Casa Grande ( O'odham: ''Wainom Wo:g'') is a city in Pinal County, approximately halfway between Phoenix and

Tucson Tucson (; ; ) is a city in Pima County, Arizona, United States, and its county seat. It is the second-most populous city in Arizona, behind Phoenix, Arizona, Phoenix, with a population of 542,630 in the 2020 United States census. The Tucson ...

, in the

U.S. state In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its so ...

Arizona Arizona is a U.S. state, state in the Southwestern United States, Southwestern region of the United States, sharing the Four Corners region of the western United States with Colorado, New Mexico, and Utah. It also borders Nevada to the nort ...

. According to the 2020 census, the population of the city was 55,653. It is named after the

Casa Grande Ruins National Monument Casa Grande Ruins National Monument ( or ''Sivan Vahki'') is a United States national monument preserving a group of Classic Period () Hohokam structures in Coolidge, Arizona, northeast of Casa Grande. History of the area The national mon ...

which is actually located in Coolidge. ''Casa Grande'' is Spanish for "big house". Among resident English speakers, there is no consensus on how to pronounce the city's name.

History

Casa Grande was founded in 1879 during the Arizona mining boom due to the presence of the

Southern Pacific Railroad The Southern Pacific (or Espee from the railroad initials) was an American Railroad classes#Class I, Class I Rail transport, railroad network that existed from 1865 to 1996 and operated largely in the Western United States. The system was oper ...

. In January 1880, the community of Terminus, meaning "end-of-the-line," was established with just five residents and three buildings."Casa Grande History"
, retrieved September 10, 2013 In September 1880, railroad executives renamed the settlement Casa Grande after nearby

Hohokam Hohokam was a culture in the Indigenous peoples of the North American Southwest, North American Southwest in what is now part of south-central Arizona, United States, and Sonora, Mexico. It existed between 300 and 1500 CE, with cultural p ...

ruins with the same name. Casa Grande grew slowly and suffered several setbacks both in 1886 and 1893 when fires ravaged the town, destroying all wooden housing structures within. When the mining boom slowed in the 1890s, the town was nearly abandoned, but, with the advent of agriculture, the town survived and was incorporated in 1915. One of the founding fathers of Casa Grande was Thompson Rodney Peart. Notable fixtures of Casa Grande like Peart Road, Peart Park, and the Peart Center are named after him. Casa Grande was home to one of the Farm Security Administration's collective farm societies. From 1942 to 1945, a Japanese-American relocation camp known as the Gila River War Relocation Center was set up outside of Casa Grande. Notable internees included future actor Pat Morita and baseball player Kenichi Zenimura who constructed a baseball field and set up a league in the relocation camp. Casa Grande is home to the Francisco Grande Hotel & Golf Resort, a former

spring training Spring training, also called spring camp, is the preseason of the Summer Professional Baseball Leagues, such as Major League Baseball (MLB), and it is a series of practices and exhibition games preceding the start of the regular season. Spri ...

location for the

San Francisco Giants The San Francisco Giants are an American professional baseball team based in San Francisco. The Giants compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League West, West Div ...

. The Giants' then owner, Horace Stoneham, began developing the property in 1959. The first exhibition game was played in Casa Grande in 1961 with

Willie Mays Willie Howard Mays Jr. (May 6, 1931 – June 18, 2024), nicknamed "the Say Hey Kid", was an American professional baseball center fielder who played 23 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB). Widely regarded as one of the greatest players of ...

hitting a

home run In baseball, a home run (abbreviated HR) is scored when the Baseball (ball), ball is hit in such a way that the batting (baseball), batter is able to circle the bases and reach home plate safe (baseball), safely in one play without any error ( ...

. The Giants no longer play at Francisco Grande, but the baseball bat and ball shaped pool remains in memory of the past ballgames. During the

Cold War The Cold War was a period of global Geopolitics, geopolitical rivalry between the United States (US) and the Soviet Union (USSR) and their respective allies, the capitalist Western Bloc and communist Eastern Bloc, which lasted from 1947 unt ...

, Casa Grande was the location of the Casa Grande Photogrammetric Test Range. These targets consisted of concrete arrows located in and to the south of the city which calibrated aerial cartographic cameras. Casa Grande has also played a prominent role in semi-professional and collegiate baseball. The Casa Grande Cotton Kings, founded in 1948, qualified to play in the National Baseball Congress World Series ten straight times by winning Arizona state championships in the 1940s and 1950s and were reactivated in the 2000s. They are now members of the Pacific Southwest Baseball League.

Geography

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 ...

, Casa Grande has a total area of , all land.

Climate

Casa Grande has a hot desert climate (

Köppen climate classification The Köppen climate classification divides Earth climates into five main climate groups, with each group being divided based on patterns of seasonal precipitation and temperature. The five main groups are ''A'' (tropical), ''B'' (arid), ''C'' (te ...

