Douglas, Arizona
| Douglas, Arizona | |
|---|---|
| City | |
 | |
| Motto: "the premier southwestern border community"[1] | |
 | |
| Coordinates: 31°20′42″N 109°32′29″W / 31.34500°N 109.54139°WCoordinates: 31°20′42″N 109°32′29″W / 31.34500°N 109.54139°W | |
| Country | United States |
| State | Arizona |
| County | Cochise |
| Incorporated | May 15, 1905 |
| Government | |
| • Type | City |
| • Mayor | Daniel Ortega Jr. |
| Area | |
| • Total | 7.7 sq mi (20.0 km2) |
| • Land | 7.7 sq mi (20.0 km2) |
| • Water | 0.3 sq mi (0.6 km2) |
| Elevation | 4,006 ft (1,221 m) |
| Population (2008)[2] | |
| • Total | 20,316 |
| • Density | 1,852.7/sq mi (715.3/km2) |
| Time zone | MST (no DST) (UTC-7) |
| ZIP codes | 85607, 85608, 85655 |
| Area code | 520 |
| Website | City of Douglas, Arizona |
Douglas is a city in Cochise County, Arizona, United States. Douglas has a border crossing with Mexico and a history of mining.
The population was 14,312 at the 2000 census. According to 2008 Census Bureau estimates, the population of the city is 20,316.[3]
History
The Douglas area was first settled by the Spanish in the 18th century. Presidio de San Bernardino was established in 1776 and abandoned in 1780. It was located a few miles east of present day Douglas. The United States Army established Camp San Bernardino in the latter half of the 19th century near the presidio and in 1910 Camp Douglas was built next to the town.
Douglas was founded as an American smelter town, to treat the copper ores of nearby Bisbee, Arizona. The town is named after mining pioneer Dr. James Douglas,[4] and was incorporated in 1905.[1] Two copper smelters operated at the site. The Calumet and Arizona Company Smelter was built in 1902. The Copper Queen operated in Douglas from 1904 until 1931, when the Phelps Dodge Corporation purchased the Calumet and Arizona Company and took over their smelter. The Calumet and Arizona smelter then became the Douglas Reduction Works. Douglas was the site of the Phelps-Dodge Corporation Douglas Reduction Works until its closure in 1987. The smoke stacks of the smelter were not taken down until January 13, 1991.
The town was a site of the Arizona Copper Mine Strike of 1983.
The "Cowboys Home Saloon " was the location of the fatal shooting of bar owner Lorenzo "Lon" Bass. The accused was Arizona Ranger William W. Webb. The date was February 8, 1903. A full report can be read in The Arizona Rangers by Bill ONeal pub, Eakin Press Austin Texas.
In 1916, the Mexican revolutionary leader Pancho Villa threatened to attack Douglas, believing Americans responsible for his defeat at the Second Battle of Agua Prieta.[5]
Geography
Douglas is located at 31°20′42″N 109°32′29″W / 31.34500°N 109.54139°W (31.344911, -109.541376).[6]
Douglas stands on the U.S.-Mexico border, across from the city of Agua Prieta, Sonora, Mexico.
Climate
Douglas has a semi-arid steppe climate, which is cooler and wetter than a typical arid climate classification. In the winter months, Douglas averages in the mid to upper 60s °F (17–21 °C), with both January and February averaging daily highs of 64 °F (18 °C). Lows typically settle just below the freezing mark on a majority of nights, but it is not uncommon to see temperatures tumble below 25 °F (−4 °C) on some winter nights.
On the other hand, in the summer months, highs average between 90 and 100 °F (32 and 38 °C), with the month of June being the hottest with an average daytime high of 97 °F (36 °C). Nighttime lows for the summer months remain in the upper 50s and mid 60s °F (14–18 °C) for the duration of the season. June and July typically see 6 inches (150 mm) or more of combined rainfall, which brings the average annual precipitation for Douglas to about 14 inches (360 mm).
