Eloy is a city in
Pinal County,
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, approximately northwest of
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 ...
and about southeast of
Phoenix. According to the
2020 census, the population of the city is 15,635.
History
In 1880, as tracks were being laid for 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 ...
's
Sunset Route, a small number of boxcars were used as a camp for railroad workers. It was discovered that
cotton
Cotton (), first recorded in ancient India, is a soft, fluffy staple fiber that grows in a boll, or protective case, around the seeds of the cotton plants of the genus '' Gossypium'' in the mallow family Malvaceae. The fiber is almost pure ...
could be grown in the area's climate. In 1902, the Southern Pacific Railroad named the area train stop Eloy, an acronym for "East Line Of Yuma". Alternately, there is a legend that the area was initially called "Eloi", after a railroad employee looked around at the barren desert and said, "Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachthani?" (Aramaic and Hebrew for
"My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?"). A town called Cotton City was established in 1918. In 1919, the newly established post office rejected that name in favor of Eloy. As part of Pinal County, the city incorporated in 1949.
Geography
Eloy has a total area of 113.7 square miles (294.5 km), all land.
Demographics
As of the 2011
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 ...
,
there were 16,964 people, 2,492 households, and 1,988 families residing in Eloy. The population density was . There were 2,734 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 58%
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, 5%
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 ...
, 41%
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%
Native American, 1%
Asian, <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 ...
, 31% from
other races, and 5% from two or more races.
There were 2,492 households, out of which 50.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 49.4% 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, 21.9% had a female householder with no husband present, and 20.2% were non-families. Of all households, 15.5% were made up of individuals, and 6.3% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 3.57 and the average family size was 3.94.
In the city, the population was spread out with 33.7% under the age of 18, 12.0% from the ages of 18 to 24, 32.5% from the ages of 25 to 44, 15.4% from the ages of 45 to 64, and 6.4% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 28 years. For every 100 females, there were 137.1 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 154.8 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $26,518, and the median income for a family was $28,494. Males had a median income of $25,295 versus $21,088 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 $9,194. About 27.9% of families and 31.9% 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 35.6% of those under age 18 and 24.6% of those aged 65 or over.
Government
The mayor of Eloy is Andrew Sutton whose term runs from 2022 to 2024. He was previously a council member from 2020. The vice mayor is Michelle Trango. The city council consists of the mayor, who serves a two-year term, and six city council members, who each serve four-year terms.
Economy
The largest employer is
CoreCivic and CoreCivic prisoners are included in the census. CoreCivic operates four facilities:
Eloy Detention Center (opened 1994),
Red Rock Correctional Center (opened 2006),
Saguaro Correctional Center (opened 2007), and
La Palma Correctional Facility (opened 2008). As of 2020, CoreCivic's correctional centers house detainees from states including Hawaii, Nevada, Idaho, and Kansas.
According to Eloy's 2023 Annual Comprehensive Financial Report, the top employers in the city are:
Transportation
The closest major airports to Eloy 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.
The
Eloy Municipal Airport is a non-towered airport located in Eloy.
Greyhound
The English Greyhound, or simply the Greyhound, is a dog breed, breed of dog, a sighthound which has been bred for coursing, greyhound racing and hunting. Some are kept as show dogs or pets.
Greyhounds are defined as a tall, muscular, smooth-c ...
serves Eloy.
Culture
Eloy is home to the world's largest
skydive drop zone
A drop zone (DZ) is a place where parachutists or parachuted supplies land. It can be an area targeted for landing by paratroopers and airborne forces, or a base from which recreational parachutists and skydivers take off in aircraft and land ...
, operated by Skydive Arizona, and bills itself as the skydiving capital of the world. Two parachute manufacturers are based in Eloy, including
Firebird USA and Sun Path Products.
The city is home to the Robson Ranch Golf Club with an 18-hole, par-72 golf course.
The Casa Grande Valley Historical Society & Museum was founded in 1964 and holds a collection of more than 50,000 artifacts.
Picacho Peak State Park is located 10 miles southeast of Eloy.
It is the site of the only Civil War
battle
A battle is an occurrence of combat in warfare between opposing military units of any number or size. A war usually consists of multiple battles. In general, a battle is a military engagement that is well defined in duration, area, and force co ...
in Arizona; the battle is re-enacted annually.
Education

The
Eloy Elementary School District provides elementary education in grades kindergarten through 8th grade through its four schools:
* Curiel Primary School (grades kindergarten through 3th)
* Eloy Intermediate School (grades 4th through 6th)
* Eloy Junior High School (grades 7th and 8th)
* Toltec Elementary School (grades 4th through 8th)
Eloy has one public high school,
Santa Cruz Valley Union High School, and some residents attend the nearby
Casa Grande Union High School.
Notable people
*
Mossy Cade
Tommories "Mossy" S. Cade (born December 26, 1961) is an American former professional football player who was a safety first for the Memphis Showboats of the United States Football League (USFL) in 1985 and then for two seasons from 1985 to 19 ...
– former professional football player
*
Anna Maria Chávez – former CEO of
Girl Scouts of the USA
Girl Scouts of the United States of America (GSUSA), commonly referred to as Girl Scouts, is a youth organization for girls in the United States and American girls living abroad.
It was founded by Juliette Gordon Low in 1912, a year after she ...
*
Levi Jones – former professional football player
*
Art Malone – former professional football player
*
Benny Malone – former professional football player
*
Ricky Nelson
Eric Hilliard "Ricky" Nelson (May 8, 1940 – December 31, 1985) was an American musician and actor. From age eight, he starred alongside his family in the radio and television series ''The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet''. In 1957, he began a ...
– former professional baseball player
*
Paul Powell – former professional baseball player
*
Jeff Provenzano – professional skydiver
*
Dominic Evans – musician
References
External links
*
Eloy City Limits
{{authority control
Cities in Arizona
Cities in Pinal County, Arizona
Phoenix metropolitan area