Poston is an

unincorporated community An unincorporated area is a parcel of land that is not governed by a local general-purpose municipal corporation. (At p. 178.) They may be governed or serviced by an encompassing unit (such as a county) or another branch of the state (such as th ...

and

census-designated place A census-designated place (CDP) is a Place (United States Census Bureau), concentration of population defined by the United States Census Bureau for statistical purposes only. CDPs have been used in each decennial census since 1980 as the counte ...

(CDP) in La Paz County, Arizona, United States, in the Parker Valley. The population was 285 at the 2010 census, down from 389 in

2000 2000 was designated as the International Year for the Culture of Peace and the World Mathematics, Mathematical Year. Popular culture holds the year 2000 as the first year of the 21st century and the 3rd millennium, because of a tende ...

. During

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, Poston was the site of the Poston War Relocation Center, one of the United States' largest Japanese-American internment camps, where over 17,000 Japanese-Americans were held over a three-year period. The camp sites are now home to a monument dedicated to those interned there. Poston War Relocation Center Memorial Monument

Poston War Relocation Center Memorial Monument

Geography

Poston is located in western La Paz County, in the Parker Valley east of the

Colorado River The Colorado River () is one of the principal rivers (along with the Rio Grande) in the Southwestern United States and in northern Mexico. The river, the List of longest rivers of the United States (by main stem), 5th longest in the United St ...

, which forms the state border with

California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...

. Mohave Road runs through the community, leading north to Parker and south to Ehrenberg. The community lies within the boundaries of the Colorado River Indian Reservation. According to the

United States Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau, officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the Federal statistical system, U.S. federal statistical system, responsible for producing data about the American people and American economy, econ ...

, the Poston CDP has a total area of , all land.

Demographics

As of the

census A census (from Latin ''censere'', 'to assess') is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording, and calculating population information about the members of a given Statistical population, population, usually displayed in the form of stati ...

of 2000, there were 389 people, 101 households, and 92 families residing in the CDP. The population density was . There were 110 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the CDP was 31%

White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no chroma). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully (or almost fully) reflect and scatter all the visible wa ...

, 1%

Black Black is a color that results from the absence or complete absorption of visible light. It is an achromatic color, without chroma, like white and grey. It is often used symbolically or figuratively to represent darkness.Eva Heller, ''P ...

African American African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from an ...

, 17% Native American, 48% from other races, and 3% from two or more races. 77% of the population were

Hispanic The term Hispanic () are people, Spanish culture, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or broadly. In some contexts, Hispanic and Latino Americans, especially within the United States, "Hispanic" is used as an Ethnici ...

or Latino of any race. There were 101 households, out of which 66% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 66% were

married couples Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognised union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children (if any), and b ...

living together, 16% had a female householder with no husband present, and 9% were non-families. 7% of all households were made up of individuals, and 2% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 3.85 and the average family size was 3.92. In the CDP, the population was spread out, with 42% under the age of 18, 11% from 18 to 24, 30% from 25 to 44, 13% from 45 to 64, and 4% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 23 years. For every 100 females, there were 110.3 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 107.3 males. The median income for a household in the CDP was $17,625, and the median income for a family was $17,065. Males had a median income of $15,859 versus $13,125 for females. The

per capita income Per capita income (PCI) or average income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. In many countries, per capita income is determined using regular population surveys, such ...

for the CDP was $6,938. About 42% of families and 46% of the population were below the

poverty line The poverty threshold, poverty limit, poverty line, or breadline is the minimum level of income deemed adequate in a particular country. The poverty line is usually calculated by estimating the total cost of one year's worth of necessities for ...

, including 55% of those under age 18 and 18% of those age 65 or over.

References

External links

Poston
– ghosttowns.com {{authority control Ghost towns in Arizona Census-designated places in La Paz County, Arizona Census-designated places in Arizona Communities in the Lower Colorado River Valley Lower Colorado River Valley Populated places in the Sonoran Desert