Yuma ( coc, Yuum) is a city in and the

county seat A county seat is an administrative center, seat of government, or capital city of a county or civil parish. The term is in use in Canada, China, Hungary, Romania, Taiwan, and the United States. The equivalent term shire town is used in the US ...

of Yuma County,

Arizona Arizona ( ; nv, Hoozdo Hahoodzo ; ood, Alĭ ṣonak ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southwestern United States. It is the list of U.S. states and territories by area, 6th largest and the list of U.S. states and territories by population, 14 ...

, United States. The city's population was 93,064 at the 2010 census, up from the 2000 census population of 77,515. Yuma is the principal city of the Yuma, Arizona,

Metropolitan Statistical Area In the United States, a metropolitan statistical area (MSA) is a geographical region with a relatively high population density at its core and close economic ties throughout the area. Such regions are neither legally Incorporated town, incorporate ...

, which consists of Yuma County. According to the

United States Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau (USCB), officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the U.S. Federal Statistical System, responsible for producing data about the American people and economy An economy is an area of th ...

, the 2020 estimated population of the Yuma MSA is 203,247. According to Guinness World Records, Yuma is the "Sunniest City on Earth," promising "sunshine and warm weather at least 91% of the year." Anywhere from 70,000 to over 85,000 out-of-state visitors make Yuma their winter residence. Yuma's weather also makes it an agricultural powerhouse, growing over 175 types of crops, the largest of which is lettuce. Yuma County provides 90% of all leafy vegetables grown from November to March in the United States. Yuma is also known for its large military population due to several military bases, including the Marine Corps Air Station. Yuma is in the state's southwest corner, in the Sonoran Desert, Yuma Desert sub-region.

History

The area's first settlers for thousands of years were Native American cultures and historic tribes. Their descendants now occupy the

Cocopah The Cocopah ( Cocopah: Xawitt Kwñchawaay) are Native Americans who live in Baja California, Mexico, and Arizona, United States. In the United States, Cocopah people belong to the federally recognized Cocopah Tribe of Arizona. Name The C ...

and Quechan reservations. In 1540, Spanish colonial expeditions under Hernando de Alarcón and

Melchior Díaz Melchior is the name traditionally given to one of the biblical Magi appearing in the Gospel of Matthew. There are many notable people with this name, or close variations. As a first name * Melchior Anderegg (1828–1914), Swiss mountain guide * ...

visited the area and immediately recognized the natural crossing of the Colorado River as an ideal spot for a city. The Colorado River narrows to slightly under wide in one area. Military expeditions that crossed the Colorado River at the Yuma Crossing include Juan Bautista de Anza (1774), the Mormon Battalion (1848) and the California Column (1862). During and after the California Gold Rush to the late 1870s, the Yuma Crossing was known for its ferry crossings for the Southern Emigrant Trail. This was considered the gateway to California, as it was one of the few natural spots where travelers could cross the otherwise very wide Colorado River.

First settlements

Following the United States establishing Fort Yuma, two towns developed one mile downriver. The one on the California side was called Jaeger City, named after the owner of Jaeger's Ferry, which crossed the river there. It was for a time the larger of the two, with the Butterfield Overland Mail office and station, two blacksmiths, a hotel, two stores, and other dwellings., p.15 The other was called Colorado City. Developed on the south side of the river in what is now Arizona by speculator Charles Poston, it was the site of the custom house. When started, it was just north of the border between Mexican-ruled Sonora, Mexico and California. After the Gadsden Purchase by the United States, the town bordered on the Territory of New Mexico. This area was designated as the Territory of Arizona in 1863. The Colorado City site at the time was duly registered in San Diego; both banks of the Colorado River just below its confluence with the Gila were recognized as being within the jurisdiction of California. The county of San Diego collected taxes from there for many years. From 1853 a smaller settlement, Arizona City, grew up on the high ground across from the fort and was organized under the name of its post office in 1858. It had adobe dwellings, two stores and two saloons. Colorado City and Jaeger City were almost completely destroyed by the

Great Flood of 1862 The Great Flood of 1862 was the largest flood in the recorded history of Oregon, Nevada, and California, occurring from December 1861 to January 1862. It was preceded by weeks of continuous rains and snows in the very high elevations that began in ...

and had to be rebuilt on higher ground. At that time Colorado City became part of Arizona City. It took the name Yuma in 1873.

