St. David

History

St. David was established as a result of the Mormon Battalion having earlier passed through the San Pedro River valley in 1846. One of the founders of St. David, Philemon C. Merrill, was a member of the battalion. The Mormon settlers of 1877 were part of a group that originally was to settle Lehi, Arizona. The town was named after David Patten Kimball. The early St. David settlers played an important role in establishing the subsequent surrounding settlements, such as Fort Huachuca and Tombstone, as they did much of the logging in the Huachuca Mountains to provide lumber for the construction of those locations. As a tight-knit Mormon community, St. David managed better than other small towns in Cochise County during the Great Depression. An influx of non-Mormons, principally from Oklahoma and Texas, took place when St. David became the site for Civilian Conservation Corps Camp SCS-19-A from 1935 to 1940. Works included soil erosion and flood control projects. The first natural gas lines brought into Cochise County were installed in St. David..

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the CDP has a total area of , all land. The portion of Arizona State Route 80 that runs east-west through town uses the earlier Patten Street alignment, with the center of town located at the intersection of Patten and Miller Lane. The main crossings of the San Pedro River in St. David are at Dragoon Wash to the northwest and Escalante Crossing to the south. The latter was known as upper crossing and was the site of a stagecoach station. St. David has a semi-arid climate (Köppen: BSk) with cool winters, hot summers, and large diurnal temperature variation throughout the year.

Race & ethnicity

Largest nearby schools

• Benson Primary School
  Elementary · BENSON · 560 students · 18.7:1 ratio
• Benson High School
  High · BENSON · 443 students · 16.4:1 ratio
• St David Elementary School
  Elementary · SAINT DAVID · 303 students · 15.2:1 ratio
• Benson Middle School
  Middle · BENSON · 295 students · 16.4:1 ratio
• St David High School
  High · SAINT DAVID · 125 students · 11.4:1 ratio
• Pomerene Elementary School
  Elementary · Pomerene · 102 students · 10.2:1 ratio
• Benson Digital Learning Center
  High · BENSON · 43 students · 43:1 ratio
• Benson Digital Learning Center Online
  Other · BENSON · 35 students