Quartzsite, Arizona

Quartzsite
Town
Quartzsite, Arizona
Abandoned mine near Quartzsite
Motto: "The Rock Capital of the World"
Location of Quartzsite in La Paz County, Arizona.
Coordinates: 33°39′54″N 114°13′15″W / 33.66500°N 114.22083°W / 33.66500; -114.22083Coordinates: 33°39′54″N 114°13′15″W / 33.66500°N 114.22083°W / 33.66500; -114.22083
Country	United States
State	Arizona
County	La Paz
Incorporated	1989
Government
• Mayor	Ed Foster
Area[1]
• Total	36.30 sq mi (94.01 km2)
• Land	36.30 sq mi (94.01 km2)
• Water	0.00 sq mi (0.00 km2)
Elevation	879 ft (268 m)
Population (2010)[2]
• Total	3,677
• Estimate (2016)[3]	3,644
• Density	100.39/sq mi (38.76/km2)
Time zone	MST (no DST) (UTC-7)
ZIP codes	85346, 85359
Area code(s)	928
FIPS code	04-58010
Website	Town of Quartzsite

Quartzsite is a town in La Paz County, Arizona, United States. According to the 2010 census, the population was 3,677.^[2]

Interstate 10 runs directly through Quartzsite and is at the intersection of U.S. Route 95 and Arizona State Route 95 with I-10.

Geography and climate

Quartzsite is located at 33°39′54″N 114°13′15″W / 33.66500°N 114.22083°W / 33.66500; -114.22083 (33.665116, −114.220913).^[4]

According to the United States Census Bureau Quartzsite is all land and has a total area of 36.3 sq mi (94.0 km²).

Quartzsite lies on the western portion of the La Posa Plain along Tyson Wash. The Dome Rock Mountains overlook the town on the west with Granite Mountain on the southwest edge of the town and Oldman Mountain on the northwest. The Plomosa Mountains lie across the La Posa Plain to the east.^[5]

The town has a hot desert climate (Köppen BWh) with mild to warm winters from November to March and hot to extreme summers for the remainder of the year. In the middle of summer, Quartzsite is one of the hottest places in the United States and has recorded temperatures as high as 122 °F or 50.0 °C on 28 July 1995.

There is very little precipitation with only 3.51 inches (89.2 mm) falling during an average year, while in May and June more than 80 percent of years do not have measurable rainfall. Since records began in 1928 the wettest month has been September 1939 with 6.16 inches (156.5 mm) which was part of the wettest year with 11.05 inches (280.7 mm) and featuring on September 5 the wettest day with 3.00 inches (76.2 mm). This moisture was due to the remnants of a rare Gulf of California hurricane.^[6] The driest calendar year was 1928 with 0.92 inches (23.4 mm). However, between July 2001 and August 2002 as little as 0.45 inches (11.4 mm) fell over fourteen months.

Demographics

As of the census^[9] of 2000, there were 3,354 people, 1,850 households, and 1,176 families residing in the town. The population density was 92.4 people per square mile (35.7/km²). There were 3,186 housing units at an average density of 87.8 per square mile (33.9/km²). The racial makeup of the town was 94.48% White, 0.24% Black or African American, 1.16% Native American, 0.27% Asian, 0.06% Pacific Islander, 2.59% from other races, and 1.19% from two or more races. 5.04% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.

There were 1,850 households out of which 5.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 59.0% were married couples living together, 2.9% had a female householder with no husband present, and 36.4% were non-families. 31.5% of all households were made up of individuals and 19.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 1.81 and the average family size was 2.18.

In the town, the population was spread out with 5.7% under the age of 18, 1.8% from 18 to 24, 7.7% from 25 to 44, 29.9% from 45 to 64, and 54.9% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 66 years. For every 100 females there were 102.8 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 101.9 males.

The median income for a household in the town was $23,053, and the median income for a family was $26,382. Males had a median income of $20,313 versus $16,080 for females. The per capita income for the town was $15,889. About 7.8% of families and 13.5% of the population were below the poverty line, including 20.3% of those under age 18 and 10.0% of those age 65 or over.

Tourism

Hadji Ali grave in Quartzsite, Arizona.

Quartzsite is a popular recreational vehicle camping area for winter visitors with tourism being the major contributor to Quartzsite's economy. Nine major gem and mineral shows, and 15 general swap meet shows are very popular tourist attractions, attracting about 1.5 million people annually,^[10] mostly during January and February.

The mine in the Quartzsite was owned and operated by Jack Stetler but was shut down in 1957, upon a move to Brazil for iron ore.

Quartzsite is the burial place of Hi Jolly (Hadji Ali), an Ottoman citizen of Greek-Syrian parentage, who took part in the experimental US Camel Corps as a camel driver.^[11]

Quartzsite is also the site of Joanne's Gum Museum, which is open to the public and features a large collection of gum wrappers from around the world.^[12]

The Arizona Peace Trail goes through Quartzsite.^[13]

Transportation

The Town of Quartzsite operates demand response buses under the name Camel Express.^[14]

Images of Quartzsite

The following gallery includes the images of:

• Ruins of Fort Tyson which was built in 1856 and is located on the corner of Main St. and Moon Mountain Road.
• The site where in 1864 Charles Tyson dug what is known as Tyson’s Well.
• Tyson’s Well Stage Station built in 1866 and located in 161 West Main Street. The stage station served the travelers who went back and forth from the towns of Ehrenberg and Wickenburg. The building now houses the Quartzite Museum and Historical Society.^[15]
• The watering well on the grounds of Tyson's Stage Station.
• The restored Oasis Hotel which was originally built in 1900 and located in Main Street.
• The Quartzsite Cemetery, established in 1890, and renamed the Hi Jolly Cemetery in 1903 in honor of Hadji Ali a.k.a. Hi Jolly. The cemetery is located in the intersection of West Elsie and Hi Jolly Lanes.
• The grave of Hadji Ali (1828 –1902) a.k.a. Hi Jolly. The grave, located in the Hi Jolly Cemetery, was listed in the National Register of Historic Places in February 28, 2011, reference #11000054.
• An abandoned Post Office built in 1910 on Main Street.
• The abandoned Camel Stop Gas Station built in 1940 and located on Main Street.
• An abandoned farm windmill and water tank located on Main Street.

	Name	Image	Year		Name	Image	Year
1	Fort Tyson Ruins		1856	2	Fort Tyson Ruins		1856
3	Tyson's Well		1864	4	Tyson's Well Stage Station		1866
5	Watering well in Tyson's Stage Station		1866	6	Oasis Hotel Replica		1900
7	Hi Jolly Cemetery		1890	8	Hi Jolly Monument		1903
9	Post Office		1910	10	Camel Stop Gas Station		1940
11	Windmill and water tank		1910

See also

• Fort Tyson

References

External links

Wikivoyage has a travel guide for Quartzsite.

• Town website
• Quartzsite Times
• Desert Messenger
• Quartzsite information at Desert USA
• BLM camping information