Early development

From 1854, Colorado City was the major steamboat stop for traffic up and down the Colorado River. After the 1862 flood, it became part of Arizona City. The steamboats transported passengers and equipment for the various mines and military outposts along the Colorado; Colorado City was the terminus of wagon traffic up the Gila River into New Mexico Territory. They offloaded the cargo from ships at the mouth of the Colorado River at Robinson's Landing and from 1864 at Port Isabel. From 1864, the Yuma Quartermaster Depot, today a state historic park, supplied all forts in present-day Arizona, as well as large parts of Colorado and New Mexico. After Arizona became a separate territory, Yuma became the county seat for Yuma County in 1871, replacing

La Paz La Paz (), officially known as Nuestra Señora de La Paz (Spanish pronunciation: ), is the seat of government of the Bolivia, Plurinational State of Bolivia. With an estimated 816,044 residents as of 2020, La Paz is the List of Bolivian cities ...

, the first seat. The

Southern Pacific Railroad The Southern Pacific (or Espee from the railroad initials- SP) was an American Class I railroad network that existed from 1865 to 1996 and operated largely in the Western United States. The system was operated by various companies under the ...

bridged the river in 1877, and acquired George Alonzo Johnson's Colorado Steam Navigation Company, the only steamboat company on the river. Yuma became the new base of navigation on the river, ending the need for Port Isabel, which was abandoned in 1879. The warehouses and shipyard there were moved to Yuma.

Geography

Yuma is near the borders of

California California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the ...

to the west and

Mexico Mexico ( Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guate ...

to the south, and just west of the Gila River's confluence with the

Colorado Colorado (, other variants) is a state in the Mountain states, Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It encompasses most of the Southern Rocky Mountains, as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the wes ...

. The city is approximately from the Gulf of California (Sea of Cortez), a branch of the Pacific. According to the

, the city has a total area of , of which is land and (0.07%) is water.

Climate

Yuma is noted for its weather extremes. Of any populated place in the contiguous United States, Yuma is the driest, the sunniest, and the least humid, has the lowest frequency of precipitation, and has the highest number of days per year—175—with a daily maximum temperature of or higher. Yuma features a hot desert climate (

Köppen climate classification The Köppen climate classification is one of the most widely used climate classification systems. It was first published by German-Russian climatologist Wladimir Köppen (1846–1940) in 1884, with several later modifications by Köppen, nota ...

''BWh''), with extremely hot summers and warm winters. Atmospheric humidity is usually very low, except during what are called "

Gulf surge A Gulf of California moisture surge, or simply gulf surge, is a meteorological event where a pulse of high humidity air is pushed up the Gulf of California. Gulf surges bring moisture to southern Arizona during the North American Monsoon. Prior to ...

s", when a maritime tropical air mass from the Gulf of California is drawn northward, usually in connection with the summer monsoon or the passage of a tropical storm to the south. The sun is said to shine during about 90% of the daylight hours, making Yuma one of the sunniest places in the world. The city receives the most recorded mean sunshine of anywhere on Earth, although the equipment used by the United States tends to provide higher sunshine estimates than the traditional

Campbell–Stokes recorder The Campbell–Stokes recorder (sometimes called a Stokes sphere) is a type of sunshine recorder. It was invented by John Francis Campbell in 1853 and modified in 1879 by Sir George Gabriel Stokes. The original design by Campbell consisted of ...

