Escalante, Utah

Escalante, Utah
Escalante and the Straight Cliffs from the north
Escalante and the Straight Cliffs from the north
Location in Garfield County and state of Utah
Location in Garfield County and state of Utah
Coordinates: 37°46′13″N 111°36′8″W / 37.77028°N 111.60222°W / 37.77028; -111.60222
CountryUnited States
StateUtah
CountyGarfield
Settled1875[1]
Named forSilvestre Vélez de Escalante
Area
 • Total3.30 sq mi (8.55 km2)
 • Land3.30 sq mi (8.55 km2)
 • Water0.00 sq mi (0.00 km2)
Elevation5,820 ft (1,770 m)
Population
 (2020)
 • Total786
 • Estimate 
(2019)[4]
798
 • Density241.74/sq mi (93.33/km2)
Time zoneUTC-7 (Mountain (MST))
 • Summer (DST)UTC-6 (MDT)
ZIP code
84726
Area code435
FIPS code49-23750[5]
GNIS feature ID2410452[3]
State Routes
Websitewww.escalantecity-utah.com

Escalante (locally /ˌɛskəˈlænt(i)/ ) is a city in central Garfield County, Utah, United States, located along Utah Scenic Byway 12 (SR-12) in the south-central part of the state. As of the 2020 census, 786 people were living in the city.[6]

The city is named after Silvestre Vélez de Escalante, a Franciscan missionary and a member of the first European expedition into what is now southern Utah.[1]

The nearest towns are Boulder which is 27 miles (43 km) to the northeast on SR-12, and Henrieville, which is 30 miles (48 km) to the southwest on SR-12.

The Escalante Petrified Forest State Park is located west of the city. Sections of the Grand Staircase–Escalante National Monument (GSENM) abut much of the city's limits. The Hole-in-the-Rock Road, which begins 5 mi (8.0 km) east of Escalante, is the main access road into the eastern section of GSENM. The road leads to the Canyons of the Escalante, the Devils Garden and the Hole-in-the-Rock.

  1. ^ a b Cite error: The named reference website was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  2. ^ "2019 U.S. Gazetteer Files". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved August 7, 2020.
  3. ^ a b U.S. Geological Survey Geographic Names Information System: Escalante, Utah
  4. ^ Cite error: The named reference USCensusEst2019CenPopScriptOnlyDirtyFixDoNotUse was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  5. ^ Cite error: The named reference gazetteer was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  6. ^ "Explore Census Data". data.census.gov. Retrieved April 11, 2024.