Grace, Idaho
Encyclopedia
Grace is a city in Caribou County
, Idaho
, in the United States
. The population was 990 at the 2000 census
.
Indians. White settlement dates back to the mid-to-late 19th century. The Oregon Trail
passed within 4 miles (6.4 km) of Grace. Unlike other nearby historic towns such as Paris
and Franklin
, Grace was not originally settled by Mormon pioneers, but has since become a predominantly Mormon-populated town. The economy in and around Grace has traditionally been driven by agriculture, with potatoes, alfalfa
, grain
, dairy
and ranching being the main staples.
According to the United States Census Bureau
, the city has a total area of 1 square miles (2.6 km²), all of it land.
Grace is one of the northernmost cities along the Wasatch Range
which extends approximately 160 miles (257.5 km) south, and is only 1 miles (1.6 km) west of the large fault line that defines the range. Grace is located near the center of Gem Valley.
In stark contrast to the surrounding mountains, the valley floor in the immediate area of Grace is flat due to volcanic activity in the area some 30,000 years ago. The lava flow that created the valley also diverted the Bear River from its Pacific drainage into the Great Basin. This was a significant contributor to the growth of the prehistoric Lake Bonneville
of which the Great Salt Lake
is a remnant. Lake Bonneville reached its farthest north advance about four miles (6 km) southwest of Grace before it broke through the earthen barrier at Red Rock pass north of Preston, Idaho. The Bear River
today runs to the north and west of Grace and terminates in the Great Salt Lake.
Grace's neighboring towns are Soda Springs
to the north east, Bancroft
to the north west, and Preston
to the south. It is about 20 miles (32.2 km) from Lava Hot Springs
, which is a local tourism and recreation destination. The nearest city with a major airport is Salt Lake City, Utah
, which is approximately 175 miles (281.6 km) south.
rich volcanic soil of the area. This soil type is ideal for farming, particularly potatoes and grain. Solid basalt
can be found beneath the soil throughout most of the valley and exposed outcrops are common. Other types of rock that are common in the area are limestone
and shale
. These non-volcanic rock beds are rich with fossils of prehistoric marine life once native to the inland sea that covered the area some 280 million years ago, ranging from well preserved mollusca
n shells, to small fish. Trilobite
fossils can often be found in local shale deposits. The inland sea was also responsible for the vast phosphate deposits that lie north of Grace and are a vital part of the area's economy.
The Bear River runs through Black Canyon which originates 1 miles (1.6 km) northwest of town and extends approximately 8 miles (12.9 km) south. Approximately one-half mile downstream from the point of origin, the Black Canyon forms a sharp gorge with steep walls of black basalt cliffs. At this point the gorge is only about 100 yards (91.4 m) wide and nearly 100 ft (30.5 m) deep.
The Wasatch Fault
is visible from Grace due to the sharp displacement that creates a small bench at the foot of the mountains. Mild to moderate earthquakes have been reported to originate at the fault.
of 2000, there were 990 people, 364 households, and 274 families residing in the city. The population density
was 1,002.7 people per square mile (386.1/km²). There were 389 housing units at an average density of 394.0 per square mile (151.7/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 95.56% White, 0.20% Native American, 3.33% from other races
, and 0.91% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 4.95% of the population.
There were 364 households out of which 35.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 64.3% were married couples
living together, 6.3% had a female householder with no husband present, and 24.5% were non-families. 23.4% of all households were made up of individuals and 14.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.72 and the average family size was 3.21.
In the city the population was spread out with 31.4% under the age of 18, 6.9% from 18 to 24, 23.8% from 25 to 44, 22.5% from 45 to 64, and 15.4% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females there were 103.3 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 92.9 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $32,303, and the median income for a family was $39,306. Males had a median income of $33,214 versus $14,306 for females. The per capita income
for the city was $13,452. About 5.7% of families and 7.0% of the population were below the poverty line, including 6.8% of those under age 18 and 11.7% of those age 65 or over.
and fishing
are popular among many residents of Grace, as are motorsports
. There are several local canyons that are accessible during the summer by truck or ATV
, and in the winter by snowmobile
. The nearby Alexander Reservoir provides summertime water recreation such as boating and swimming. The local Niter Ice Cave
is accessible year-round and even beginning spelunkers have little trouble exploring the cave. Grace is also home to the Caribou County Fair and Rodeo.
, and Thatcher Elementary School; they are all under the oversight of Grace School District #148.
Caribou County, Idaho
Caribou County is a county located in the U.S. state of Idaho. As of the 2010 Census the county had a population of 6,963. The county seat and largest city is Soda Springs, followed by Grace and Bancroft.- History :...