. On average, Yuma receives of rain annually. Even in the wettest year of 2005, only fell. The driest year at Yuma Airport was 2007, with only recorded. On average, the wettest months of the year are during the monsoon months of August and September, and December, when moisture from winter storms arrives from the Pacific Ocean. June is the driest month, with drought virtually absolute. In 1995, Yuma recorded its all-time high temperature of . The lowest recorded temperature was in the Yuma-Mesa area in January 2007. The temperature fell to for approximately two hours, harming many crops grown in and around Yuma. Citrus suffered the most, particularly the lemon crop. According to an Arizona Department of Agriculture report in February 2007, there was a 75% to 95% loss of crop and trees. On average (according to the 1991-2020 climate period), the temperature reaches freezing point in one year in fifteen, and there are 117 days per year during which the temperature reaches or exceeds , usually from April through October. During July and August, the temperature fails to reach on only one and two days on average, respectively. In 1997, the desert city sustained a full tropical storm after

Hurricane Nora The name Nora has been used for eighteen tropical cyclones and one extratropical cyclone worldwide: ten in the Western Pacific, seven in the Eastern Pacific, and one each in the Australian Region and Western Europe (Denmark). In the Western Pacifi ...

made landfall at the mouth of the Colorado River and quickly moved due north along it. This rare event cut power to 12,000 customers in Yuma, and dropped of rain at

Marine Corps Air Station Yuma Marine Corps Air Station Yuma or MCAS Yuma is a United States Marine Corps air station. It is the home of multiple squadrons of F-35B Lightning IIs of the 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing, Marine Aviation Weapons and Tactics Squadron 1 (MAWTS-1), Mar ...

. The last time a hurricane had hit near Yuma was in mid-August 1977, when similar rainfalls were recorded. Snow in Yuma has only been recorded on December 12, 1932, when a light coating of snow covered the city for the first and only time in its history. A few flakes fell in January 1937 and December 1967, mixed with rain.

Demographics

Yuma first appeared on the 1860 U.S. Census as the village of "Arizonia" (Arizona City) in what was then Arizona County, New Mexico Territory (see Arizona City (Yuma, Arizona) for details). It returned as Arizona City in 1870 and then became Yuma in 1873. On April 12, 1902, the village of Yuma was incorporated as a town. It formally incorporated as a city on April 7, 1914. As of the

census A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording and calculating information about the members of a given population. This term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common censuses in ...

of 2010, there were 93,064 people. There were 38,626 housing units in Yuma city, 79.5% of which were occupied housing units. The racial makeup of the city was 68.8%

White White is the lightness, lightest color and is achromatic (having no hue). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully diffuse reflection, reflect and scattering, scatter all the ...

, 3.2%

Black Black is a color which results from the absence or complete absorption of visible light. It is an achromatic color, without hue, like white and grey. It is often used symbolically or figuratively to represent darkness. Black and white ha ...

African American African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American ...

, 1.8% Native American, 1.9% Asian, 0.2% Pacific Islander, and 4.5% from two or more races. 54.8% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. As of the

of 2000, there were 77,515 people, 26,649 households, and 19,613 families residing in the city. The population density was . There were 34,475 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 68.3%

, 3.2%

, 1.5% Native American, 1.5% Asian, 0.2% Pacific Islander, 21.4% from other races, and 3.9% from two or more races. 45.7% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. There were 26,649 households, out of which 38.8% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 56.6% were

married couples Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognized union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children, and between t ...

living together, 13.1% had a female householder with no husband present, and 26.4% were non-families. 21.7% of all households were made up of individuals, and 9.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.79 and the average family size was 3.27. In the city, the population was spread out, with 29.6% under the age of 18, 11.9% from 18 to 24, 27.1% from 25 to 44, 17.5% from 45 to 64, and 13.9% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 31 years. For every 100 females, there were 99.1 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 97.2 males. According to the 2006 American Community Survey estimate, the median income for a household in the city was $39,885, and the median income for a family was $41,588. Males had a median income of $35,440 versus $27,035 for females. The

per capita income Per capita income (PCI) or total income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. It is calculated by dividing the area's total income by its total population. Per capita i ...

