Community Profile

Kamas, Utah

(Settled in 1857)

Takes its name from the Nootka word "chamas," which through a series of changes became "camass," a word for several plants whose bulbs were a staple food for Native Americans of the western United States. In a broader sense, the word designates "a small grassy plain among hills," a good description of the topography of this region. It was first called Rhoades Valley, for Thomas Rhoades, an early settler; later renamed Kamas Prairie; and finally Kamas.

Sources

• Location and elevation: USGS
• Founding and name: Adapted from Origins of Utah Place Names
• Population and households: 2020 Census
• Hardiness zone: USDA
• Annual precipitation: PRISM
• Area codes and phone prefixes: NANPA