Bluff () is a town in San Juan County,

Utah Utah is a landlocked state in the Mountain states, Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It is one of the Four Corners states, sharing a border with Arizona, Colorado, and New Mexico. It also borders Wyoming to the northea ...

, United States. The population was 320 at the 2000 census. Bluff was incorporated in 2018. Ann Leppanen is currently the mayor.

History

Under the direction of John Taylor, Silas S. Smith and Danish settler Jens Nielson led about 230 Mormons on an expedition to start a farming community in southeastern Utah. After forging about 200 miles (320 kilometers) of their own trail over difficult terrain, the settlers arrived on the site of Bluff in April 1880. (The trail followed went over and down the " Hole in the Rock", which now opens into one of the tributaries of Lake Powell.) The town was named for the bluffs near the town site. The town's population had declined to seventy by 1930 but rebounded during a

uranium Uranium is a chemical element; it has chemical symbol, 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. Ura ...

prospecting Prospecting is the first stage of the geological analysis (followed by Mining engineering#Pre-mining, exploration) of a territory. It is the search for minerals, fossils, precious metals, or mineral specimens. It is also known as fossicking. ...

boom in the 1950s. With the uranium decline in the 1970s, Bluff again declined and now remains a small town with about 200 residents.

Geography

Bluff is located in the sparsely populated southeastern Utah canyonlands of the

Colorado Plateau The Colorado Plateau is a physiographic and desert region of the Intermontane Plateaus, roughly centered on the Four Corners region of the Southwestern United States. This plateau covers an area of 336,700 km2 (130,000 mi2) within w ...

. The community is on the north margin of the San Juan River valley at the confluence of Cottonwood Wash with the San Juan. U.S. routes 163 and 191 and State Route 162 pass through the community. According to the

United States Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau, officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the Federal statistical system, U.S. federal statistical system, responsible for producing data about the American people and American economy, econ ...

, the town has a total area of 22.6 square miles (58.7 km²), of which 22.1 square miles (57.2 km²) is land and 0.6 square mile (1.4 km²) (2.43%) is water.

Climate

Bluff has a cold

desert climate The desert climate or arid climate (in the Köppen climate classification ''BWh'' and ''BWk'') is a dry climate sub-type in which there is a severe excess of evaporation over precipitation. The typically bald, rocky, or sandy surfaces in desert ...

(

Köppen Köppen is a German surname. Notable people with the surname include: * Bernd Köppen (1951–2014), German pianist and composer * Carl Köppen (1833-1907), German military advisor in Meiji era Japan * Edlef Köppen (1893–1939), German author ...

''BWk'') typical of southern Utah, though it borders on a cold

semi-arid climate A semi-arid climate, semi-desert climate, or steppe climate is a dry climate sub-type. It is located on regions that receive precipitation below potential evapotranspiration, but not as low as a desert climate. There are different kinds of se ...

(''BSk''). Winters are cool and dry with occasional snow. Despite averaging just over of snow per year, only three seasons have gone without snow (1928-1929, 1963-1964, and 1995-1996). The snowiest season was 1978-1979, with . Nights are chilly, falling below freezing on 141 days per year, while only seven days fail to rise above freezing. Bluff is located in hardiness zone 7A, with an average yearly low of . Spring comes quickly in February and is the driest time of the year. Temperatures are usually warm, although snow has fallen as late as April (although very rarely). The average last freeze is April 25. Summer is long and hot with occasional thunderstorms. Days reach , an average of 86 days per year, and attain highs of or greater on 16. Despite the hot days, nights cool to . While September is still hot, temperatures cool rapidly in October and November. Snow has fallen in October but usually holds off until late November. The first freeze typically comes on October 7.

Demographics

As of the

census A census (from Latin ''censere'', 'to assess') is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording, and calculating population information about the members of a given Statistical population, population, usually displayed in the form of stati ...

of 2000, there were 320 people, 135 households, and 75 families residing in the town. The

population density Population density (in agriculture: Standing 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 geog ...

was 14.5 people per square mile (5.6/km²). There were 191 housing units at an average density of 8.6/sq mi (3.3/km²). The racial makeup of the town was 62.50%

White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no chroma). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully (or almost fully) reflect and scatter all the visible wa ...

, 35.00% Native American, 0.94% from other races, and 1.56% from two or more races.

Hispanic The term Hispanic () are people, Spanish culture, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or broadly. In some contexts, Hispanic and Latino Americans, especially within the United States, "Hispanic" is used as an Ethnici ...

or Latino of any race were 4.06% of the population. There were 135 households, of which 28.9% had children under 18 living with them, 47.4% were married couples living together, 5.9% had a female householder with no husband present, and 44.4% were non-families. 35.6% of all households were made up of individuals, and 5.2% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.37, and the average family size was 3.25. In the town, the population was spread out, with 25.9% under 18, 8.8% from 18 to 24, 29.1% from 25 to 44, 25.6% from 45 to 64, and 10.6% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females, there were 102.5 males. For every 100 females aged 18 and over, there were 104.3 males. The median income for a household in the town was $23,906, and the median income for a family was $30,938. Males had a median income of $31,563 versus $14,792 for females. The

per capita income Per capita income (PCI) or average income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. In many countries, per capita income is determined using regular population surveys, such ...

for the CDP was $13,567. About 22.8% of families and 21.9% 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 ...

, including 27.7% of those under age 18 and 25.0% of those aged 65 or over.

Education

The San Juan School District operates Bluff Elementary School in Bluff.

Attractions and events

* Bluff Fort *Navajo Twin Rocks *Bluff Pioneer Cemetery *Trading Post *Bears Ear Education Center *Historic buildings and sites of Bluff Historic District and other listings on the National Register of Historic Places in Bluff. Events: * Winter Balloon Festival, January * Bluff Arts Festival, October and Utah Navajo Fair, September

Notable people

* Charles Lang,

Academy Award The Academy Awards, commonly known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit in film. They are presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) in the United States in recognition of excellence ...

-winning cinematographer * Albert R. Lyman, writer * Jane McKechnie Walton, pioneer * Ellen Meloy, writer * Charles Redd, rancher and member of the Utah House of Representatives

References

External links

* {{Authority control Census-designated places in San Juan County, Utah Census-designated places in Utah Populated places established in 1880 1880 establishments in Utah Territory