, Idaho
Idaho
Idaho is a state in the Rocky Mountain area of the United States. The state's largest city and capital is Boise. Residents are called "Idahoans". Idaho was admitted to the Union on July 3, 1890, as the 43rd state....
, in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. The population was 990 at the 2000 census
United States Census, 2000
The Twenty-second United States Census, known as Census 2000 and conducted by the Census Bureau, determined the resident population of the United States on April 1, 2000, to be 281,421,906, an increase of 13.2% over the 248,709,873 persons enumerated during the 1990 Census...
.
History
The area of Grace was once inhabited by the ShoshoneShoshone
The Shoshone or Shoshoni are a Native American tribe in the United States with three large divisions: the Northern, the Western and the Eastern....
Indians. White settlement dates back to the mid-to-late 19th century. The Oregon Trail
Oregon Trail
The Oregon Trail is a historic east-west wagon route that connected the Missouri River to valleys in Oregon and locations in between.After 1840 steam-powered riverboats and steamboats traversing up and down the Ohio, Mississippi and Missouri rivers sped settlement and development in the flat...
passed within 4 miles (6.4 km) of Grace. Unlike other nearby historic towns such as Paris
Paris, Idaho
Paris is a rural city located on the western side of the Bear Lake Valley in Bear Lake County, Idaho, United States. Its population was 576 at the 2000 census. The county seat of Bear Lake County, it was settled on September 26, 1863 by pioneer settlers of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day...
and Franklin
Franklin, Idaho
Franklin is a city in Franklin County, Idaho, United States. The population was 641 at the 2000 census. It is part of the Logan, Utah-Idaho Metropolitan Statistical Area.-History:...
, Grace was not originally settled by Mormon pioneers, but has since become a predominantly Mormon-populated town. The economy in and around Grace has traditionally been driven by agriculture, with potatoes, alfalfa
Alfalfa
Alfalfa is a flowering plant in the pea family Fabaceae cultivated as an important forage crop in the US, Canada, Argentina, France, Australia, the Middle East, South Africa, and many other countries. It is known as lucerne in the UK, France, Australia, South Africa and New Zealand, and known as...
, grain
GRAIN
GRAIN is a small international non-profit organisation that works to support small farmers and social movements in their struggles for community-controlled and biodiversity-based food systems. Our support takes the form of independent research and analysis, networking at local, regional and...
, dairy
Dairy
A dairy is a business enterprise established for the harvesting of animal milk—mostly from cows or goats, but also from buffalo, sheep, horses or camels —for human consumption. A dairy is typically located on a dedicated dairy farm or section of a multi-purpose farm that is concerned...
and ranching being the main staples.
Geography
Grace is located at 42°34′34"N 111°43′47"W (42.576245, -111.729599).According to the United States Census Bureau
United States Census Bureau
The United States Census Bureau is the government agency that is responsible for the United States Census. It also gathers other national demographic and economic data...
, the city has a total area of 1 square miles (2.6 km²), all of it land.
Grace is one of the northernmost cities along the Wasatch Range
Wasatch Range
The Wasatch Range is a mountain range that stretches approximately from the Utah-Idaho border, south through central Utah in the western United States. It is generally considered the western edge of the greater Rocky Mountains, and the eastern edge of the Great Basin region...
which extends approximately 160 miles (257.5 km) south, and is only 1 miles (1.6 km) west of the large fault line that defines the range. Grace is located near the center of Gem Valley.
In stark contrast to the surrounding mountains, the valley floor in the immediate area of Grace is flat due to volcanic activity in the area some 30,000 years ago. The lava flow that created the valley also diverted the Bear River from its Pacific drainage into the Great Basin. This was a significant contributor to the growth of the prehistoric Lake Bonneville
Lake Bonneville
Lake Bonneville was a prehistoric pluvial lake that covered much of North America's Great Basin region. Most of the territory it covered was in present-day Utah, though parts of the lake extended into present-day Idaho and Nevada. Formed about 32,000 years ago, it existed until about 14,500 years...
of which the Great Salt Lake
Great Salt Lake
The Great Salt Lake, located in the northern part of the U.S. state of Utah, is the largest salt water lake in the western hemisphere, the fourth-largest terminal lake in the world. In an average year the lake covers an area of around , but the lake's size fluctuates substantially due to its...
is a remnant. Lake Bonneville reached its farthest north advance about four miles (6 km) southwest of Grace before it broke through the earthen barrier at Red Rock pass north of Preston, Idaho. The Bear River
Bear River (Utah)
The Bear River is a river, approximately long, in southwestern Wyoming, southeastern Idaho, and northern Utah, in the United States. The largest tributary of the Great Salt Lake, it drains a mountainous area and farming valleys northeast of the lake and southeast of the Snake River Plain...
today runs to the north and west of Grace and terminates in the Great Salt Lake.
