Empalme, Sonora facts for kids
Empalme is a city located on the south-central coast of the Mexican state of Sonora. It's part of the larger municipality that shares its name. In 2005, the city had about 40,630 people living there, while the whole municipality, which covers an area of about 708.53 square kilometers (273.56 sq mi), had 50,663 residents. Empalme is mostly surrounded by the much larger municipality of Guaymas, except for its beautiful coastline along the Gulf of California, also known as the Sea of Cortes.
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What's in a Name?
The word empalme comes from the Spanish word for "junction." This name makes a lot of sense for the city's history! At first, the area was called Kilómetro Nueve (which means "Kilometer Nine") because it was nine kilometers away from the port city of Guaymas. Later, it became known as El Empalme, meaning "the junction." Eventually, the "El" was dropped, and it simply became Empalme.
A City Built for Trains
Empalme is unique because it wasn't built by local people like many other Mexican towns. Instead, it was completely built by a foreign company called the Utah Construction Company. They were hired by the Southern Pacific Railroad Company. Very few local materials were used in its construction. The railroad company owned a major railway, which made it easy to bring in all the building materials and workers.
The main reason Empalme was built was to create a place where the Southern Pacific Railroad could repair its trains in Mexico. They built a huge workshop and a roundhouse (a building for turning and storing locomotives). These buildings are still there today, though they aren't used for repairs anymore. Train maintenance is now done in Guadalajara, Jalisco. Many of the original homes built in Empalme still stand, looking just as they did when they were first built.
One special natural feature the builders did use was planting hundreds of Ficus microcarpa trees. Locals call them Yucateco trees because they were brought from southern Mexico, especially the state of Yucatán. These trees can grow taller than 100 feet! They were perfect for Empalme's hot and humid weather. Today, these trees are one of the most recognizable things about the town. In some areas, they grow so thick that they cover entire streets, making it feel like you're driving through a green tunnel.
Empalme's Weather
Empalme has a desert climate. This means it has warm winters and very hot summers.
| Climate data for Empalme, Sonora (1981–2000) | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Record high °C (°F) | 32.9 (91.2) |
36.6 (97.9) |
39.1 (102.4) |
40.6 (105.1) |
41.5 (106.7) |
42.5 (108.5) |
42.0 (107.6) |
41.9 (107.4) |
42.3 (108.1) |
41.1 (106.0) |
35.0 (95.0) |
31.4 (88.5) |
42.5 (108.5) |
| Mean daily maximum °C (°F) | 28.2 (82.8) |
27.2 (81.0) |
29.2 (84.6) |
33.7 (92.7) |
33.4 (92.1) |
36.2 (97.2) |
37.7 (99.9) |
36.1 (97.0) |
36.6 (97.9) |
35.8 (96.4) |
29.3 (84.7) |
26.1 (79.0) |
32.5 (90.5) |
| Daily mean °C (°F) | 19.1 (66.4) |
18.8 (65.8) |
20.5 (68.9) |
24.3 (75.7) |
25.4 (77.7) |
29.2 (84.6) |
31.7 (89.1) |
30.9 (87.6) |
30.5 (86.9) |
27.5 (81.5) |
21.3 (70.3) |
18.3 (64.9) |
24.8 (76.6) |
| Mean daily minimum °C (°F) | 10.0 (50.0) |
10.4 (50.7) |
11.8 (53.2) |
15.0 (59.0) |
17.5 (63.5) |
22.1 (71.8) |
25.7 (78.3) |
25.6 (78.1) |
24.3 (75.7) |
19.2 (66.6) |
13.3 (55.9) |
10.4 (50.7) |
17.1 (62.8) |
| Record low °C (°F) | −1.5 (29.3) |
−1.2 (29.8) |
4.6 (40.3) |
6.7 (44.1) |
10.5 (50.9) |
14.2 (57.6) |
10.5 (50.9) |
12.1 (53.8) |
14.7 (58.5) |
10.3 (50.5) |
4.0 (39.2) |
1.0 (33.8) |
−1.5 (29.3) |
| Average precipitation mm (inches) | 25.8 (1.02) |
25.6 (1.01) |
10.5 (0.41) |
2.3 (0.09) |
2.0 (0.08) |
0.3 (0.01) |
14.9 (0.59) |
47.4 (1.87) |
33.0 (1.30) |
10.4 (0.41) |
30.1 (1.19) |
30.3 (1.19) |
232.3 (9.15) |
| Average precipitation days (≥ 0.1 mm) | 2.1 | 2.5 | 1.0 | 0.5 | 0.5 | 0.4 | 3.3 | 6.0 | 4.3 | 1.4 | 2.0 | 2.8 | 26.7 |
| Average relative humidity (%) | 59 | 56 | 53 | 48 | 53 | 58 | 65 | 69 | 66 | 59 | 56 | 60 | 58 |
| Mean monthly sunshine hours | 251 | 246 | 300 | 307 | 366 | 347 | 313 | 298 | 295 | 297 | 264 | 265 | 3,549 |
| Source 1: Servicio Meteorologico Nacional | |||||||||||||
| Source 2: Ogimet (sun 1981–2010) | |||||||||||||
How Empalme Makes a Living
The economy of Empalme relies on several activities:
- Farming: Growing crops like wheat, melon, and squash. However, farming can be tough here because the soil is salty and there isn't much water.
- Ranching: Raising cattle. In 2000, there were over 9,000 cattle reported in the area.
- Fishing: With 30 kilometers of coastline, fishing is important. Fishermen catch things like shrimp, shark, crab, and octopus. In recent years, local catches have become smaller. This is partly due to changes in the ocean water, including warming from a nearby power plant.
- Industry: There's an industrial area nearby with small factories that change raw materials into finished products. The biggest employer in Empalme is still the railroad repair facilities, which employed over 3,000 workers in 2000.
There are also plans to build a large port and industrial area along the coast. This would help local businesses in Sonora send and receive goods. It could also become a deep-sea port for energy products for the southwestern United States. One company, Omanor S. A., is working on a big project to build a terminal for oil products.
Empalme also has potential for tourism. Its long sandy beaches could attract visitors, but they haven't been fully developed yet.
Famous People from Empalme
Empalme has been home to several well-known individuals:
- Jesse Pintado (1969-2006), a talented guitarist for the band Napalm Death.
- Luis Alcaraz Pineda, a professional boxer.
- Jesús Francisco López, a professional footballer.
- Ronnie Camacho, a professional baseball first baseman.
- José Luis Castillo, a professional boxer.
- Hernán Márquez, a professional boxer.
- Miguel Gaspar, a professional baseball catcher.
- Jesús Zambrano Grijalva, a well-known politician.
See also
In Spanish: Empalme para niños
