Elko is a city in and the county seat of Elko County, Nevada, United States. As of the 2020 census, Elko had a population of 20,564. Elko serves as the center of the Ruby Valley, a region with a population of over 55,000. Elko is from Lamoille Canyon and the Ruby Mountains, providing year-round access to recreation, including hiking, skiing, hunting, and more than 20 alpine lakes. The city straddles the Humboldt River. Spring Creek, Nevada, serves as a bedroom community from the city with a population of 13,805.
Elko is the principal city of the Elko Micropolitan Statistical Area, a micropolitan area that covers Elko and Eureka counties.MICROPOLITAN STATISTICAL AREAS AND COMPONENTS , Office of Management and Budget, 2007-05-11. Accessed 2008-07-27. Although a small city, Elko is the largest city for over in each direction until Twin Falls, Idaho; the city motto states it is "The Heart of Northeast Nevada."
Elko is home to Great Basin College, as well as to the National Weather Service Weather Forecast Office, serving most of northern and central Nevada.
History
Though Elko lies along the route of the historic California Trail, its roots as a town date only back to its establishment in 1868 by settlers, when it was at the east end of the railroad tracks built by the Central Pacific Railroad (the portion of the First transcontinental railroad built from California to Utah). When the railroad crews moved on, Elko remained, serving as a center for ranching, mining, rail freight, and general supplies.
Elko is said to have been named by Charles Crocker, a superintendent of the Central Pacific Railroad. He was fond of animal names and added the letter "o" to Elk. There is no definitive evidence of this naming history, but it has become the widely accepted version.
The first Elko County Courthouse was built in 1869. Elko was officially incorporated as a city in 1917. The first church and school opened in 1870, and in 1896, Elko High School became the first county school in Nevada.
In 1925, the Kelly Act (also known as the Air Mail Act of 1925) authorized the United States Postal Service to contract with private airlines for the feeder routes that fed the main transcontinental route. The first commercial airmail flight in the United States was on the Airmail Route #5 from Pasco, Washington, to what would become Elko Regional Airport on April 6, 1926. The flight was piloted by Leon D. Cuddeback and included a brief stop in Boise, Idaho, to pick up more mail.
The 1910 replacement for the original courthouse is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The U.S. Post Office-Elko Main, which was built in 1933, is also listed.
The population of Elko greatly increased in the late 1960s when microscopic gold was discovered along the Carlin Unconformity. Many mining companies arrived and there was an influx of residents.
Geography According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of , all land, though the path of the Humboldt River fills from time to time. Elko is also very close to the Ruby Mountains.
Climate
Elko's climate is cool semi-arid (Köppen BSk). January is normally the coldest month of the year, with a daily average temperature of , and July the hottest, with a daily average of . There are an average of 1.8 days with highs, 44 days of highs, 24 days that do not top freezing, 198 nights with freezing lows, and 12 nights with sub- lows; the growing season here is short, as the average window for freezing temperatures is September 10 through June 9. Annual precipitation averages , falling on an average of 81 days, while annual snowfall averages . There are normally 130 sunny days each year. The highest temperature on record is , most recently on July 4, 1981, and the lowest on record is on January 21, 1937.
The most rainfall in 24 hours was on August 27, 1970, and the most water-equivalent precipitation in one month was – all as snow – in January 1916. The most rainfall in one calendar year was in 1983, and the least in 1919, though from July 1923 to June 1924, only was recorded. The most snowfall in one month was in January 1890, with the most in one season being more than from July 1889 to June 1890 (some days being missing) and the least from July 1939 to June 1940. The greatest depth of snow on the ground was on February 5, 1932, though an average winter will see a maximum snow cover of .
Demographics
2020 census
As of the 2020 census, Elko had a population of 20,564. The median age was 32.4 years. 27.6% of residents were under the age of 18 and 10.9% of residents were 65 years of age or older. For every 100 females there were 105.2 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 105.2 males age 18 and over.
98.3% of residents lived in urban areas, while 1.7% lived in rural areas.
There were 7,915 households in Elko, of which 37.2% had children under the age of 18 living in them. Of all households, 43.6% were married-couple households, 24.3% were households with a male householder and no spouse or partner present, and 23.5% were households with a female householder and no spouse or partner present. About 29.2% of all households were made up of individuals and 9.0% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.
There were 8,685 housing units, of which 8.9% were vacant. The homeowner vacancy rate was 1.8% and the rental vacancy rate was 10.5%.
+ Racial composition as of the 2020 census Race Number Percent White 13,796 67.1% Black or African American 320 1.6% American Indian and Alaska Native 721 3.5% Asian 353 1.7% Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander 33 0.2% Some other race 2,834 13.8% Two or more races 2,507 12.2% Hispanic or Latino (of any race) 6,297 30.6%
2000 census
As of the 2000 census, there were 16,708 people, 6,200 households, and 4,216 families residing in the city. The population density was . There were 6,948 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 83.16% White, 0.37% Black, 2.66% Native American, 1.12% Asian, 0.12% Pacific Islander, 9.63% from other races, and 2.94% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino people of any race were 21.12% of the population.