for the city was $18,393. About 14.1% of families and 16.9% 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 23.4% of those under age 18 and 13.9% of those age 65 or over. High unemployment remains an issue in Yuma. Citing April 2014 data, the

Bureau of Labor Statistics The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) is a unit of the United States Department of Labor. It is the principal fact-finding agency for the U.S. government in the broad field of labor economics and statistics and serves as a principal agency of t ...

ranked Yuma as having the highest unemployment rate in the United States at 23.8 percent, above the 21.6 percent in El Centro, California. Yuma's agricultural workforce, which adjusts to the picking season, is cited by the Arizona Department of Commerce as the reason for the apparent high unemployment.

Economy

The Yuma Metropolitan Statistical Area has the highest unemployment rate in the United States as of 2018 at 20.9%. A large percentage of the work force is employed seasonally in agriculture, contributing to apparent unemployment. Yuma is colloquially referred to as the "Winter Lettuce Capital of the World".

Top employers

According to the city's 2019 ''Comprehensive Annual Financial Report'', the top employers in the Yuma Metropolitan Statistical Area in 2018 were: Other large employers include Bose,

Dole Dole may refer to: Places * Dole, Ceredigion, Wales * Dole, Idrija, Slovenia * Dole, Jura, France ** Arrondissement of Dole * Dole (Kladanj), a village at the entity line of Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina-Republika Srpska * Dole, Ljubuški, ...

Fresh Vegetables and Shaw Industries.

Arts and culture

Yuma contains the historical Yuma Territorial Prison, the Yuma Quartermaster Depot State Historic Park (formerly known as the Yuma Crossing Historic Park), and a historic downtown area. Yuma is an ''Arizona Main Street City.'' Because of budget cutbacks at the state level, Arizona State Parks no longer operates the Territorial Prison and Quartermaster Depot. They are now operated by the Yuma Crossing National Heritage Area and the City of Yuma. The Yuma Visitors' Bureau oversees the Welcome Center at the Quartermaster Depot and is the official visitors' center for the Yuma Community. Near Yuma are the Kofa Mountain Range and wildlife refuge, Martinez and Mittry Lakes, and the Algodones Dunes. The city is the location of the

, which conducts an annual air show and many large-scale military exercises. There is also the Yuma Proving Ground, an Army base that tests new military equipment. Yuma Proving Ground is also home to the Special Operations Free Fall School, which provides training in free-fall parachute operations to Special Forces units in all branches of service, as well as those of other nations. The Colorado River runs along the north and west side of town, serving as the border between Arizona and California. Yuma is an important station for trucking industry movement of goods between California, Arizona and Mexico. The Rialto movie theater once owned a Kilgen pipe organ, one of the most expensive pipe organs to have been made. Originally played as accompaniment to silent films, it has been moved to the Yuma Theatre. Every February residents and visitors enjoy the annual rodeo, the Yuma Jaycees Silver Spur Rodeo. A parade opens the events. Cowboys and cowgirls from all over the country compete in the festivities. The Yuma County Fair takes place annually in the spring at the fairgrounds in Yuma. On New Year's Eve 2018, the town of Yuma dropped a head of iceberg lettuce from the town's water tower, to symbolize the beginning of the new year, much like the ball drop in

New York City's New is an adjective referring to something recently made, discovered, or created. New or NEW may refer to: Music * New, singer of K-pop group The Boyz Albums and EPs * ''New'' (album), by Paul McCartney, 2013 * ''New'' (EP), by Regurgitator, ...

Times Square. This is known as the "Iceberg Drop".