BWh), typical for the

Sonoran Desert The Sonoran Desert () is a hot desert and ecoregion in North America that covers the northwestern Mexican states of Sonora, Baja California, and Baja California Sur, as well as part of the Southwestern United States (in Arizona and California). It ...

. The city experiences long, extremely hot summers and brief winters consisting of mild afternoons and chilly evenings. Along with the rest of southern Arizona, the community is prone to

dust storms A dust storm, also called a sandstorm, is a meteorological phenomenon common in arid and semi-arid regions. Dust storms arise when a gust front or other strong wind blows loose sand and dirt from a dry surface. Fine particles are transported ...

and, in the summer months, is affected by the North American Monsoon which brings high winds and heavy rain.

Demographics

During the 2010 census, there were 48,571 people, 22,400 households, and 6,547 families residing in the city. The population density was . There were 11,041 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 49.9% non-Hispanic

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 ...

, 4.27%

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 ...

, 4.91% Native American, 1.17% Asian, 0.10%

Pacific Islander Pacific Islanders, Pasifika, Pasefika, Pacificans, or rarely Pacificers are the peoples of the list of islands in the Pacific Ocean, Pacific Islands. As an ethnic group, ethnic/race (human categorization), racial term, it is used to describe th ...

, 21.09% from other races, and 3.56% from two or more races while 39.13% 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 8,920 households, out of which 37.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 52.3% 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, 15.1% had a female householder with no husband present, and 26.6% were non-families. 21.7% of all households were made up of individuals, and 8.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.80 and the average family size was 3.24. In the city, the population was spread out, with 30.9% under the age of 18, 9.3% from 18 to 24, 26.4% from 25 to 44, 19.6% from 45 to 64, and 13.8% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 32 years. For every 100 females, there were 97.1 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 91.5 males. The median income for a household in the city was $36,212, and the median income for a family was $40,827. Males had a median income of $34,858 versus $23,533 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 city was $15,917. About 12.4% of families and 16.0% 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 21.2% of those under age 18 and 12.3% of those age 65 or over.

Economy

Casa Grande-Southern Pacific Railroad Depot-1925

The economy of Casa Grande was historically based on rural, agricultural industries, such as cotton and dairy farms. Over time, the city has become home to many Phoenix or Tucson urbanites who own homes in Casa Grande. Most residents either commute north to work in the Phoenix metropolitan area, or to the south, to work in Tucson. This trend has contributed to growth in the service industry of Casa Grande. Many new businesses such as restaurants, gas stations, and retail outlets are opening throughout the city in order to keep up with demand from the growing population. A retail shopping mall operates in southern Casa Grande. Phase one of The Promenade at Casa Grande opened on November 16, 2007. Built by Westcor and the Pederson Group, it is similar to Desert Ridge Marketplace (an outdoor shopping center in northeast Phoenix). The Promenade at Casa Grande is an outdoor mall, built on a patch of desert, and contains nearly a million square feet. An additional $11 million was spent by the city to fund the reconstruction of the Florence Blvd./I-10 freeway overpass. Ehrmann Commonwealth Dairy operates a major dairy processing facility in the town that opened in 2013 and employs about 110 people.

Top Employers

According to Casa Grande's 2020 Comprehensive Annual Financial Report, the top employers in the city are:

Electric Cars

On November 29, 2016, officials from the state and the

Lucid Motors Lucid Group, Inc., is an American automotive and technology company that manufactures electric vehicles and supplies advanced electric vehicle powertrain systems. The company is headquartered in Newark, California. In September 2021, the compa ...

car company announced a $700 million manufacturing plant would be constructed in Casa Grande that would employ up to 2,000 workers by 2022. The Lucid car manufacturing plant opened in November 2020.

News

* Casa Grande Valley Newspapers Inc.

Fire Department

The Casa Grande Fire Department (CGFD), ISO Class 2, provides fire protection and emergency medical services to the City of Casa Grande. The Casa Grande Fire Department operates out of 4 Fire Stations and an Administrative Headquarters at the Public Safety Building. CGFD is serving 109.65 square miles with over 60,000 residents. Dave Kean is the Fire Chief for the City of Casa Grande. In 2021-22 Chief Kean led the fight for the City to form their own ambulance transportation service and obtain a “Certificate of Necessity” from the Arizona Department of Health. This allowed the CGFD to expand by 26 members. Just prior to that he had added a full-time Ladder company (12 new firefighters) to the Department. In 2023, Chief Kean got funding for a new Fire Station 503 at a cost over $13.4 million dollars. This is the first new fire facility in over 14 years.

Library

The Casa Grande Public Library provides the standard services of access to reading materials, as well as some special services, including a volunteer reading club for elementary school, internet access, and a

talking book An audiobook (or a talking book) is a recording of a book or other work being read out loud. A reading of the complete text is described as "unabridged", while readings of shorter versions are abridgements. Spoken audio has been available in sch ...

program. The main library is , provides 75,000 volumes, and provides 38 public access computers with internet access. The Vista Grande Public Library, a branch of the Casa Grande Library System, opened in the summer of 2009.