Douglas' all-time highest recorded temperature is 111 °F (44 °C) which was reached on July, 1905. The all-time low temperature was −7 °F (−22 °C), which occurred in January 1913.
| Climate data for Douglas Bisbee Airport, Arizona | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Record high °F (°C) | 82 (28) |
86 (30) |
92 (33) |
99 (37) |
103 (39) |
110 (43) |
109 (43) |
103 (39) |
102 (39) |
95 (35) |
87 (31) |
84 (29) |
110 (43) |
| Average high °F (°C) | 62.2 (16.8) |
66.3 (19.1) |
71.4 (21.9) |
78.7 (25.9) |
86.3 (30.2) |
95.1 (35.1) |
93.5 (34.2) |
91.3 (32.9) |
88.4 (31.3) |
80.1 (26.7) |
69.8 (21) |
62.4 (16.9) |
78.8 (26) |
| Average low °F (°C) | 29.4 (−1.4) |
32.1 (0.1) |
36.4 (2.4) |
41.9 (5.5) |
50.2 (10.1) |
59.2 (15.1) |
64.4 (18) |
63.3 (17.4) |
58.5 (14.7) |
47.1 (8.4) |
35.2 (1.8) |
29.4 (−1.4) |
45.6 (7.6) |
| Record low °F (°C) | 6 (−14) |
10 (−12) |
13 (−11) |
21 (−6) |
29 (−2) |
40 (4) |
55 (13) |
52 (11) |
36 (2) |
19 (−7) |
5 (−15) |
−4 (−20) |
−4 (−20) |
| Precipitation inches (mm) | 0.75 (19) |
0.64 (16.3) |
0.46 (11.7) |
0.20 (5.1) |
0.33 (8.4) |
0.63 (16) |
3.14 (79.8) |
2.88 (73.2) |
1.64 (41.7) |
1.30 (33) |
0.74 (18.8) |
1.06 (26.9) |
13.77 (349.9) |
| Snowfall inches (cm) | 0.2 (0.5) |
0.1 (0.3) |
0.1 (0.3) |
0 (0) |
0 (0) |
0 (0) |
0 (0) |
0 (0) |
0 (0) |
0 (0) |
0.1 (0.3) |
0.3 (0.8) |
0.8 (2.2) |
| Avg. precipitation days (≥ 0.01 in) | 5.0 | 4.3 | 3.6 | 1.6 | 2.0 | 3.4 | 13.4 | 11.5 | 6.3 | 4.5 | 3.2 | 4.4 | 63.2 |
| Avg. snowy days (≥ 0.1 in) | 0.3 | 0.2 | 0.1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.1 | 0.3 | 1 |
| Source: NOAA [7] | |||||||||||||
Demographics
| Historical population | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Census | Pop. | %± | |
| 1910 | 6,437 | ||
| 1920 | 9,916 | 54.0% | |
| 1930 | 9,828 | −0.9% | |
| 1940 | 8,623 | −12.3% | |
| 1950 | 9,442 | 9.5% | |
| 1960 | 11,925 | 26.3% | |
| 1970 | 12,462 | 4.5% | |
| 1980 | 13,058 | 4.8% | |
| 1990 | 12,822 | −1.8% | |
| 2000 | 14,312 | 11.6% | |
| 2010 | 17,378 | 21.4% | |
As of the census[8] of 2000, there were 14,312 people, 4,526 households, and 3,453 families residing in the city. The population density was 1,852.7 people per square mile (715.8/km²). There were 5,186 housing units at an average density of 671.3 per square mile (259.4/km²). Hispanic 86.0%,Other race 31.8%, White Non-Hispanic 12.1%,Two or more races 2.9%, American Indian 1.3%. There were 4,526 households out of which 42.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 49.1% were married couples living together, 22.5% had a female householder with no husband present, and 23.7% were non-families. 21.2% of all households were made up of individuals and 11.2% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 3.07 and the average family size was 3.59.
In the city the age distribution of the population shows 33.5% under the age of 18, 9.7% from 18 to 24, 25.0% from 25 to 44, 18.6% from 45 to 64, and 13.1% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 30 years. For every 100 females there were 92.7 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 89.1 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $20,567, and the median income for a family was $22,425. Males had a median income of $25,320 versus $18,447 for females. The per capita income for the city was $10,232. About 32.1% of families and 36.6% of the population were below the poverty line, including 49.0% of those under age 18 and 21.7% of those age 65 or over.