There were 6,200 households, out of which 39.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 53.5% were married couples living together, 9.1% had a female householder with no husband present, and 32.0% were non-families. 24.5% of all households were made up of individuals, and 6.3% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.66 and the average family size was 3.24.
In the city, the population was spread out, with 30.3% under the age of 18, 9.8% from 18 to 24, 31.2% from 25 to 44, 21.0% from 45 to 64, and 7.6% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 32 years. For every 100 females, there were 104.6 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 105.3 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $48,608, and the median income for a family was $52,754. Males had a median income of $43,397 versus $27,366 for females. The per capita income for the city was $20,101. About 6.1% of families and 8.2% of the population were below the poverty line, including 8.9% of those under age 18 and 8.4% of those age 65 or over.
Economy
Elko's economy is based heavily on gold mining, with ranching, tourism and the casino industry providing additional jobs. The city is considered the capital of Nevada's goldbelt. The state of Nevada produces more gold than all but four countries, and most of the gold from Nevada is mined near Elko. This has caused the town to have a boom and bust economy consistent with the rises and declines in the price of gold. The town is surrounded by hundreds of abandoned mining camps, and viewing them is a popular local activity. A gold boom in the 1980s that ended in a bust in the late 1990s left the town with large numbers of abandoned homes and left the local governments struggling to survive on reduced tax revenues. With a new gold boom starting in 2009, city officials have been reluctant to hire new employees and have decided to build a reserve in the city budget to prepare for the next bust.
Elko has struggled to bring in other industries, mostly because of its isolation and the surrounding harsh desert environment. Hunter S. Thompson quipped that in Elko, "The federal government owns 90% of this land, and most of it is useless for anything except weapons testing and poison-gas experiments." However, no experiments have been conducted in Elko or Elko County, but were famously carried out at the Nevada Test Site near Rachel, in Southern Nevada.
Arts, culture and tourist attractions
Annual cultural events Elko has been the home of the annual National Cowboy Poetry Gathering since 1985. This festival is held each January and is a week-long celebration of life in the rural West, featuring poetry, music, stories, gear, film, photography, and food. A notable regular attendee was Canadian country musician Ian Tyson.
Every July, since 1963, Elko is host to the National Basque Festival. In 2013 they were scheduled to celebrate their 50th anniversary. Humorously referred to as the "Basquo Fiasco", it is a celebration of traditional Basque culture and its ties to the Elko community. The festival includes strongman competitions, handball, a running of the bulls, traditional food and wine, and Basque dancing.
Museums and other points of interest Elko is the home of the Western Folklife Center, a regional nonprofit organization that works to expand understanding of the everyday traditions of people who live and work in the American West. The Western Folklife Center is downtown in the old Pioneer Hotel.
A number of casinos are located in Elko, including Stockmen's Casino and Hotel, the Commercial Casino, the High Desert Casino, Gold Dust West, The Maverick Casino, and the Gold Country Inn and Casino. The Commercial Casino is notable for having a stuffed polar bear on display. For many years the Red Lion brought gamblers to Elko from many parts of the country through flights on Casino Express. The flights to Elko ended in February 2006.
Elko is also home to legal prostitutes and contains active brothels. Under Nevada law, any county with a population of less than 400,000 is allowed to license brothels if it so chooses.
Several geothermal features can be found in Elko, the largest of which is the Elko Hot Hole. Hot springs were used by travelers on the California Trail and subsequently by settlers.
Notable attractions in the Elko region include the Ruby Mountains, in which is the popular Lamoille Canyon. To the north, the Jarbidge Wilderness is among the least visited and cleanest wilderness areas in the United States.
Education Elko is served by the Elko County School District; the district only has one high school within the city limits, Elko High School.
Great Basin College is located in Elko.
Elko also has a public library, Elko Mybrary, a branch of the Elko-Lander-Eureka County Library System. - Links to Mybrary which is the website for the system.
Media
Newspapers Elko Daily Free Press Elko Independent
Television Elko Television District KENV-DT (Roar affiliate, formerly of NBC)
Radio Global One Media: KBGZ 103.9 FM - "BIG Country", Country KHIX 96.7 FM - "Mix 96.7 FM", Top 40 KUOL 94.5 FM - "94.5 Kool FM", Adult Hits KBGZ-HD2 107.7 FM - "TalkRadio 107.7 FM", News Talk K299AN KBGZ-HD3 101.1 FM - "Coyote Rock 101.1 FM", Classic Rock K266AB KBGZ-HD4 100.5 FM - "Overdrive 100.5 FM", Rock K263BD
Elko Broadcasting Company: KELK 1240 AM - Adult Contemporary KELK 95.9 FM - Adult Contemporary KLKO 93.7 FM - Adult Hits KRJC 95.3 FM - Country KEAU 104.7 FM - Sports
Transportation
Major highways