City Court

The Casa Grande Municipal Court is the judicial branch of Casa Grande City government and accepted 6,609 filings, conducted 2,486 arraignments and held 156 civil, criminal and jury trials in Fiscal Year 2006–2007.

Notable people

* David Spade, actor, comedian * Mike Candrea, UA Softball Coach, Olympic Softball Coach * Eduardo C. Corral, award-winning poet and teacher * Fred Enke, University of Arizona basketball, football and golf coach * Fred Enke, Jr., professional football quarterback and cotton farmer *

Pablo Francisco Pablo Ridson Francisco (born January 4, 1974) is an American comedian, actor and writer. He started his career doing Improvisational comedy, improv in Tempe, Arizona. Career In the 1990s, he appeared on ''MADtv'' as a featured player. His stan ...

, stand-up comedian * Pedro E. Guerrero, photographer *

Joe Jonas Joseph Adam Jonas (born August 15, 1989) is an American singer, songwriter, and actor. He rose to fame as a member of the pop rock band the Jonas Brothers, alongside his brothers Kevin Jonas, Kevin and Nick Jonas, Nick. The group released their ...

, pop singer, musician, actor, and dancer * Joy Oladokun, singer-songwriter * Lewis Storey, singer-songwriter * Michael Sullivan, stonemason who built many structures of fieldstone in Casa Grande * Alex Torres, guitarist

Education

Most of Casa Grande is in the Casa Grande Elementary School District, while a portion is in the Toltec Elementary School District. All of Casa Grande is in the Casa Grande Union High School District. The following schools are located in Casa Grande. Public Elementary * Cottonwood Elementary School * Saguaro Elementary School * Center for Online and Innovative Learning (COIL) * Ironwood Elementary School * Cholla Elementary School * Palo Verde Elementary School * Mesquite Elementary School * Desert Willow Elementary School * McCartney Ranch Elementary School Public Middle School * Casa Grande Middle School * Cactus Middle School * Villago Middle School Public High School * Casa Grande Union High School * PACE (Pathways Accelerating Career Experiences) * Vista Grande High School Charter High School * Pinnacle Charter High School * Casa Verde High School *

ASU Preparatory Academy, Casa Grande ASU Preparatory Academy, Casa Grande is a University-preparatory school in the Arizona State University Preparatory Academy, located in Casa Grande, Arizona, United States. The ASU Preparatory Academy, Casa Grande High School is part of a serie ...

* Mission Heights Preparatory High School * PPEP TEC High School Charter Schools * Grande Innovation Academy * Legacy Traditional School Private * St Anthony of Padua Catholic School (Private) * Logos Christian Academy (Private) Colleges * Central Arizona College * Northern Arizona University (Extended Learning Campus)

Transportation

These highways serve Casa Grande. * Interstate 8 *

Interstate 10 Interstate 10 (I-10) is the southernmost transcontinental highway in the Interstate Highway System of the United States. It is the fourth-longest Interstate in the country at , following I-90, I-80, and I-40. It was part of the origina ...

the proposed Interstate 11 would begin in Casa Grande and end in

Las Vegas, Nevada Las Vegas, colloquially referred to as Vegas, is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Nevada and the county seat of Clark County. The Las Vegas Valley metropolitan area is the largest within the greater Mojave Desert, and second-l ...

Arizona State Route 287 * Arizona 84

Arizona State Route 84 * Arizona 387

Arizona State Route 387 The City of Coolidge operates Central Arizona Regional Transit (CART), which provides transportation between

Florence Florence ( ; ) is the capital city of the Italy, Italian region of Tuscany. It is also the most populated city in Tuscany, with 362,353 inhabitants, and 989,460 in Metropolitan City of Florence, its metropolitan province as of 2025. Florence ...

, Coolidge, Central Arizona College and Casa Grande. Greyhound serves Casa Grande from a stop in Eloy. The closest major airports to Casa Grande are Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport and

Tucson International Airport Tucson International Airport is a civil-military airport owned by the City of Tucson south of downtown Tucson, in Pima County, Arizona, United States. It is the second busiest airport in Arizona, after Phoenix Sky Harbor International Air ...

. Casa Grande Shuttle provides an airport shuttle to Sky Harbor.

References

External links

City of Casa Grande — Official site

Casa Grande Valley Historical Society — Official site

originally at the ''

Arizona Daily Star The ''Arizona Daily Star'' is an American daily newspaper based in Tucson, Arizona, and owned by Lee Enterprises. It serves Tucson and surrounding districts of Southern Arizona in the United States. History 1877–1925 L. C. Hughes was the ...

'' {{authority control Cities in Arizona Phoenix metropolitan area Cities in Pinal County, Arizona Populated places established in 1879 Populated places in the Sonoran Desert Mining communities in Arizona