Casa Grande

Understand

Casa Grande is approximately halfway between Phoenix and Tucson of over 53,000 people (2020). It is named after the Casa Grande Ruins National Monument in Coolidge, about 20 miles (32 km) northeast. "Casa Grande" is Spanish for "big house".

The economy of Casa Grande used to be based on rural, agricultural industries such as cotton and dairy farms. Over time, the city has become home to many Phoenix or Tucson urbanites who own homes in Casa Grande. Most residents either commute north to work in the Phoenix metropolitan area, or to the south, to work in Tucson.

Ehrmann Commonwealth Dairy operates a major dairy processing facility in the town that opened in 2013 and employs about 110 people.

History

Casa Grande was founded in 1879 by the Carter Family during the Arizona mining boom due to the presence of the Southern Pacific Railroad. Casa Grande grew slowly, and suffered several setbacks both in 1886 and 1893, when fires ravaged the town, destroying all wooden housing structures within it. When the mining boom slowed in the 1890s, the town was nearly abandoned, but with the advent of agriculture, the town remained alive and well. Casa Grande was home to a collective farm society which was part of the New Deal.

During World War II, from 1942 to 1945, a Japanese-American relocation camp was set up outside of Casa Grande, known as the Gila River War Relocation Center. Two notable people that were interned there were future actor Pat Morita and baseball player Kenichi Zenimura, who constructed a baseball field and set up a league in the relocation camp.

Casa Grande has played a prominent role in semi-pro and collegiate baseball. The Casa Grande Cotton Kings, who were founded in 1948, qualified to play in the National Baseball Congress World Series ten straight times by winning Arizona state championships in the 1940s and 1950s, and were reactivated in the 2000s. They are now members of the Pacific Southwest Baseball League.

Climate

Casa Grande has a hot desert climate, typical for the Sonoran Desert. The city experiences long, extremely hot summers and brief winters consisting of mild afternoons and chilly evenings. The area averages only 9.07 inches (230 millimeters) of rain per year. The coolest month on average is December, with highs averaging 68 °F (20 °C), and lows typically averaging around 37 °F (3 °C). Along with the rest of southern Arizona, the community is prone to dust storms and in the summer months is affected by the North American Monsoon, which brings high winds and heavy rain.

Get in

By car

• Phoenix Bypass Route on Interstate 8(I-8) begins from exit 199 of I-10 and goes 347 mi west to San Diego through Yuma and Calexico/El Centro. Travelers going towards Los Angeles can go west on Interstate 8 to Gila Bend (exit 119) and go north on AZ-85 to Buckeye (exit 112 of I-10) where they can re-enter I-10 to bypass heavy local traffic in Phoenix.

* & go 35 mi north-south between Exit 112 of I-10 (west of Buckeye) to Exits #115 (eastbound access)/119 (westbound access) of I-8. They serve as a bypass around Phoenix for travelers traveling between Los Angeles and Tucson and those traveling between San Diego and Phoenix. This interchange is 60 mi west of Casa Grande via I-8. The Historic US 80 and AZ 85 are separate roads, running north-south, parallel to each other along the Gila River between Gila Bend and Buckeye.

• Interstate 10 (I-10) Casa Grande is located about halfway between Phoenix and Tucson and is accessible by car along Interstate 10. Local access into Casa Grande are through exits #185 to 211. Going from Phoenix to Tucson on I-10, the freeway goes north and south but are signed "East to Tucson" and "West to Phoenix".
• Gila Bend Hwy goes 28 mi from exit #150 of Interstate 8 into town.
• State Route (SR) 87
• West Maricopa-Casa Grande Highway goes into town as Jimmie Kerr Blvd and into Eloy as Frontier St. Going 21 mi northwest to Maricopa.

By bus

By train

By plane

The nearest airports for commercial flights are in Phoenix (PHX), 42 mi north and in Tucson (TUS) at 78 mi south via I-10. Travelers typically would rent a car and drive to Casa Grande.

Get around

Casa Grande began offering a Curb to Curb transit service in 2023.

Go next

• Casa Grande Ruins National Monument, in nearby Coolidge — 20 mi (32 km) east.
• North to metro Phoenix and the Valley of the Sun.
• South to Picacho and Picacho Peak State Park for some hiking, or continue towards Tucson, the Old Pueblo.