East Carbon is a city in Carbon County,

Utah Utah ( , ) is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. Utah is a landlocked U.S. state bordered to its east by Colorado, to its northeast by Wyoming, to its north by Idaho, to its south by Arizona, and to it ...

, United States. The population was 1,301 at the 2010 census. East Carbon was incorporated on July 23, 1973, from the merger of the two struggling mining towns of Dragerton and Columbia. On January 1, 2014, the city annexed the neighboring city of Sunnyside.

Geography

East Carbon is located southeast of the center of Carbon County at (39.542569, -110.418934). It is east of

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, the

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. 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 t ...

, the city had a total area of , of which , or 0.07%, was water.

Demographics

At the 2000

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, there were 1,393 people, 562 households and 384 families residing in the city. The

population density Population density (in agriculture: Stock (disambiguation), 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 ...

was 156.0 per square mile (60.2/km²). There were 734 housing units at an average density of 82.2 per square mile (31.7/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 81.12%

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, 0.14%

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, 0.65% Native American, 0.14%

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, 15.65% from

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, and 2.30% from two or more races.

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of any race were 20.82% of the population. There were 562 households, of which 29.4% had children under 18 living with them, 50.7% were married couples living together, 13.3% had a ‘single’ female householder, and 31.5% were non-families. 27.4% of all households were made up of individuals, and 16.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.48, and the average family size was 3.01. 26.2% of the population were under 18, 7.1% from 18 to 24, 23.0% from 25 to 44, 24.3% from 45 to 64, and 19.5% were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 41 years. For every 100 females, there were 92.1 males. For every 100 females aged 18 and over, there were 89.3 males. The

median household income The median income is the income amount that divides a population into two equal groups, half having an income above that amount, and half having an income below that amount. It may differ from the mean (or average) income. Both of these are ways o ...

was $25,313, and the median family income was $31,019. Males had a median income of $31,667 and females $21,912. 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 ...

was $14,093. About 11.7% of families and 16.9% of the population were 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 18.6% of those under age 18 and 8.2% of those aged 65 or over.

History

East Carbon City began in the fall of 1942 when the U.S. government – through the Defense Plant Corporation – awarded a contract to the W.E. Ryberg-Strong-Grant Corporation of

Springville, Utah Springville is a city in Utah County, Utah that is part of the Provo–Orem metropolitan area. The population was 35,268 in 2020, according to the United States Census. Springville is a bedroom community for commuters who work in the Provo-Ore ...

to develop the town at a planned cost of $5 million. It was originally named "Drager", after W.L. Drager, chief engineer for the Defense Plant Corporation, who was raised in Utah and later moved to

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On September 9, 1942, the Post Office moved into its new building, and during the ceremonies, Postmistress Agnes Scow announced the U.S Post Office Department would not allow the name of Drager. It contended that Drager was too similar to the name

Draper Draper was originally a term for a retailer or wholesaler of cloth that was mainly for clothing. A draper may additionally operate as a cloth merchant or a haberdasher. History Drapers were an important trade guild during the medieval period, ...

(another Utah community) and would create confusion and delays in mail delivery. A selected group of citizens gathered in the school auditorium to discuss a new name from the proposals of "Dragerville", "Dragervale" or "Drager Town" offered by the Post Office Department. "Dragerton", a derivative of "Drager-town", was selected. In 1959, with the area near its peak population, the Carbon School District built a high school in the area. The school was placed on land within the Sunnyside city limits that bordered Dragerton. The land was donated by

Kaiser Steel Kaiser Steel was a steel mill near Fontana, California, founded by Henry J. Kaiser on December 1, 1941. The plant's first blast furnace, "Bess No. 1" (named after Kaiser's wife) was fired up on December 30, 1942, and the first steel plate was p ...

, a local mining company. In 1958, during an assembly at East Carbon Junior High School, a vote was taken to give the new high school a name and mascot. The name selected was East Carbon High School, and the mascot was a

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. The school colors were blue, white and red. When the town was incorporated in 1973, the name was officially changed to "East Carbon City", matching the high school name. In 2005, the high school was closed and demolished before the beginning of the new school year. Bruin Point Elementary School was built the following year and is the only school serving the area of East Carbon.

Columbia

As part of East Carbon's incorporation, the nearby town of Columbia (approximately 4 miles to the southeast) became part of the new city. However, the area is still referred to as "Columbia" by residents.

References

External links