Sports

Yuma has a soccer-specific stadium, Desert Sun Stadium, which hosted Frontera United of the United Premier Soccer League from 2015 to 2017. Previously a baseball facility, Desert Sun Stadium was home to the

Yuma Desert Rats The Yuma Desert Rats were a professional baseball team based in Yuma, Arizona, in the United States. From the 2005 season to the 2011 season, they were known as the Yuma Scorpions and played their home games at Desert Sun Stadium at the Ray Kroc ...

of the North American League and site of home games of four teams for the Arizona Winter League. The San Diego Padres used the field as a spring training facility from 1969 until 1993 and a Japanese baseball team, the Yakult Swallows, used the field for spring training from 1995 to 2015. Many local club sports exist in the area as well, including the Yuma Sidewinders Rugby Football Club. The rugby team participates in the Division III Arizona Men's

Rugby league Rugby league football, commonly known as just rugby league and sometimes football, footy, rugby or league, is a full-contact sport played by two teams of thirteen players on a rectangular field measuring 68 metres (75 yards) wide and 112 ...

, and travels throughout Arizona, California and Nevada, as well as playing home games in Yuma.

Government

Organization

The city of Yuma operates as a charter city under the Charter of the City of Yuma. The elected government of the city is the City Council which follows the mayor–council government system and whose members include:

Mayor

The Mayor of the City of Yuma acts as the

chief executive officer A chief executive officer (CEO), also known as a central executive officer (CEO), chief administrator officer (CAO) or just chief executive (CE), is one of a number of corporate executives charged with the management of an organization especial ...

of the city, and is elected for a period of four years. The mayor is elected from the city at large. The mayor has the following powers and responsibilities: act as an ex officio chairman of the city council (ensuring all ordinances thereof are enforced), call and preside over meetings, administer oaths and issue proclamations. The mayor is also recognized as the official head of the city by the courts and has the power to take command of the police and govern the city by proclamation during times of great danger.

City Council

The City of Yuma City Council is the governing body of the City of Yuma and is vested with all powers of legislation in municipal affairs. The council is composed of six council members elected from the city at large for four-year terms, as well as the Mayor of Yuma. A deputy mayor is also elected by the Council who shall act as Mayor during the temporary absence of the mayor. Karen Watts became the most recent Deputy Mayor in 2020. The current council members are Gary Knight, Leslie McClendon, Chris Morris, Ema Lea Shoop, Mike Shelton, and Karen Watts. The next election is the August 2022 Primary for the three city council seats that are currently held by Watts, Knight, and McClendon. Former Deputy Mayor Karen Watts announced her bid for Mayor in 2022.

City Administrator

The City Council appoints a

city administrator A city is a human settlement of notable size.Goodall, B. (1987) ''The Penguin Dictionary of Human Geography''. London: Penguin.Kuper, A. and Kuper, J., eds (1996) ''The Social Science Encyclopedia''. 2nd edition. London: Routledge. It can be de ...

who acts as the chief administrative officer of the city. The city administrator is directly responsible to the City Council for the administration of all city affairs placed in his charge by the City Charter, or by ordinances passed by the council. Some of the administrator's duties include: see that all laws and provisions of the City Charter are faithfully executed, prepare and submit the annual budget and capital program to the City Council and keep the City Council fully advised as to the financial condition and future needs of the city.

Education

The city is zoned to the

Yuma Union High School District Yuma Union High School District (YUHSD) is a high school district headquartered in Yuma, Arizona. Feeder elementary school districts include Crane Elementary School District, Gadsden Elementary School District, Somerton Elementary School Dist ...

. Yuma has five public high schools:

Yuma Union High School Yuma High School (often referred to simply as Yuma High) is the oldest high school in Yuma, Arizona. History The school was established in 1909. Yuma High's mascot came when the original school building was destroyed by fire in 1910. The school ...

Kofa High School Kofa High School is a high school in Yuma, Arizona. It is a part of the Yuma Union High School District. It was the second high school to be established in the community. The school shares its name with the Kofa Mountains, which were named for ...

, Cibola High School,

Gila Ridge High School Gila Ridge High School is a public high school in Yuma, Arizona, United States. Gila Ridge is 1 of 7 high schools in the Yuma Union High School District. It opened to freshman and sophomores for the 2007–08 school year. The school's mascot are ...

