Cody, Wyoming
Cody, Wyoming | |
---|---|
Location of Cody, Wyoming | |
Country | United States |
State | Wyoming |
County | Park |
Area | |
• Total | 9.5 sq mi (24.7 km2) |
• Land | 9.3 sq mi (24.0 km2) |
• Water | 0.2 sq mi (0.6 km2) |
Elevation | 4,997 ft (1,523 m) |
Population (2000) | |
• Total | 8,835 |
• Density | 952.3/sq mi (367.7/km2) |
Time zone | UTC-7 (Mountain (MST)) |
• Summer (DST) | UTC-6 (MDT) |
ZIP code | 82414 |
Area code | 307 |
FIPS code | 56-15760Template:GR |
GNIS feature ID | 1586861Template:GR |
Cody is a city in Park County, Wyoming, United States. It is named after William Frederick Cody, primarily known as Buffalo Bill, from William Cody's part in the creation of the original town. The population was 8,835 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Park CountyTemplate:GR.
Cody is served by Yellowstone Regional Airport.
The late Governor and U.S. Senator Milward Simpson lived in Cody; so does his son, former Senator Alan K. Simpson and grandson, State Representative Colin M. Simpson. Wrestling personality Eric Bischoff also maintains a home there.
Dick Jones (1910-2008), operator of Dick Jones Trucking, lived in both Cody and Powell and was the Republican gubernatorial nominee in 1974. He also served in both houses of the Wyoming State Legislature (1955—1974) and was a former mayor of Powell.
Geography
Cody is located at 44°31′24″N 109°3′26″W / 44.52333°N 109.05722°WInvalid arguments have been passed to the {{#coordinates:}} function (44.523244, -109.057109)Template:GR.
According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 9.5 square miles (24.7 km²), of which, 9.3 square miles (24.0 km²) of it is land and 0.2 square miles (0.6 km²) of it (2.52%) is water.
Cody's elevation is about 5016 ft (1,500 m) above sea level. The main part of the city is split across two levels, separated by about 60 feet (18 m).
![](http://up.wiki.x.io/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/0f/Cody.jpg/250px-Cody.jpg)
The Shoshone River flows through Cody in a fairly deep canyon. There are four bridges over this river in the Cody vicinity, one at the north edge of town that allows travel to the north, and one about 5 miles (8 km) east of Cody that allows passage to Powell, and the areas to the north and east. The other two are west of town; one allows access to the East Gate of Yellowstone National Park, and the other is used by fishermen in Shoshone Canyon and as access to the Buffalo Bill Dam.
Cody is located at the western edge of the Bighorn Basin, a depression surrounded by the Big Horn, Owl Creek, Bridger, and Absaroka ranges. At the western edge of Cody, a deep canyon formed by the "north fork" of the Shoshone River provides the only passage to Yellowstone's Eastern Entrance. At its mouth and rising above Cody are Rattlesnake Mountain on the north side and Cedar Mountain on the south side. Most of Cody has a spectacular view of Heart Mountain, whose 8000 ft (2,400 m) peak is 9 miles (14 km) directly north of Cody, and the Carter Mountains, which form a line with peaks at about 12,000 ft (3,700 m), some 15 miles (24 km) to the south.
Culture
![](http://up.wiki.x.io/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/85/The_Scout_by_Gertrude_Vanderbilt_Whitney.jpg/220px-The_Scout_by_Gertrude_Vanderbilt_Whitney.jpg)
Themes surrounding Cody's pioneer and Cowboy and Western history are common in the cultural events and activities in the area. The Buffalo Bill Historical Center is a large and modern facility located near the center of the city, and contains large collections, and is a favorite stopping point for tourists passing through the town, on their way to or from Yellowstone. During the summer, a re-enactment of a wild-west shoot-out takes place next to the Irma Hotel, another historical site still open for business with a hotel and restaurant, which forms the nucleus of the town.
Old Trail Town, a restoration of more than twenty-five historic Western buildings and artifiacts is located in Cody just off the Yellowstone Highway.
Rodeo is important in the culture in Cody, which calls itself the "Rodeo Capital of the World". The Cody Nite Rodeo is an amateur rodeo every night from June 1 through August 31.
Cody is also host to the Cody Stampede Rodeo. The Stampede is a PRCA rodeo and is one of the largest rodeos in the nation that is held over the Independence Day Holiday. Many of the top cowboys in the country attend. The stampede has been held from July 1-4 every year since 1919.
One of the biggest weekends of the year celebrates the Old West and cowboy culture with the annual Cody Old West Show & Auction. It happens every 4th weekend in June and attracts visitors from all around the world with an interest in Cowboy and Native American artifact and antiques.
![](http://up.wiki.x.io/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/69/Cowgirl_Lasso_4889218394.jpg/220px-Cowgirl_Lasso_4889218394.jpg)
![](http://up.wiki.x.io/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/3c/2006-07-28_-_United_States_-_Wyoming_-_Cody_-_Rodeo_-_Cowboy.jpg/220px-2006-07-28_-_United_States_-_Wyoming_-_Cody_-_Rodeo_-_Cowboy.jpg)
Cody is the home of the Yellowstone Quake Junior A hockey team in the Northern Pacific Hockey League.
Cody is home to The Cody Firearms Museum, which houses the most comprehensive assemblage of American firearms in the world.
Cody is the birthplace of the famous abstract artist Jackson Pollock.
