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Clarkdale ( Yavapai: Saupkasuiva) is a town in
Yavapai County Yavapai County ( ) is a county near the center of the U.S. state of Arizona. As of the 2020 census, its population was 236,209, making it the fourth-most populous county in Arizona. The county seat is Prescott. Yavapai County comprises the Pr ...
,
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 ...
,
United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...
. The
Verde River The Verde River ( Yavapai: Haka'he:la) is a major tributary of the Salt River in the U.S. state of Arizona. It is about long and carries a mean flow of at its mouth. It is one of the largest perennial streams in Arizona. Description The ri ...
flows through the town as does Bitter Creek, an intermittent tributary of the river. According to th
2021 census
the population of the town was 4,419. Clarkdale, formerly a mining town, is now largely a retirement community and arts community.


History

Clarkdale was founded in 1912 as a company
smelter Smelting is a process of applying heat and a chemical reducing agent to an ore to extract a desired base metal product. It is a form of extractive metallurgy that is used to obtain many metals such as iron, copper, silver, tin, lead and zin ...
town by William A. Clark, for his copper mine in nearby
Jerome Jerome (; ; ; – 30 September 420), also known as Jerome of Stridon, was an early Christian presbyter, priest, Confessor of the Faith, confessor, theologian, translator, and historian; he is commonly known as Saint Jerome. He is best known ...
. Clarkdale was one of the most modern mining towns in the world, including telephone, telegraph, electrical, sewer and spring water services, and was an early example of a
planned community A planned community, planned city, planned town, or planned settlement is any community that was carefully planned from its inception and is typically constructed on previously undeveloped land. This contrasts with settlements that evolve ...
. The Clark Mansion, a local landmark, was built in the late 1920s by William Clark III, Clark's grandson and heir to the United Verde Copper Company. The structure, east of town across the Verde River near Pecks Lake, was destroyed in 2010 by a fire of "suspicious" origin. The town center and business district were built in Spanish Colonial style, and feature the Clark Memorial Clubhouse and Memorial Library, both still in use. The Clubhouse is listed on the
National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government's official United States National Register of Historic Places listings, list of sites, buildings, structures, Hist ...
. The entire original town site is also on the National Register as the Clarkdale Historic District. The mine and smelter closed in 1953, and Clarkdale entered hard times. Clarkdale was bought and sold by several different companies. In 1957, Clarkdale was incorporated as a town. The 1959 construction of the
Phoenix Cement Company The Phoenix Cement Company, headquartered in Phoenix, Arizona, Phoenix, operates a cement plant in Clarkdale, Arizona, Clarkdale in the U.S. state of Arizona. Built in 1959 by the American Cement Company to make cement for construction of the Gle ...
(now Salt River Materials Group) plant restored a modest prosperity to the community. Clarkdale was a segregated town for much of its early history. Mexican and Mexican-American laborers were restricted to living in Patio Town (see
neighborhoods A neighbourhood (Commonwealth English) or neighborhood (American English) is a geographically localized community within a larger town, city, suburb or rural area, sometimes consisting of a single street and the buildings lining it. Neighbourh ...
), with a separate swimming pool and park; the town swimming pool was marked "whites only." Additionally, Upper Clarkdale was designated for engineers and executives, while Lower Clarkdale was for the "working class." A portion of the Yavapai-Apache Nation is within Clarkdale's boundaries.


Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, Clarkdale has a total area of , of which is land and is water. Clarkdale is at above sea level at the confluence of Bitter Creek and the Verde River in Yavapai County, northern Arizona. The town is about southwest of Flagstaff and about north of Phoenix. Arizona Route 89A skirts the town on its south edge, while Historic Route 89A passes through Clarkdale. Nearby towns include Jerome, about to the southwest, and Cottonwood, about to the southeast. Tuzigoot National Monument, a
Sinagua The Sinagua were a pre-Columbian culture that occupied a large area in central Arizona from the Little Colorado River, near Flagstaff, Arizona, Flagstaff, to the Verde River, near Sedona, Arizona, Sedona, including the Verde Valley, area around ...
pueblo Pueblo refers to the settlements of the Pueblo peoples, Native American tribes in the Southwestern United States, currently in New Mexico, Arizona, and Texas. The permanent communities, including some of the oldest continually occupied settlement ...
ruin, is between Clarkdale and Cottonwood, Arizona, on land donated to the
National Park Service The National Park Service (NPS) is an List of federal agencies in the United States, agency of the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government, within the US Department of the Interior. The service manages all List ...
by Phelps Dodge in 1938. Sycamore Canyon Wilderness lies several miles north of town. Sycamore Creek, which flows through the wilderness, enters the Verde River canyon about north-northwest of Clarkdale.