, Vista Alternative High School; and the private Yuma Catholic High School and Calvary Baptist School. Yuma also has four charter high schools: AZTEC High School, Desert View Middle & High School, Harvest Preparatory Academy, and YPIC Charter High School. Yuma has two main elementary school districts, District One and Crane District, which include several schools as well as junior high schools. Yuma has four charter elementary school: AmeriSchools Academy North and South, Harvest Preparatory Academy, and Desert View Academy. Additionally, Yuma has six private elementary schools: Yuma Lutheran School, Yuma Adventist Christian School, Immaculate Conception School
St. Francis of Assisi School
Calvary Baptist School and Southwestern Christian School. Arizona Western College is Yuma's community college, serving primarily as a choice for transfer students and those with shorter career goals. All three public state universities offer undergraduate and graduate degree programs at the AWC Yuma campus.

Northern Arizona University Northern Arizona University (NAU) is a public research university based in Flagstaff, Arizona. It was founded in 1899 as the final public university established in the Arizona Territory, 13 years before Arizona was admitted as the 48th state. ...

has a branch campus,

Arizona State University Arizona State University (Arizona State or ASU) is a public research university in the Phoenix metropolitan area. Founded in 1885 by the 13th Arizona Territorial Legislature, ASU is one of the largest public universities by enrollment in t ...

operates an ASU Local site, and the

University of Arizona The University of Arizona (Arizona, U of A, UArizona, or UA) is a public land-grant research university in Tucson, Arizona. Founded in 1885 by the 13th Arizona Territorial Legislature, it was the first university in the Arizona Territory. ...

has a facility adjacent to the campus. Yuma is served by the Yuma County Library District which consists of a Main Library and several branches, including sites in Somerton, Wellton, Fortuna Foothills, and

San Luis San Luis (Spanish for "Saint Louis") may refer to: Places Argentina * San Luis Province * San Luis, Argentina, capital of San Luis Province Belize * San Luis, Belize, in Orange Walk District Colombia * San Luis, Antioquia, a town and municipality ...

. A new main state-of-the-art library is now open.

Media

* ''

Yuma Sun The ''Yuma Sun'' is a newspaper in Yuma, Arizona, United States. It has a circulation of 18,799.KECY-TV FOX, ABC, CW and Telemundo Affiliate * KYMA-DT NBC and CBS Affiliate *

KCFY KCFY (88.1 FM) is a radio station broadcasting a Christian hot AC format. Licensed to Yuma, Arizona Yuma ( coc, Yuum) is a city in and the county seat of Yuma County, Arizona, United States. The city's population was 93,064 at the 2010 cen ...

88.1 KCFY Christian Radio * KAWC-FM 88.9 FM Public Radio (Arizona Western College) *

KYRM KYRM (91.9 FM) is a radio station broadcasting a Spanish Religious format. Licensed to Yuma, Arizona Yuma ( coc, Yuum) is a city in and the county seat of Yuma County, Arizona, United States. The city's population was 93,064 at the 2010 c ...

91.9 FM Radio Manantial *

KLJZ KLJZ (93.1 FM, "Z93") is a commercial radio station in Yuma, Arizona, United States. KLJZ airs a hot adult contemporary format. History KVOY-FM was licensed in 1972 as a sister station of KVOY (AM), changing its calls to KJOK the next year. ...

93.1 FM Adult Contemporary Radio * KTTI 95.1 FM Country Radio * XHMIX 98.3 FM Top 40 Radio * KQSR 100.9 FM Adult Contemporary Radio * KCEC 104.5 FM Regional Mexican Radio * KBLU 560 AM Talk Radio * KOFA 1320 AM Public Radio (Arizona Western College) * KCYK 1400 AM Country Radio

Transportation

* Yuma County Area Transit * Yuma International Airport * Yuma Station (

Amtrak The National Railroad Passenger Corporation, doing business as Amtrak () , is the national passenger railroad company of the United States. It operates inter-city rail service in 46 of the 48 contiguous U.S. States and nine cities in Canada ...