Industry
The primary industry in Cody is tourism. Hotels, restaurants and shops cater to travelers coming to visit the West and Yellowstone Park. Cody has several art galleries, and seems a magnet for artists. Some fairly famous painters and artists live in the area, and galleries feature things that vary from paintings to statues.
Another industry is western style furniture, with several small furniture makers producing custom pieces. An example would be Santos Furniture. All of these businesses seem to seek out unique local woods and craft them into useful works of art.
Another notable example would be Norseman Design, which does totally custom furniture, promising never to produce exact copies of anything they make, whether it be desks, conference tables, chairs, or beds—each the result of hundreds of hours of work by highly skilled wood crafters and artists.
The oil industry seems to wax and wane over the years in the Cody area. Husky Oil Company at one time had a large refinery just across the river on the north end of town, but it has since been dismantled by Marathon Oil and almost all traces of its existence are now gone. The office building is still there, and forms a large facility on the upper level of Cody which was recently purchased from Marathon by Park County for office space and a library.
Marathon Oil bought out most of Husky Oils holdings in the area when their company was taken over. This includes the Oregon Basin Oil Field which is one of the largest oil fields in the state.
To the north of town, BPB (British Plaster Board) has a large factory that produces Sheetrock or plaster board for construction. Just to the south of Cody are large deposits of gypsum, which are being mined for the plant.
Another large business is the Y Tex Corp, which produces plastic ear tags for cattle, goats, sheep, etc. These tags are distributed all over the world, and their bright orange, green, red, yellow and blue tags with large black numbers can be seen gracing cattle almost anywhere.
A large contribution to the local economy are the local farmers and ranchers. The local climate does not often treat them kindly, but these hard-working, innovative businessmen have endured and are a strong presence in the area.
Park County School District #6 is another large employer in the area. Cody currently has three elementary schools that house kindergarten through the fifth grade, a middle school for sixth to eighth grade, and a four year high school.
Climate
The weather in the Big Horns is highly variable. Large temperature swings are always possible. Cold winters normally bring average lows of 10 °F (-12 °C). and hot summers can bring record 100 °F (38 °C). The humidity of the air is usually 30% or less, which is fairly dry. Precipitation averages 9 inches (229 mm) of rain per year, making the surrounding area a semi-arid desert. During the summer months of June, July and August, if it does snow, it is usually brief and melts quickly. Such events are not frequent, but there are sudden and drastic shifts in weather conditions.
Cody enjoys about 300 days of sunshine per year.
Wind is almost a constant presence in the Cody area and the Big Horn Basin in general. The air flow in the Basin is turbulent, but during the winter, most storms seem to move in from the north-northwest. During the summer, it is not unusual to see storms move in from the southwest. Throughout a normal day, winds can be experienced as coming from almost any direction, mostly from the north and west, but sometimes from the south and east. The Canyon at the west end of Cody seems to funnel rain and wind across the city from the west. The winds can be quite strong at 30 to 40 mph (50 to 60 km/h) and last for several days.
Because of the dryness of the climate, the entire area is laced with irrigation canals, holding ponds, laterals, and drops. The Buffalo Bill Dam between Rattlesnake and Cedar mountains forms a large reservoir about 10 miles (16 km) to the west of Cody. This reservoir (among others) feed a large system for irrigation water distribution.
Demographics
Census | Pop. | Note | %± |
---|---|---|---|
1910 | 1,132 | — | |
1920 | 1,242 | 9.7% | |
1930 | 1,800 | 44.9% | |
1940 | 2,536 | 40.9% | |
1950 | 3,872 | 52.7% | |
1960 | 4,838 | 24.9% | |
1970 | 5,161 | 6.7% | |
1980 | 6,599 | 27.9% | |
1990 | 7,897 | 19.7% | |
2000 | 8,835 | 11.9% | |
[1] |
As of the censusTemplate:GR of 2000, there were 8,835 people, 3,791 households, and 2,403 families residing in the city. The population density was 952.3 people per square mile (367.6/km²). There were 4,113 housing units at an average density of 443.3/sq mi (171.1/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 96.90% White, 0.10% African American, 0.42% Native American, 0.58% Asian, 0.05% Pacific Islander, 0.85% from other races, and 1.11% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 2.22% of the population.
There were 3,791 households out of which 29.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 50.7% were married couples living together, 9.5% had a female householder with no husband present, and 36.6% were non-families. 32.2% of all households were made up of individuals and 12.4% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.27 and the average family size was 2.86.
In the city the population was spread out with 24.8% under the age of 18, 7.2% from 18 to 24, 26.4% from 25 to 44, 24.9% from 45 to 64, and 16.6% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 40 years. For every 100 females there were 90.9 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 88.1 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $34,450, and the median income for a family was $40,554. Males had a median income of $31,395 versus $19,947 for females. The per capita income for the city was $17,813. About 9.4% of families and 13.9% of the population were below the poverty line, including 19.3% of those under age 18 and 11.0% of those age 65 or over.
Radio Stations
Cody is served by the "Big Horn Radio Network". This group of stations consists of KODI, KTAG, and KCGL originating from Cody, and KZMQ/KZMQ-FM from Greybull.
Sister cities
See also
Angling in Yellowstone National Park
References
- ^ "Historical Decennial Census Population for Wyoming Counties, Cities, and Towns". Wyoming Department of State / U.S. Census Bureau. Retrieved 2008-06-30.