Grace's neighboring towns are Soda Springs
Soda Springs, Idaho
Soda Springs is a city in Caribou County, Idaho, United States. The population was 3,381 at the 2000 census. The city is the county seat of Caribou County....
to the north east, Bancroft
Bancroft, Idaho
Bancroft is a city in the Gem Valley of Caribou County, Idaho, United States. The population was 382 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Bancroft is located at , in the Portneuf Valley. It is a railroad town and lies on the historic route of old U.S. Highway 30...
to the north west, and Preston
Preston, Idaho
Preston is a city in Franklin County, Idaho, United States. The population was 4,682 at the 2000 census. The city is the county seat of Franklin County. It is part of the Logan, Utah-Idaho Metropolitan Statistical Area.-History:...
to the south. It is about 20 miles (32.2 km) from Lava Hot Springs
Lava Hot Springs, Idaho
Lava Hot Springs is a city in Bannock County, Idaho, United States. It is part of the 'Pocatello, Idaho Metropolitan Statistical Area'. The population was 521 at the 2000 census...
, which is a local tourism and recreation destination. The nearest city with a major airport is Salt Lake City, Utah
Salt Lake City, Utah
Salt Lake City is the capital and the most populous city of the U.S. state of Utah. The name of the city is often shortened to Salt Lake or SLC. With a population of 186,440 as of the 2010 Census, the city lies in the Salt Lake City metropolitan area, which has a total population of 1,124,197...
, which is approximately 175 miles (281.6 km) south.
Geology
There are several extinct volcanoes and lava domes within miles of Grace, which contributes to the dark, nitrogenNitrogen
Nitrogen is a chemical element that has the symbol N, atomic number of 7 and atomic mass 14.00674 u. Elemental nitrogen is a colorless, odorless, tasteless, and mostly inert diatomic gas at standard conditions, constituting 78.08% by volume of Earth's atmosphere...
rich volcanic soil of the area. This soil type is ideal for farming, particularly potatoes and grain. Solid basalt
Basalt
Basalt is a common extrusive volcanic rock. It is usually grey to black and fine-grained due to rapid cooling of lava at the surface of a planet. It may be porphyritic containing larger crystals in a fine matrix, or vesicular, or frothy scoria. Unweathered basalt is black or grey...
can be found beneath the soil throughout most of the valley and exposed outcrops are common. Other types of rock that are common in the area are limestone
Limestone
Limestone is a sedimentary rock composed largely of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of calcium carbonate . Many limestones are composed from skeletal fragments of marine organisms such as coral or foraminifera....
and shale
Shale
Shale is a fine-grained, clastic sedimentary rock composed of mud that is a mix of flakes of clay minerals and tiny fragments of other minerals, especially quartz and calcite. The ratio of clay to other minerals is variable. Shale is characterized by breaks along thin laminae or parallel layering...
. These non-volcanic rock beds are rich with fossils of prehistoric marine life once native to the inland sea that covered the area some 280 million years ago, ranging from well preserved mollusca
Mollusca
The Mollusca , common name molluscs or mollusksSpelled mollusks in the USA, see reasons given in Rosenberg's ; for the spelling mollusc see the reasons given by , is a large phylum of invertebrate animals. There are around 85,000 recognized extant species of molluscs. Mollusca is the largest...
n shells, to small fish. Trilobite
Trilobite
Trilobites are a well-known fossil group of extinct marine arthropods that form the class Trilobita. The first appearance of trilobites in the fossil record defines the base of the Atdabanian stage of the Early Cambrian period , and they flourished throughout the lower Paleozoic era before...
fossils can often be found in local shale deposits. The inland sea was also responsible for the vast phosphate deposits that lie north of Grace and are a vital part of the area's economy.
The Bear River runs through Black Canyon which originates 1 miles (1.6 km) northwest of town and extends approximately 8 miles (12.9 km) south. Approximately one-half mile downstream from the point of origin, the Black Canyon forms a sharp gorge with steep walls of black basalt cliffs. At this point the gorge is only about 100 yards (91.4 m) wide and nearly 100 ft (30.5 m) deep.
