Santa Cruz County, Arizona facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Santa Cruz County
U.S. county
Santa Cruz County Courthouse
Seal
Location within the U.S. state of Arizona
Arizona's location within the U.S.
Country	United States
State	Arizona
Founded	March 15, 1899
Named for	Santa Cruz River
Seat	Nogales
Largest city	Nogales
Area
• Total	1,238 sq mi (3,210 km2)
• Land	1,237 sq mi (3,200 km2)
• Water	1.2 sq mi (3 km2)  0.1%
Population  (2020)
• Total	47,669
• Estimate  (2023)	49,158
• Density	38.505/sq mi (14.867/km2)
Time zone	UTC−7 (Mountain)
Congressional district	7th

Santa Cruz is a county in southern Arizona, United States. As of the 2020 census, the population is 47,669. The county seat is Nogales. The county was established in 1899. It borders Pima County to the north and west, Cochise County to the east, and the Mexican state of Sonora to the south.

Santa Cruz County includes the Nogales, Arizona Micropolitan Statistical Area, which is also included in the Tucson-Nogales, Arizona Combined Statistical Area.

History

The Santa Cruz River flowing northwards near Kino Springs shortly after re-entering the U.S. from Mexico.

Santa Cruz County, formed on March 15, 1899, out of what was then Pima County, is named after the Santa Cruz River. The river originates in the Canelo Hills in the eastern portion of the county, crosses south into Mexico near the community of Santa Cruz, Sonora, and then bends northwards returning into the United States (and Santa Cruz County) east of Nogales.

Father Eusebio Kino, an Italian explorer and missionary in the service of the Spanish Empire, named the Santa Cruz River–"holy cross" in Spanish–in the 1690s. In addition, Kino founded several missions to evangelize the different O'odham peoples living along the banks of the Santa Cruz River, including Missions San Cayetano del Tumacácori (1691) and San Gabriel de Guevavi (1691), as well as Los Reyes de Sonoita (1692) near Sonoita Creek. Along the river, but outside the boundaries of Santa Cruz County, Kino also founded Mission San Xavier del Bac (1692) near Tucson, Arizona, and Mission Santa Maria del Pilar (1693) in what is now Santa Cruz, Mexico. Kino's San Cayetano and San Gabriel missions were destroyed in the O'odham peoples' 1751 Pima Revolt and rebuilt as Missions Los Santos Ángeles de Guevavi (1751), San José de Tumacácori (1753), and San Cayetano de Calabazas (1756). The ruins of all three of these later missions are now protected by Tumacácori National Historical Park. Disease, warfare, overwork, and changes in land ownership during Spanish colonization led to the demographic decline of the O'odham peoples of Santa Cruz County.

Geography

The junction of Arizona State Route 82 (Patagonia Highway) and Business-Loop 19 (Grand Avenue) in Nogales. The SR 82 overpass crosses over Grand Avenue, the Union Pacific Railroad, and the Nogales Wash.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 1,238 square miles (3,210 km²), of which 1,237 square miles (3,200 km²) is land and 1.2 square miles (3.1 km²) (0.1%) is water. It is the smallest county by area in Arizona.

Adjacent counties and municipalities

• Pima County–west, north
• Cochise County–east
• Nogales, Sonora, Mexico–south
• Santa Cruz, Sonora, Mexico–south
• Sáric, Sonora, Mexico–south

Major highways

• Interstate 19
• State Route 82
• State Route 83

National protected areas

• Coronado National Forest (part)
• Las Cienegas National Conservation Area (part)
• Tumacácori National Historical Park

Border crossings

There are three crossings of the U.S.-Mexico border in Nogales: the Dennis DeConcini Port of Entry (for vehicular and pedestrian traffic); the Nogales-Mariposa Port of Entry (in the western part of the city, for vehicular and pedestrian traffic); and the Morley Gate Port of Entry (for pedestrians only). Lochiel, a former mining and ranching border town, formerly had a border crossing, but the U.S. government shut the port of entry down in 1983.

Demographics

2010 census

As of the census of 2010, there were 47,420 people, 15,437 households, and 11,992 families living in the county. The population density was 38.3 inhabitants per square mile (14.8 inhabitants/km²). There were 18,010 housing units at an average density of 14.6 units per square mile (5.6 units/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 73.5% white, 0.7% American Indian, 0.5% Asian, 0.4% black or African American, 22.9% from other races, and 2.0% from two or more races. Those of Hispanic or Latino origin made up 82.8% of the population.

The largest ancestry groups were:

Of the 15,437 households, 45.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 55.7% were married couples living together, 17.1% had a female householder with no husband present, 22.3% were non-families, and 19.0% of all households were made up of individuals. The average household size was 3.05 and the average family size was 3.51. The median age was 35.6 years.

The median income for a household in the county was $36,519 and the median income for a family was $40,933. Males had a median income of $30,666 versus $25,135 for females. The per capita income for the county was $16,209. About 20.6% of families and 25.2% of the population were below the poverty line, including 36.8% of those under age 18 and 15.7% of those age 65 or over.

Communities

Map of the incorporated areas in Santa Cruz County.

Cities

• Nogales (county seat)

Towns

• Patagonia

Census designated places

Unincorporated communities

Ghost Towns

Education

School districts include:

K-12:

• Nogales Unified School District
• Santa Cruz Valley Unified School District

Secondary:

• Patagonia Union High School District

Elementary:

• Patagonia Elementary District
• Santa Cruz Elementary District
• Sonoita Elementary District

County population ranking

The population ranking of the following table is based on the 2010 census of Santa Cruz County.

† county seat

Economy

Because it is the state's smallest county, Santa Cruz County's economic activity is also smaller. Its agriculture consists primarily of forage/hay, and the cattle products raised on that pasture and hay are almost 100% of farm products annually.

See also

In Spanish: Condado de Santa Cruz (Arizona) para niños