) *

Greyhound Lines Greyhound Lines, Inc. (commonly known as simply Greyhound) operates the largest intercity bus service in North America, including Greyhound Mexico. It also operates charter bus services, Amtrak Thruway services, commuter bus services, and pac ...

, which utilizes a stop at 1245 S Castle Dome Avenue. * FlixBus, which utilizes a stop at 2931 E Gilla Ridge Road. * Camel Express to Quartzsite, Arizona *

Interstate 8 Interstate 8 (I-8) is an Interstate Highway in the southwestern United States. It runs from the southern edge of Mission Bay at Sunset Cliffs Boulevard in San Diego, California, almost at the Pacific Ocean, to the junction with I-10, ...

** Business Loop 8 * Arizona State Route 195

In popular culture

A number of movies have been shot in the Yuma area, including '' The Sheik'' (1921), '' Beau Geste'' (1926), '' Beau Geste'' (1939), '' Beau Geste'' (1966), ''

Gunga Din "Gunga Din" () is an 1890 poem by Rudyard Kipling set in British India. The poem is much remembered for its final line: "You're a better man than I am, Gunga Din". Background The poem is a rhyming narrative from the point of view of a Briti ...

'' (1939), '' Flight of the Phoenix'' (1965), '' Return of the Jedi'' (1983), ''

Spaceballs ''Spaceballs'' is a 1987 American space opera parody film co-written, produced and directed by Mel Brooks. It is primarily a parody of the original ''Star Wars'' trilogy, but also parodies other sci-fi films and popular franchises including ...

'' (1987), and '' Jarhead'' (2005). Dale Gribble lied about owning Gribble and Sons Propane located in Yuma on the animated sitcom FOX sitcom '' King of the Hill''. The eponymous town is in the 1953 Western story Three-Ten to Yuma, as well as the 1957 film '' 3:10 to Yuma'' and its 2007 remake, which were both based on the story. It was also the setting of the 1971 film Yuma.

Notable people

* Alex Barrett (born 1994), American football player *

Ryan Bedford Ryan Bedford (born October 20, 1986 in Yuma, Arizona) is an American speed skater who competed at the 2010 Winter Olympics )'' , nations = 82 , athletes = 2,626 , events = 86 in 7 sports (15 disciplines) , opening = February 12, 2010 , closi ...

, Olympic speed skater * Darrell Bevell, Jacksonville Jaguars' Offensive Coordinator * Charles Brinley, actor of the silent era * Cesar Chavez,

Mexican American Mexican Americans ( es, mexicano-estadounidenses, , or ) are Americans of full or partial Mexican heritage. In 2019, Mexican Americans comprised 11.3% of the US population and 61.5% of all Hispanic and Latino Americans. In 2019, 71% of Mexica ...

civil rights leader * Tom Childs, miner and rancher * Curley Culp, NFL player for Kansas City Chiefs, member of Pro Football Hall of Fame *

Jason DeCorse Jason DeCorse (born January 16, 1974 in Yuma, Arizona) is of the Quechan Indian nation and is currently living in Solana Beach, California. He is guitarist for the LA band The Icarus Line. In late 2007, he began performing and recording with Th ...

, guitarist for

The Icarus Line The Icarus Line was an American post-hardcore band from Los Angeles, California, active from 1998 until 2015. Career 1998–2003 The Icarus Line's roots started from a high school rock group, Kanker Sores. Tragedy struck the band in 1997, when ...

* Efrain Escudero, NCAA All-American wrestler, mixed martial artist, UFC fighter, and Ultimate Fighter Season 8 reality TV show champion *

Edgar Garcia Edgar is a commonly used English given name, from an Anglo-Saxon name ''Eadgar'' (composed of '' ead'' "rich, prosperous" and ''gar'' "spear"). Like most Anglo-Saxon names, it fell out of use by the later medieval period; it was, however, rev ...

