Coconino County, Arizona facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Coconino County
U.S. county
Old Coconino County Courthouse in Flagstaff
Flag Logo
Location within the U.S. state of Arizona
Arizona's location within the U.S.
Country	United States
State	Arizona
Founded	February 18, 1891
Named for	Hopi designation for the Havasupai, Hualapai, and/or Yavapai tribes
Seat	Flagstaff
Largest city	Flagstaff
Area
• Total	18,661 sq mi (48,330 km2)
• Land	18,619 sq mi (48,220 km2)
• Water	43 sq mi (110 km2)  0.2%
Population  (2020)
• Total	145,101
• Estimate  (2023)	144,472
• Density	7.77563/sq mi (3.00219/km2)
Time zone	UTC−7 (Mountain)
Congressional district	2nd

Humphreys Peak, the highest point in Arizona

Great blue herons at Tonys Tank (near Mormon Lake), Coconino National Forest, San Francisco Peaks in background

Hahonogeh Canyon

Grand Canyon Railway 29 in Williams

Coconino County is a county in the North-Central part of the U.S. state of Arizona. Its population was 145,101 at the 2020 census. The county seat is Flagstaff. The county takes its name from Cohonino, a name applied to the Havasupai people. It is the second-largest county by area in the contiguous United States, behind San Bernardino County, California. It has 18,661 sq mi (48,300 km²), or 16.4% of Arizona's total area, and is larger than the nine smallest states in the U.S.

Coconino County comprises the Flagstaff metropolitan statistical area, Grand Canyon National Park, the federally recognized Havasupai Nation, and parts of the federally recognized Navajo, Hualapai, and Hopi nations. As a result, its relatively large Native American population makes up nearly 30% of the county's total population; it is mostly Navajo, with smaller numbers of other tribes.

The county was the setting for George Herriman's early 20th-century Krazy Kat comic strip.

History

After European Americans completed the Atlantic & Pacific Railroad in 1883, the region of northern Yavapai County began to undergo rapid growth. The people of the northern reaches had tired of the rigors of traveling to Prescott to conduct county business. They believed that they should have their own county jurisdiction, so petitioned in 1887 for secession from Yavapai and creation of a new Frisco County. This did not take place, but Coconino County was formed in 1891 and its seat was designated as Flagstaff.

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 18,661 square miles (48,330 km²), of which 18,619 square miles (48,220 km²) are land and 43 square miles (110 km²) (0.2%) are covered by water. It is the largest county by area in Arizona and the second-largest county in the United States (excluding boroughs in Alaska) after San Bernardino County in California. It has more land area than each of the following states: Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey, Rhode Island, and Vermont.

The highest natural point in the county, as well as the entire state, is Humphreys Peak at 12,637 ft or 3,852 m. The Barringer Meteor Crater is located in Coconino County.

Adjacent counties

• Mohave County – west
• Yavapai County – south
• Gila County – south
• Navajo County – east
• San Juan County, Utah – northeast
• Kane County, Utah – north

Indian reservations

Coconino County has 7,142 sq mi (18,497.7 km²) of federally designated Indian reservations, second in scale only to Apache County. In descending order of area within the county, the reservations are the Navajo, Hualapai, Hopi, Havasupai, and Kaibab. The Havasupai Reservation is the only one that lies entirely within the county's borders.

National protected areas

• Apache-Sitgreaves National Forest (part)
• Coconino National Forest (part)
• Glen Canyon National Recreation Area (part)
• Grand Canyon National Park (part)
• Kaibab National Forest (part)
• Prescott National Forest (part)
• Sunset Crater Volcano National Monument
• Vermilion Cliffs National Monument
• Walnut Canyon National Monument
• Wupatki National Monument

The Grand Canyon

Demographics

2010 census

As of the census of 2010, 134,421 people, 46,711 households, and 29,656 families were living in the county. The population density was 7.2 inhabitants per square mile (2.8 inhabitants/km²). The 63,321 housing units had an average density of 3.4 units per square mile (1.3 units/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 61.7% White (55.2% non-Hispanic White), 27.3% American Indian, 1.4% Asian, 1.2% African American, 0.1% Pacific Islander, 5.2% from other races, and 3.1% from two or more races. Those of Hispanic or Latino origin made up 13.5% of the population. The largest ancestry groups were:

Of the 46,711 households, 33.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 45.0% were married couples living together, 12.7% had a female householder with no husband present, 36.5% were not families, and 24.5% of all households were made up of individuals. The average household size was 2.69, and the average family size was 3.26. The median age was 31.0 years.

The median income for a household in the county was $49,510 and for a family was $58,841. Males had a median income of $42,331 versus $31,869 for females. The per capita income for the county was $22,632. About 11.6% of families and 18.6% of the population were below the poverty line, including 22.5% of those under age 18 and 13.8% of those age 65 or over.

Communities

Map showing the borders for incorporated and unincorporated areas in Coconino County. Also shown are borders for Indian reservations.

Cities

• Flagstaff (county seat)
• Page
• Sedona (mostly in Yavapai County)
• Williams

Towns

• Fredonia
• Tusayan

Census-designated places

Dinosaur track near Tuba City

Other communities

Ghost towns

• Canyon Diablo
• Two Guns

Indian reservations

• Havasupai Indian Reservation
• Hopi Reservation
• Hualapai Indian reservation
• Kaibab Indian Reservation
• Navajo Nation

County population ranking

The population ranking of the following table is based on the 2010 census of Coconino County. † county seat

Economy

Grand Canyon Airlines and Air Grand Canyon are headquartered on the grounds of Grand Canyon National Park Airport in Tusayan.

In 2017, the largest employers in Coconino County were:

According to the Bureau of Economic Analysis, in 2019 the employment of Coconino County in the following sectors was:

Transportation

Flagstaff in Coconino County is a major highway junction, with Interstate 40 extending to the east and the west (connecting with Williams and Winslow, Arizona, for example), and with Interstate 17 extending south from Flagstaff to Phoenix and Maricopa County. U.S. Routes 89 and 180 extend north from Flagstaff and connect it with the Grand Canyon National Park.

The Grand Canyon National Park Airport is a public airport located in Tusayan, near the South Rim of the Grand Canyon.

Flagstaff Pulliam Airport is a public airport located four miles (6.4 km) south of the central business district of Flagstaff, it is mostly used for general aviation but is also served by two commercial airlines.

There is a Greyhound Bus Lines station in Flagstaff, with regular service east–west along Interstate 40, and also north–south service to Phoenix along Interstate 17.

Amtrak has a passenger railroad stations in Flagstaff and formerly in Williams, with daily service on the Southwest Chief to the east towards Chicago, and to the west towards Los Angeles.

The Grand Canyon Railway, a tourist railroad, links Williams with the canyon's South Rim in the Grand Canyon National Park and has service every day except Christmas.

The Mountain Line provides public transportation bus service in the Flagstaff area.

Major highways

Education

School districts include:

K-12:

Elementary:

• Chevelon Butte School District
• Maine Consolidated School District

According to Coconino County's parcel viewer, some reservation areas are in the "Unorganized School District #00". According to Arizona law, an unorganized school district is one that does not have a high school. The 2010 U.S. Census school district map for Coconino County shows areas in the Havasupai and Hualapai reservations as being in "School District Not Defined".

Charter schools:

• Flagstaff Arts and Leadership Academy
• Northland Preparatory Academy

Bureau of Indian Education (BIE)-operated and affiliated tribal schools

Tertiary education:

• Coconino County Community College
• Diné College Tuba City Center
• Northern Arizona University

See also

In Spanish: Condado de Coconino para niños