Cityscape
Arts and culture
Douglas is home to the historic Gadsden Hotel, which opened in 1907. Named for the Gadsden Purchase, the stately five-story, 160-room hotel became a home away from home for cattlemen, ranchers, miners, and businessmen. The hotel was leveled by fire and rebuilt in 1929. The Gadsden is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The Gadsden's spacious main lobby is majestically set with a solid white Italian marble staircase and four soaring marble columns. An authentic Tiffany & Co. stained glass mural extends 42 feet (13 m) across one wall of the massive mezzanine. An impressive oil painting by Audley Jean Nichols is just below the Tiffany window. Vaulted stained glass skylights run the full length of the lobby.
The San Bernardino Ranch was originally established in Mexico and covered thousands of acres. The new US-Mexico border of the Gadsden Purchase sliced through the ranch, thus reducing its US size. It is still called San Bernardino Ranch today (2009), but is still affectionately called "Slaughter's Ranch" almost 100 years after the death of John Slaughter, the owner in the late 19th century and early 20th century.
"Centuries before the first white explorers discovered the land now called Arizona, this fertile valley region served as a major corridor for migrating Indians. In time, the grasses and streams attracted wandering Athabaskan peoples, the Apaches, who would prove so troublesome to Anglo-American pioneers. Next to arrive were the Spanish, in an imperial procession of conquistadors, missionaries, soldiers, colonists. Although Slaughter was born in Louisiana, his family moved to Texas when he was a baby where they were known for their huge cattle ranches. Slaughter became acquainted with the ways of the Indian growing up and became an excellent tracker and marksman which proved valuable in later life. Slaughter was small in stature but that did not deter him from becoming a man to be feared and respected by those on the side of the law—and by those who were not—when he was elected Sheriff of Cochise County in 1886. In 1822, an original Mexican land grant of 73,240 acres (296.4 km2) was sold to Ignacio Perez for 90 pesos plus fees. An earthquake in 1887 destroyed the original buildings which Slaughter had built for his in-laws. After his second term as sheriff, he moved to the ranch and the present house was built in 1893. "Our future lay within it and it was beautiful." [citation needed] Little did she realize the impact her husband and this ranch would have for generations to come. It became a beautiful oasis in the desert.
The El Paso and Southwestern Railroad depot was an important train station. It transported copper to large manufacturing concerns in the east. The depot is considered one of the finest examples of railway architecture of the early 20th century. The building is now used for the Douglas police station and is just one of 400 buildings on the National Register of Historic Places in Douglas.
The Douglas Grand Theatre was built in 1919 and was the largest theater between Los Angeles and San Antonio. Ginger Rogers, Anna Pavlova and John Philip Sousa are some of the famous faces to have graced the theater's stage. It also housed a tea room, candy store and barbershop in its glory days. For several Halloweens the Grand Theater was used as a "Haunted House" attraction. Today (2009) the theater is undergoing reconstruction, using private donations of money, supplies and labor.
Cemeteries
The Douglas Jewish Cemetery was founded in 1904 near the Mexican border. It has nineteen recorded graves, and thirteen of the tombstones are not necessarily on the correct grave sites due to extensive vandalism. The cemetery was in use from 1912 to 1963. The cemetery was restored, re-fenced and cleaned in 1992 by students and numerous others. The cemetery is included in the State of Arizona of Historical Places.[9] In November 2012, two gravestones were shattered in the Jewish cemetery in the town, in what seemed to be an anti-Semitic act.[10]
Government
City management
- Mayor: Danny Ortega Jr. (2012–)
- On June 13, 2012, Ortega was sworn in as the city's mayor replacing Dr. Michael Gomez. Mayor Ortega (married to Anne Taylor Ortega) was born and raised in Douglas, graduated from Douglas High School in 1980, and graduated from Cochise College in 1982 with an Associates of Science in Electronics. After graduating from Cochise, he moved to Kentucky where he joined IBM as a technician and was later promoted to engineer. In 1989 the family including their three children, Jamie, John and David, moved back to Douglas in order for Danny to assist in computerizing the Ortega family's business ventures. The family businesses are currently managed and staffed in part by Ortega, his mother, father, wife, brother and sisters. Mayor Ortega is focusing his term on the Mexican Port of Entry expansion, the revitalization of the downtown area, and securing more jobs for Douglas.