, current mixed martial artist, and former UFC and WEC fighter * Irving Garcia, USL Pro player for Los Angeles Blues * Kelvin Gastelum, Ultimate Fighter 17 reality TV show champion, and UFC fighter in the

Middleweight Middleweight is a weight class in combat sports. Boxing Professional In professional boxing, the middleweight division is contested above and up to . Early boxing history is less than exact, but the middleweight designation seems to have be ...

division. * Bill Hudson, Alaska state legislator *

Ron Jessie Ron Ray Jessie (February 4, 1948 – January 13, 2006) was an American football wide receiver in the National Football League for the Detroit Lions, Los Angeles Rams and Buffalo Bills. His best season came in 1976 with the Los Angeles Rams, wh ...

, NFL wide receiver for

Los Angeles Rams The Los Angeles Rams are a professional American football team based in the Los Angeles metropolitan area. The Rams compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) West division. The Rams play ...

Robert Wilson Kennerly Robert Wilson Kennerly, Yuma politician and community leader, served on the Yuma City Council from 1962 to 1966, as Chairman of the Yuma County Board of Supervisors from 1976 to 1984, and on the Arizona Board of Pardons and Parole from 1984 to ...

, retired politician and community leader * Curtis Lee, singer * Jonathan Lines, businessman, former Chair of Arizona Republican Party *

Jose Maria Redondo Jose Maria Redondo (March 9, 1830 – June 18, 1878) was a Mexican-American entrepreneur, member of the Arizona Territorial Legislature, and mayor of Yuma, Arizona. Jose Maria Redondo is known as the father of the Yuma Territorial Prison The Yu ...

, entrepreneur and former mayor of Yuma * Mike Marshall, manager of Yuma Scorpions, won two World Series rings with Los Angeles Dodgers * Bengie Molina, Major League Baseball catcher for the Texas Rangers; played shortstop for Arizona Western College in 1991 and 1992 * Bobby Pacho, 1930s professional boxer and Welterweight world title contender * Bob Porter, major league baseball player *

DeForest Porter DeForest Porter (February 2, 1840 – February 17, 1889) was an American jurist and politician who served as Associate Justice of the Arizona Territorial Supreme Court from 1872 till 1882 and as Mayor of Phoenix, Arizona Territory from 1886 till ...

, mayor of Phoenix; Justice, Arizona Territory Supreme Court *

John Shanssey John Shanssey (March 23, 1848 – 1919?) was an American boxer, gambler, saloon owner, and Mayor of Yuma, Arizona. He fought Mike Donovan in a bout refereed by a young 21-year-old Wyatt Earp Wyatt Berry Stapp Earp (March 19, 1848 – Janua ...

, boxer, gambler, saloon owner, and Mayor of Yuma * Cain Velasquez, UFC heavyweight champion, All-American

collegiate wrestler Collegiate wrestling (also known as folkstyle wrestling) is the form of wrestling practiced at the college and university level in the United States. This style of wrestling, with some slight modifications, is also practiced at high school and ...

* Roger L. Worsley, educator; lived in Yuma, 1959 to 1963 *

Eduardo Franco Eduardo Franco may refer to: *Eduardo Franco (actor) Eduardo Franco is an American comedic actor. He is best known for his roles as Argyle in Netflix's popular sci-fi drama ''Stranger Things'', Theo in the coming of age feature film ''Booksmart ...

(born 1994), actor

Notes

References

External links

City of Yuma Website

Yuma Convention and Visitors Bureau Website

* {{authority control County seats in Arizona Arizona placenames of Native American origin Populated places established in 1864 Weather extremes of Earth Cities in Arizona Metropolitan areas of Arizona Communities in the Lower Colorado River Valley Populated places in the Sonoran Desert Port cities and towns in Arizona Cities in Yuma County, Arizona Arizona populated places on the Colorado River