Central

History

Central was first homesteaded by the Cluff family in 1880. The Cluffs extended the Central Canal to their lands on the eastern side of Central. Later settlers extended the canal west and north. In 1883, construction began on a one-room white rock building to be used as a church meeting house and school house. By 1884, twenty families, including Cluff, Norton, Shurtz, Bigler, and Webster households resided in Central. In 1978 the streets were named after these early Mormon pioneers. In December 1883, the Central Ward of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints was organized and Joseph Cluff was ordained the first bishop. A new red brick church was built in 1885. It was the first regular meeting house built in this part of Arizona and was also the first home of the LDS Academy from December 1890 to May 1891. A plaque east of Hwy 70 on Central Road commemorates the original home of the St. Joseph Stake Academy that later moved to Thatcher and became Eastern Arizona College. In 1894, LDS Church historian Andrew Jensen reported on the Central Ward: "Thirty-five families or 178 souls, constitute the Mormon population, and there are only two other families in the district. Central excels in point of large orchards, extensive alfalfa fields and good grain. The meeting house is the only public building in the settlement, in which there is also a small store and a post office. There are a number of fine and comfortable private residences, built mostly of brick and adobe." A railroad through Central was completed in 1896. The head of the Central Canal washed out in 1905. Since then, the Smithville and Union Canals have been used exclusively. Central's population was estimated as 100 in the 1960 census. The Gila Valley Arizona Temple of The Church of Jesus Christ of…

Geography

From its location just south of the Gila River within the Upper Gila Valley, Mount Graham of the Pinaleño Mountains dominates the southern skyline.

Race & ethnicity

Most-observed species

• White-winged Dove

  Zenaida asiatica (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  1,812
• Mourning Dove

  Zenaida macroura (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  1,765
• Gambel's Quail

  Callipepla gambelii (Gambel, 1843) · Aves
  1,761
• Northern Cardinal

  Cardinalis cardinalis (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  1,608
• Great-tailed Grackle

  Quiscalus mexicanus (Gmelin, 1788) · Aves
  1,549
• Eurasian Collared-Dove

  Streptopelia decaocto (Frivaldszky, 1838) · Aves
  1,505
• American Coot

  Fulica americana Gmelin, 1789 · Aves
  1,411
• Verdin

  Auriparus flaviceps (Sundevall, 1850) · Aves
  1,325

Largest nearby schools

• Safford High School
  High · SAFFORD · 836 students · 29.9:1 ratio
• Dorothy Stinson School
  Elementary · SAFFORD · 583 students · 21.6:1 ratio
• Thatcher High School
  High · Thatcher · 558 students · 18:1 ratio
• Thatcher Elementary School
  Elementary · Thatcher · 541 students · 22.5:1 ratio
• Pima Elementary School
  Elementary · Pima · 539 students · 20.7:1 ratio
• Ruth Powell Elementary School
  Elementary · SAFFORD · 529 students · 23:1 ratio
• Lafe Nelson School
  Elementary · SAFFORD · 455 students · 20.7:1 ratio
• Safford Middle School
  Middle · SAFFORD · 449 students · 23.6:1 ratio

Most recent

• M 2.6 — 2025-08-09
  14 km ENE of Willow Canyon, Arizona
• M 2.8 — 2025-08-05
  0 km NE of Clifton, Arizona
• M 2.6 — 2025-07-15
  9 km N of San Jose, Arizona
• M 2.6 — 2024-10-26
  8 km W of San Simon, Arizona
• M 2.9 — 2024-04-26
  10 km S of Franklin, Arizona
• M 2.5 — 2023-11-24
  1 km SSE of Franklin, Arizona