Ajo, Arizona

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Ajo (Ajo (pronounced ah-ho) comes from either the Spanish language word for garlic or the Papago (now Tohono O'odham) Indian word for paint (au'auho). Papagos obtained red paint pigments from the area. The Ajo lily, an onion-like plant, grows nearby. Ajo is an unincorporated community and a census-designated place located in Pima County, Arizona, United States. As of the 2000 census, the CDP had a total population of 3,705. Ajo is located on Arizona Highway 85 just 43 miles from the Mexican border. It is the closest town to Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument. Indians, Spaniards and Americans have all extracted mineral wealth from Ajo's abundant ore deposits. Around 1800, there was a Spanish mine here nicknamed "Old Bat Hole." It was later abandoned due to Indian raids. The first American in Ajo, Tom Childs, came in 1847 and found the deserted mine complete with a 60-foot shaft, mesquite ladders, and rawhide buckets. High-grade native copper, so rich it was shipped to Wales for smelting, made Ajo the first copper mine in Arizona. (One of the local owners was the Ronstadt family, later to have Tucson police chief and parks director, as well as the singer, Linda, as family members)

Ajo did not boom, however, until after 1900 with the advent of new recovery methods for low-grade ore. Col. John Greenway formed New Cornelia Copper in 1906 and expanded on a grand scale. In 1921, Phelps Dodge, the nation's largest copper company, bought New Cornelia. For several decades more than 1,000 men worked for Phelps Dodge at Ajo. The mine closed in 1983, during a bitter strike. It is now primarily a retirement community.

Plants of the Sonoran Desert thrive at Ajo, including saguaros and ocotillos.

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Geography

Image:AZMap-doton-Ajo.png

Ajo is located at 32°22'53" North, 112°52'10" West (32.381348, -112.869407)Template:GR.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the CDP has a total area of 72.7 km² (28.1 mi²). 72.7 km² (28.1 mi²) of it is land and none of it is covered by water.

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Demographics

As of the census Template:GR of 2000, there were 3,705 people, 1,659 households, and 1,088 families residing in the CDP. The population density was 51.0/km² (132.0/mi²). There were 2,485 housing units at an average density of 34.2/km² (88.5/mi²). The racial makeup of the CDP was 78.70% White, 0.24% Black or African American, 6.88% Native American, 0.30% Asian, 0.08% Pacific Islander, 9.15% from other races, and 4.64% from two or more races. 37.57% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.

There were 1,659 households out of which 19.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 51.4% were married couples living together, 10.6% had a female householder with no husband present, and 34.4% were non-families. 30.1% of all households were made up of individuals and 17.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.23 and the average family size was 2.74.

In the CDP the population was spread out with 20.6% under the age of 18, 4.9% from 18 to 24, 17.2% from 25 to 44, 25.3% from 45 to 64, and 32.1% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 52 years. For every 100 females there were 90.3 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 88.3 males.

The median income for a household in the CDP was $25,618, and the median income for a family was $29,310. Males had a median income of $28,000 versus $18,571 for females. The per capita income for the CDP was $14,548. 22.3% of the population and 16.5% of families were below the poverty line. 36.5% of those under the age of 18 and 9.0% of those 65 and older were living below the poverty line.

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