The Wasatch Fault
Wasatch Fault
The Wasatch Fault is an earthquake fault located primarily on the western edge of the Wasatch Mountains in the U.S. state of Utah. The fault is 240 miles long, stretching from southern Idaho, through northern Utah, before terminating in central Utah near the town of Fayette...
is visible from Grace due to the sharp displacement that creates a small bench at the foot of the mountains. Mild to moderate earthquakes have been reported to originate at the fault.
Demographics
As of the censusCensus
A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring and recording information about the members of a given population. It is a regularly occurring and official count of a particular population. The term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common...
of 2000, there were 990 people, 364 households, and 274 families residing in the city. The population density
Population density
Population density is a measurement of population per unit area or unit volume. It is frequently applied to living organisms, and particularly to humans...
was 1,002.7 people per square mile (386.1/km²). There were 389 housing units at an average density of 394.0 per square mile (151.7/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 95.56% White, 0.20% Native American, 3.33% from other races
Race (United States Census)
Race and ethnicity in the United States Census, as defined by the Federal Office of Management and Budget and the United States Census Bureau, are self-identification data items in which residents choose the race or races with which they most closely identify, and indicate whether or not they are...
, and 0.91% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 4.95% of the population.
There were 364 households out of which 35.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 64.3% were married couples
Marriage
Marriage is a social union or legal contract between people that creates kinship. It is an institution in which interpersonal relationships, usually intimate and sexual, are acknowledged in a variety of ways, depending on the culture or subculture in which it is found...
living together, 6.3% had a female householder with no husband present, and 24.5% were non-families. 23.4% of all households were made up of individuals and 14.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.72 and the average family size was 3.21.
In the city the population was spread out with 31.4% under the age of 18, 6.9% from 18 to 24, 23.8% from 25 to 44, 22.5% from 45 to 64, and 15.4% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females there were 103.3 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 92.9 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $32,303, and the median income for a family was $39,306. Males had a median income of $33,214 versus $14,306 for females. The per capita income
Per capita income
Per capita income or income per person is a measure of mean income within an economic aggregate, such as a country or city. It is calculated by taking a measure of all sources of income in the aggregate and dividing it by the total population...
for the city was $13,452. About 5.7% of families and 7.0% of the population were below the poverty line, including 6.8% of those under age 18 and 11.7% of those age 65 or over.
Recreation
Although a small community, Grace offers an array of activities that most can enjoy. HuntingHunting
Hunting is the practice of pursuing any living thing, usually wildlife, for food, recreation, or trade. In present-day use, the term refers to lawful hunting, as distinguished from poaching, which is the killing, trapping or capture of the hunted species contrary to applicable law...
and fishing
Fishing
Fishing is the activity of trying to catch wild fish. Fish are normally caught in the wild. Techniques for catching fish include hand gathering, spearing, netting, angling and trapping....
are popular among many residents of Grace, as are motorsports
Off-roading
Off-roading is a term for driving a vehicle on unsurfaced roads or tracks, made of materials such as sand, gravel, riverbeds, mud, snow, rocks, and other natural terrain.-Off-road vehicle:...
. There are several local canyons that are accessible during the summer by truck or ATV
All-terrain vehicle
An all-terrain vehicle , also known as a quad, quad bike, three wheeler, or four wheeler, is defined by the American National Standards Institute as a vehicle that travels on low pressure tires, with a seat that is straddled by the operator, along with handlebars for steering control...
, and in the winter by snowmobile
Snowmobile
A snowmobile, also known in some places as a snowmachine, or sled,is a land vehicle for winter travel on snow. Designed to be operated on snow and ice, they require no road or trail. Design variations enable some machines to operate in deep snow or forests; most are used on open terrain, including...
. The nearby Alexander Reservoir provides summertime water recreation such as boating and swimming. The local Niter Ice Cave
Niter Ice Cave
The Niter Ice Cave is a geological feature approximately 3 miles south of the small southeastern town of Grace, Idaho.- History :The most probable explanation for the Niter Ice Cave is that thousands of years ago, a volcanic eruption formed a huge lava tube that eventually cooled to form this cave...
is accessible year-round and even beginning spelunkers have little trouble exploring the cave. Grace is also home to the Caribou County Fair and Rodeo.
Education
There are 4 schools:Grace Elementary School, Grace Junior High School, Grace High SchoolGrace High School
Grace High School is a high school in Grace, Idaho. The community has a strong agricultural base and the high school reflects that base in its curriculum. The school, with 21 faculty and 134 students, is accredited by the Northwest Association of Schools and Colleges.- Prestige :Grace High School...
, and Thatcher Elementary School; they are all under the oversight of Grace School District #148.