Editing Roosevelt, Utah (section)

==History==
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In 1905, by an act of Congress, the unallotted land of the [[Ute Indian Tribe of the Uintah and Ouray Reservation|Ute Indian Reservation]] was opened to [[homesteading]]. Several thousand hopeful 20th-century pioneers congregated in [[Provo, Utah|Provo]] and [[Grand Junction, Colorado|Grand Junction]] with the hope of successfully drawing lots for a homestead in a fertile region of the soon-to-be-opened lands. Throughout the fall and winter of 1905–06, the settlers came to the [[Uinta Basin]].

The town of Roosevelt was founded in early 1906 when Ed Harmston turned his homestead claim into a townsite and laid out plots. His wife named the prospective town in honor of the president of the United States, [[Theodore Roosevelt]]. Roosevelt was originally called ''Dry Gulch City'', taking its name from a nearby [[gulch]] that only carries water during the early spring runoff season. Within a short time a store, a post office, and the Dry Gulch Irrigation Company were in business in the new town. In 1907, the Harmstons donated {{convert|2|acre|m2}} of ground for the town's citizens to build a school. The first class had about fifteen pupils, who had to provide books from their homes. Roosevelt soon became the economic center for the area, eclipsing [[Myton, Utah|Myton]] and [[Duchesne, Utah|Duchesne]].

Roosevelt is situated on [[U.S. Route 40 in Utah|U.S. Route 40]] in the northeast corner of the state, south of the [[Uinta Mountains]], at an elevation of {{convert|5250|ft|m}}. The town was incorporated at a mass meeting of 44 citizens on 21 February 1913. From 1906 to 1914 Roosevelt was in [[Wasatch County, Utah|Wasatch County]], but in 1914 Duchesne County was formed from part of Wasatch County, and, as the largest town in the county, Roosevelt anticipated becoming the county seat. However, when the total county-wide vote came in, the seat went to Duchesne.