jeffrey, a wealthy doctor from

Rawlins, Wyoming Rawlins is a city in Carbon County, Wyoming, United States. The population was 8,221 at the 2020 census. It is the county seat of Carbon County. It was named for Union General John Aaron Rawlins, who camped in the locality in 1867. Demographics ...

, who initially financed the costs for prospector and businessman Bob Adams to start the Western Nuclear Corporation mining firm and open a uranium mine near the area in 1957, during the

Cold War The Cold War is a term commonly used to refer to a period of geopolitical tension between the United States and the Soviet Union and their respective allies, the Western Bloc and the Eastern Bloc. The term '' cold war'' is used because the ...

and the height of uranium demand. Thousands of people looking for high-paying mining jobs streamed into Jeffrey City, and Western Nuclear designed and financed a

company town A company town is a place where practically all stores and housing are owned by the one company that is also the main employer. Company towns are often planned with a suite of amenities such as stores, houses of worship, schools, markets and re ...

for the workers and their families. At the height of the boom town optimism, a separate high school building was added and an Olympic-sized swimming pool and third gymnasium was built. In the late 1970s and early 1980s, the uranium market collapsed and the mine was forced to close. As was typical of many boom towns, Jeffrey City was singularly dependent on the local mine, and after it closed there was no reason for residents to remain. What was once a thriving local community with shops, schools, library,

sheriff A sheriff is a government official, with varying duties, existing in some countries with historical ties to England where the office originated. There is an analogous, although independently developed, office in Iceland that is commonly transla ...

youth hostel A hostel is a form of low-cost, short-term shared sociable lodging where guests can rent a bed, usually a bunk bed in a dormitory, with shared use of a lounge and sometimes a kitchen. Rooms can be mixed or single-sex and have private or shared ba ...

, churches, medical clinics and more, became a

ghost town Ghost Town(s) or Ghosttown may refer to: * Ghost town, a town that has been abandoned Film and television * Ghost Town (1936 film), ''Ghost Town'' (1936 film), an American Western film by Harry L. Fraser * Ghost Town (1956 film), ''Ghost Town'' ...

as 95% of the residents left the town by 1986. Today, few institutions remain: the First (Southern) Baptist Church (which is still doing well thanks to the area ranchers who attend), a restaurant and bar called the Split Rock Café that caters to the few local residents and those passing through on the highway, and Monk King Bird Pottery, a pottery studio. The Green Mountain Motel provides perhaps the only lodging along the route between Rawlins and Riverton.

Geography and climate

Jeffrey City is located in southeastern Fremont County along U.S. Route 287, northwest of Rawlins and

Interstate 80 Interstate 80 (I-80) is an east–west transcontinental freeway that crosses the United States from downtown San Francisco, California, to Teaneck, New Jersey, in the New York metropolitan area. The highway was designated in 1956 as one o ...

, and southeast of Lander, the Fremont County seat. According to the

United States Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau (USCB), officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the U.S. Federal Statistical System, responsible for producing data about the American people and economy. The Census Bureau is part of the ...

, the Jeffrey City CDP has a total area of , of which is land and , or 0.56%, is water. The community is in the valley of the Sweetwater River, an east-flowing tributary of the

North Platte River The North Platte River is a major tributary of the Platte River and is approximately long, counting its many curves.U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map accessed March 21, 2011 In a ...

Demographics

As of the

census A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording and calculating information about the members of a given population. This term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common censuses incl ...

of 2000, there were 106 people, 45 households, and 32 families residing in the CDP. The

population density Population density (in agriculture: standing stock or plant density) is a measurement of population per unit land area. It is mostly applied to humans, but sometimes to other living organisms too. It is a key geographical term.Matt RosenberPopul ...

was . There were 112 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the CDP was 98.11%

White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no hue). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully reflect and scatter all the visible wavelengths of light. White on ...

or 104 people, 0.94% or one Indigenous American, and 0.94% or one person from two or more races.

Hispanic The term ''Hispanic'' ( es, hispano) refers to people, Spanish culture, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or Hispanidad. The term commonly applies to countries with a cultural and historical link to Spain and to Vic ...

Latino Latino or Latinos most often refers to: * Latino (demonym), a term used in the United States for people with cultural ties to Latin America * Hispanic and Latino Americans in the United States * The people or cultures of Latin America; ** Latin A ...

of any race were 1.89% of the population, or two people. There were 45 households, out of which 15.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 66.7% were

married couples Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognized union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children, and between t ...

living together, 2.2% or one household had a female householder with no husband present, and 26.7% were non-families. 17.8% of all households were made up of individuals, and 4.4% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.36 and the average family size was 2.61. In the CDP, the population was spread out, with 14.2% under the age of 18, 8.5% from 18 to 24, 26.4% from 25 to 44, 41.5% from 45 to 64, and 9.4% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 46 years. For every 100 females, there were 152.4 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 127.5 males. The median income for a household in the CDP was $42,857, and the median income for a family was $42,679. Males had a median income of $65,156 versus $23,750 for females. The

per capita income Per capita income (PCI) or total income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. It is calculated by dividing the area's total income by its total population. Per capita i ...

for the CDP was $20,061. There were no families and 8.2% of the population living below the

poverty line The poverty threshold, poverty limit, poverty line or breadline is the minimum level of income deemed adequate in a particular country. The poverty line is usually calculated by estimating the total cost of one year's worth of necessities for t ...

, including no under eighteens and none of those over 64.

Education

Public education in the community of Jeffrey City is provided by Fremont County School District #1. In 2013 the school served kindergarten through 4th grade, and had two students. Prior to 1997 Jeffrey City had its own school district.

References

External links