Florence

Town of Florence, Arizona
—  Town  —
Early commercial buildings in Downtown Florence.
Location in Pinal County and the state of Arizona
Coordinates: 33.030°2′32″N 111.390°23′4″W / 33.07222°N 111.77444°W / 33.07222; -111.77444
Country	United States
State	Arizona
County	Pinal
Government
- Mayor	Vicki Kilvinger
Area
- Total	8.3 sq mi (21.5 km2)
- Land	8.3 sq mi (21.5 km2)
- Water	0.0 sq mi (0.0 km2)
Elevation	1,490 ft (454 m)
Population (2007)[1][2]
- Total	17,781
- Density	2,054.6/sq mi (793.2/km2)
Time zone	MST (no DST) (UTC-7)
ZIP codes	85132, 85128, 85179
Area code(s)	520
FIPS code	04-23760
Website	http://www.town.florence.az.us/

Florence (O'odham: S-auppag) is a town in and the county seat of Pinal County, Arizona, United States.^[3] The population was 17,054 at the 2000 census; according to 2005 Census Bureau estimates, the population of the town remained unchanged.^[1]

The largest Arizona State Prison complex, the Florence complex, is located in the city, and its preserved Main Street and open desert scenery was the setting of the major motion picture Murphy's Romance.

There are a total of 9 prisons from the county, state, federal and two private prisons. There are 3 state prisons located in Florence.

Florence is home to the annual "Country Thunder" music festival. ^[4]

Geography

Florence is located at 33°2′32″N 111°23′4″W / 33.04222°N 111.38444°W / 33.04222; -111.38444 (33.042204, -111.384521).^[5]

According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 21.5 km² (8.3 mi²), all land.

Demographics

As of the census^[6] of 2000, there were 17,054 people, 2,226 households, and 1,540 families residing in the town. The population density was 2,056.2 people per square mile (794.3/km²). There were 3,216 housing units at an average density of 387.7/sq mi (149.8/km²). The racial makeup of the town was 57.12% White, 9.17% Black or African American, 4.42% Native American, 0.83% Asian, 0.05% Pacific Islander, 26.79% from other races, and 1.64% from two or more races. 35.42% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.

There were 2,226 households out of which 23.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 53.5% were married couples living together, 12.1% had a female householder with no husband present, and 30.8% were non-families. 26.0% of all households were made up of individuals and 12.7% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.35 and the average family size was 2.80.

In the town the population was spread out with 7.6% under the age of 18, 14.8% from 18 to 24, 50.1% from 25 to 44, 18.0% from 45 to 64, and 9.5% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 35 years. For every 100 females there were 482.8 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 582.5 males.

The median income for a household in the town was $36,372, and the median income for a family was $41,959. Males had a median income of $25,545 versus $28,279 for females. The per capita income for the town was $11,278. About 6.1% of families and 7.0% of the population were below the poverty line, including 6.1% of those under age 18 and 6.6% of those age 65 or over.

World War II History

Just north of Florence during World War II was located a large prisoner of war camp for German and Italian prisoners of war, mainly captured during the North Africa campaign. The Pinal County Historical Museum on Main Street in Florence has a display and information on this period of Arizona history. For additional information, see [1]

Historical District

Florence is one of the oldest towns in the county, and is regarded as a National Historic District with over 100 buildings listed on the National Historic Registry

Developments

Florence is the location of the 2nd Anthem development in the state of Arizona being built by Pulte and Del Webb. It is located six miles to the northwest of downtown historic Florence.

Florence is also the site for the proposed Coyote Canyon theme park. ^[7]

Points of interest

• McFarland State Historic Park

References

External links

• Town of Florence official website

• Florence, Arizona is at coordinates 33°02′32″N 111°23′04″W / 33.042204°N 111.384521°W / 33.042204; -111.384521 (Florence, Arizona)Coordinates: 33°02′32″N 111°23′04″W / 33.042204°N 111.384521°W / 33.042204; -111.384521 (Florence, Arizona)

v • d • e Municipalities and communities of Pinal County, Arizona County seat: Florence Cities Apache Junction‡ | Casa Grande | Coolidge | Eloy | Maricopa Towns Florence | Hayden‡ | Kearny | Mammoth | Queen Creek‡ | Superior | Winkelman‡ CDPs Ak-Chin Village | Arizona City | Blackwater | Chuichu | Dudleyville | Gold Camp | Oracle | Queen Valley | Sacaton | San Manuel | Santan | Stanfield | Top-of-the-World‡ Unincorporated communities Bapchule | Randolph | Red Rock | San Tan Valley Ghost towns Cochran | Copper Creek | Pinal City | Ray | Reymert | Sasco | Tiger Footnotes ‡This populated place also has portions in an adjacent county or counties