Climate

The average temperature in Clarkdale in January is , and in July it is . The highest recorded temperature for the town was in 1994, and the lowest was in 1990. The wettest month is August, averaging about of precipitation. In the
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 ...
system, Clarkdale has a cool semi-arid climate, abbreviated ''BSk'' on climate maps. Little snow falls in Clarkdale. Between 1949 and 1977, Cottonwood, Clarkdale's close neighbor, received an average of about of snow a year. About half of this fell in December. The average snow depth in Cottonwood during the period of record was reported as zero.


Commerce

Th
Salt River Materials Group (formerly Phoenix Cement Co.
is Clarkdale's only major industry. The cement plant was built in 1959 to supply
Portland cement Portland cement is the most common type of cement in general use around the world as a basic ingredient of concrete, mortar (masonry), mortar, stucco, and non-specialty grout. It was developed from other types of hydraulic lime in England in th ...
for the construction of Glen Canyon Dam and is owned by the Salt River Pima-Maricopa Indian Community. Clarkdale is home to the Verde Canyon Railroad, a scenic excursion train that follows part of the route of the Verde Valley Railroad, constructed in 1911–12 to serve Clark's mine and smelter, to
Drake Drake may refer to: Animals and creatures * A male duck * Drake (mythology), a term related to and often synonymous with dragon People and fictional characters * Drake (surname), a list of people and fictional characters with the family ...
and Perkinsville, now ghost towns. Yavapai College also has a campus in Clarkdale. Several motion pictures have been shot in Clarkdale, including ''
Desert Fury ''Desert Fury'' is a 1947 American film noir crime film directed by Lewis Allen (director), Lewis Allen, and starring Lizabeth Scott, John Hodiak and Burt Lancaster. Its plot follows the daughter of a casino owner in a small Nevada town who become ...
'', ''
Midnight Run ''Midnight Run'' is a 1988 American action comedy film directed by Martin Brest from a screenplay by George Gallo. It stars Robert De Niro, Charles Grodin, Yaphet Kotto, John Ashton (actor), John Ashton, Dennis Farina and Joe Pantoliano. In the ...
'', '' Universal Soldier'', '' Benefit of the Doubt'' and ''
Brothel A brothel, strumpet house, bordello, bawdy house, ranch, house of ill repute, house of ill fame, or whorehouse is a place where people engage in Human sexual activity, sexual activity with prostitutes. For legal or cultural reasons, establis ...
''.


Arts

The Made in Clarkdale organization hosts an annual invitational art show each December in the Clark Memorial Clubhouse. and free concerts are offered in Clarkdale Park through the summer months. The Arizona Copper Art Museum is located in the city.


Neighborhoods

Clarkdale's neighborhoods are not strictly defined, but include: * Upper Clarkdale, the oldest part of the historic section of town, from 9th Street/Miller's Hill west to 16th Street. * Lower Clarkdale, east of 9th Street/Miller's Hill, along Main Street to 4th Street and the railroad tracks. * Riverfront, between 4th Street/railroad and the Verde River (sometimes included in Lower Clarkdale). * Patio Town, now referred to as Patio Park across Bitter Creek between the train depot area and the river. * Centerville, the oldest development not in the historic site, along Avenida Centerville off of
Arizona State Route 89A State Route 89A (SR 89A) is an state highway that runs from Prescott, Arizona, Prescott north to Flagstaff, Arizona, Flagstaff in the U.S. state of Arizona. The highway begins at Arizona State Route 89, SR 89 in Yavapai County, Arizona, Yavapa ...
. Said to be named for its location at the geographical center of Arizona. * Foothills Terrace, a development west of
Arizona State Route 89A State Route 89A (SR 89A) is an state highway that runs from Prescott, Arizona, Prescott north to Flagstaff, Arizona, Flagstaff in the U.S. state of Arizona. The highway begins at Arizona State Route 89, SR 89 in Yavapai County, Arizona, Yavapa ...
along Lisa Street and Lanny Lane. * Black Hills, north of Black Hills Drive and west of Old Jerome Highway. Site of Yavapai College's Clarkdale campus. * Bent River, east of Broadway ( Historic US Route 89A) along Bent River Road and Old Clarkdale Highway. * Verde Palisades, west of Broadway along Palisade Drive. * Giant's Grave, on a bluff north of
Arizona State Route 89A State Route 89A (SR 89A) is an state highway that runs from Prescott, Arizona, Prescott north to Flagstaff, Arizona, Flagstaff in the U.S. state of Arizona. The highway begins at Arizona State Route 89, SR 89 in Yavapai County, Arizona, Yavapa ...
along Panorama Way. * Newer developments, including Lampliter Village, Pine Shadows, Mingus Shadows, Mingus View Estates
Mountain Gate
an
Crossroads at Mingus
* Individual homes in un-subdivided areas, including Haskell Springs, Hawk Hollow Way and Mescal Wash/Tavasci Road.