- City Council:
- Ward 1: Margaret Morales
- Ward 2: Mitch Lindemann (Mayor Pro-Tempore)
- Ward 3: Ben LaForge
- Ward 4: Ray Shelton
- Ward 5: Luis Greer
- Ward 6: Rudy Quinonez
- City Manager: Carlos De La Torre
- City Attorney: Juan P. Flores
- Finance Manager: Luis Pedroza
- City Clerk: Brenda Aguilar
Education
Superintendent: Sheila Rogers Assistant Superintendent: Gloria Bonnie Lopez
Public Elementary Schools
Clawson Elementary School
- Principal: Mary Good
Joe Carlson Elementary School
- Principal: Cyndy Ortega
Faras Elementary School
- Principal: Jasper Lusby
Sarah Marley Elementary School
- Principal: Claudia Leon
Stevenson Elementary School
- Principal: George Montano
Public Middle Schools
Paul Huber Middle School
- Principal: Rudy Cota
- Assistant Principal: Fernando Morales
Ray Borane Middle School
- Principal: Ana Samaniego
- Assistant Principal: Melissa Rodriguez
Public High School
Douglas High School
- Principal: Andrea Overman
- Assistant Principal: Stephanie Phillips
- Asst. Principal/Athletics: Randy Walker
Private Schools
- CAS Elementary,Middle, and High school
- Loretto Catholic School
- Omega Alpha Academy K-12 Charter School
Notable people
- Jay Dusard, contemporary photographer, 1981 Guggenheim award winner,[11] recipient of two book awards and a Pulitzer nomination.[12]
- Manny Farber, an iconoclastic stylist who achieved prominence first as film critic and later as a painter was born in Douglas in 1917.
- Western songwriter Stan Jones, (1914-1963) in the Western Music Association Hall of Fame, was born and reared in Douglas.
- Bill Meléndez, born 1916, was educated in the public schools of Douglas. A character animator, film producer and film director, best known as the voice of Snoopy in the Charlie Brown series.
- "Texas John" Slaughter, Cochise County Sheriff (1841–1922), rancher, gunfighter, businessman, and a champion for Arizona's statehood.
- Effie Anderson Smith, also known as Mrs. A.Y. Smith (1869–1955), Impressionist painter of desert landscapes.
- Thornton Wilder, Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright and novelist, made Douglas his temporary home. His initial visit to the city was caused by the breakdown of his car.[citation needed]
- Robert Krentz rancher who was murdered in 2010 by a suspected illegal immigrant. His murder is credited for bringing about Arizona's SB1070 immigration law.
- Hazel Carter World War I wife who wore an army uniform in attempts to join her husband.
- Mike Pagel, former NFL quarterback.
Popular Culture
Film
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 "City of Douglas, Arizona". City of Douglas, Arizona. Retrieved August 23, 2012.
- ↑ "Annual Estimates of the Population for Incorporated Places in Arizona". United States Census Bureau. 2008-07-10. Retrieved 2008-07-14.
- ↑ "Annual Estimates of the Population for All Incorporated Places in Arizona" (CSV). 2006 Population Estimates. U.S. Census Bureau, Population Division.
- ↑ "Profile for Douglas, Arizona, AZ". ePodunk. Retrieved August 23, 2012.
- ↑ McLynn, Frank (2001). Villa and Zapata. New York: Carroll & Graf Publishers. p. 319. ISBN 0-7867-0895-6.
- ↑ "US Gazetteer files: 2010, 2000, and 1990". United States Census Bureau. 2011-02-12. Retrieved 2011-04-23.
- ↑ "Climatography of the United States No. 20 (1971–2000)" (PDF). National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. 2004. Retrieved 2012-01-09.
- ↑ "American FactFinder". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved 2008-01-31.
- ↑ "DOUGLAS: Cochise County". International Jewish Cemetery Project. Retrieved 12 January 2013.
- ↑ "Jewish cemetery desecrated". CFCA. Retrieved 12 January 2013.
- ↑ http://www.gf.org/fellows/results?query=dusard&lower_bound=1925&upper_bound=2010&competition=ALL&fellowship_category=ALL&x=0&y=0
- ↑ http://www.michaelcadengallery.com/id5.html
External links
- Douglas, AZ website
- The Douglas Daily Dispatch
- CityData
- The Smelter City of the Southwest, National Magazine, July 1905 (with historic photos)
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