Education

Much of Clarkdale is in the Clarkdale-Jerome Elementary School District.
Text list
- Includes boundaries of municipalities and CDPs, as well as high school district boundaries.
That district operates Clarkdale–Jerome School in Clarkdale, a facility which also takes students from
Jerome Jerome (; ; ; – 30 September 420), also known as Jerome of Stridon, was an early Christian presbyter, priest, Confessor of the Faith, confessor, theologian, translator, and historian; he is commonly known as Saint Jerome. He is best known ...
. The public school has enrollment from kindergarten to eighth grade. A portion of Clarkdale is in the Cottonwood-Oak Creek Elementary School District.. All of Clarkdale is in Mingus Union High School District. Mingus Union High School in Cottonwood takes Clarkdale high school students. There are also charter schools in Cottonwood. In addition, Yavapai College has a community college campus in Clarkdale. The campus is home to the newly opened Southwest Wine Center. Historically, Clarkdale had an elementary school, located in Lower Clarkdale, a junior high school, located at the top of Miller's Hill in Upper Clarkdale, and a high school, next to the junior high school. Clarkdale High School combined with Mingus High School in Jerome in 1960 to form Mingus Union High School, then located in Jerome. The combined high school adopted the name of the Jerome school and the colors of the Clarkdale school. The school then moved to Cottonwood in 1972. In 1983, the junior high school burned down. A new elementary school was built, becoming the K-8 school at 16th and Main Streets in Upper Clarkdale in 1985.


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 3,422 people, 1,433 households, and 994 families residing in the town. The population density was . There were 1,546 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the town was 84.5%
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 ...
, 0.3%
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 ...
or
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 ...
, 6.8% Native American, 0.4% Asian, 0.1%
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 ...
, 5.4% from other races, and 2.6% from two or more races. 11.8% 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 1,433 households, out of which 22.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 58.2% 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, 7.1% had a female householder with no husband present, and 30.6% were non-families. 25.3% of all households were made up of individuals, and 14.0% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.39 and the average family size was 2.82. In the town, the population was spread out, with 21.5% under the age of 18, 6.2% from 18 to 24, 20.4% from 25 to 44, 26.0% from 45 to 64, and 25.9% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 46 years. For every 100 females, there were 93.1 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 89.6 males. The median income for a household in the town was $34,911, and the median income for a family was $41,250. Males had a median income of $28,824 versus $21,811 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 town was $18,441. About 7.4% of families and 10.3% 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 10.9% of those under age 18 and 7.0% of those age 65 or over. Clarkdale became one of the municipalities in Arizona to recognize
civil union A civil union (also known as a civil partnership) is a legally recognized arrangement similar to marriage, primarily created to provide legal recognition for same-sex couples. Civil unions grant some or all of the rights of marriage, with ch ...
s for same-sex partners and opposite-sex partners seeking a form of recognition other than marriage.


See also

* List of historic properties in Clarkdale, Arizona


References


External links


Official Clarkdale website





Clarkdale community profile
, from Arizona Department of Commerce
Clarkdale Tourism Site
{{authority control Towns in Yavapai County, Arizona Company towns in Arizona Populated places established in 1912 1912 establishments in Arizona