Miami, Arizona facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Miami, Arizona
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Town
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| Miami | ||
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Location of Miami in Gila County, Arizona
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 Miami, Arizona
Location in Arizona
Miami, Arizona
Location in the United States
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| Country |  United States |
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| State |  Arizona |
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| County | Gila | |
| Area | ||
| • Total | 0.89 sq mi (2.31 km2) | |
| • Land | 0.89 sq mi (2.31 km2) | |
| • Water | 0.00 sq mi (0.00 km2) | |
| Elevation | 3,402 ft (1,037 m) | |
| Population
(2020)
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| • Total | 1,541 | |
| • Density | 1,729.52/sq mi (667.73/km2) | |
| Time zone | UTC-7 (MST (no DST)) | |
| ZIP code |
85539
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| Area code | 928 | |
| FIPS code | 04-46350 | |
| GNIS feature ID | 31789 | |
Miami (in Western Apache: Goshtłʼish Tú) is a small town in Gila County, Arizona, United States. It's known as a classic Western town that grew because of copper mining. The old downtown area of Miami has been partly fixed up. You can visit the Bullion Plaza Museum to learn about the area's culture, mining, and ranching history.
In 2020, about 1,541 people lived in Miami.
Contents
Exploring Miami's Location and Surroundings
Miami is located in Arizona at 33°23.8'N 110°52.3'W. The town covers a total area of about 2.3 square kilometers (0.89 square miles), and all of it is land.
Miami is right next to another town called Globe. It's also close to the San Carlos Apache Indian Reservation. Miami, Globe, and nearby smaller areas like Inspiration are often called Globe-Miami. The town sits on the side of the Pinal Mountains. It is surrounded by the Tonto National Forest on most sides. U.S. Route 60, a major highway, runs through Miami. The town is also served by the Arizona Eastern Railway.
People and Community in Miami
The population of Miami has changed over the years, often depending on the mining industry. Here's a look at how many people have lived in Miami during different census years:
| Historical population | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Census | Pop. | %± | |
| 1910 | 1,390 | — | |
| 1920 | 6,689 | 381.2% | |
| 1930 | 7,693 | 15.0% | |
| 1940 | 4,722 | −38.6% | |
| 1950 | 4,329 | −8.3% | |
| 1960 | 3,350 | −22.6% | |
| 1970 | 3,394 | 1.3% | |
| 1980 | 2,716 | −20.0% | |
| 1990 | 2,018 | −25.7% | |
| 2000 | 1,936 | −4.1% | |
| 2010 | 1,837 | −5.1% | |
| 2020 | 1,541 | −16.1% | |
| U.S. Decennial Census | |||
In 2000, there were 1,936 people living in Miami. Many families lived there, and about 31.6% of households had children under 18. The average age of people in Miami was 36 years old.
Most jobs in Miami are related to copper mining. For example, in 2002, a company called Freeport-McMoRan employed almost 600 people at its Miami operations. This included workers at the smelter and the mine.
Miami's Rich Mining History
The Miami mine is owned and run by Freeport-McMoRan. Mining started here in 1911. In 1915, the first plant in the country to use a special method called "froth flotation" for processing copper was built here. This method helps separate copper from other minerals.
Later, in 1926, the mine started using "vat leaching" to get copper from oxide minerals. Copper was mined underground until after World War II. After the war, miners began using open-pit mining, which means digging large holes in the ground.
The plant's smelter, which melts copper ore, was updated in 1974 and again in 1992 to meet clean air rules. A new process called "solvent extraction and electrowinning" (SX-EW) started in 1979. This new method was so successful that the older vat leaching stopped by the mid-1980s. The main processing plant also closed in 1986.
Mining for copper was paused in September 2015. However, the SX-EW operations still continue. The Miami smelter and a plant that makes copper rods are still working. In 2016, Miami produced 25 million pounds of copper. In 2017, it produced 19 million pounds and employed over 740 people.
Another important mine, the Pinto Valley mine, is also located close to Miami.
Getting Around Miami: Transportation
The town of Miami has its own bus service called Cobre Valley Community Transit. This service helps people travel locally within Miami and to nearby Globe.
Greyhound Lines, a national bus company, also serves Miami. Their route goes from Phoenix to El Paso and stops in Miami. The Miami stop also serves the town of Globe.
Famous People from Miami
Many interesting people have come from Miami, Arizona:
- John E. Bacon – A state senator in Arizona.
- Romana Acosta Bañuelos – She served as the Treasurer of the United States.
- Joe Castro – A talented jazz pianist.
- Jack Elam – A famous actor known for his roles in Western movies.
- Brady Ellison – An Olympic archer who won a bronze medal in 2016.
- Matt Pagnozzi – A professional baseball player for the Cleveland Indians.
- Rueben Martinez – An activist who received a special award called the MacArthur Fellow.
- Felix L. Sparks – An American military leader who helped free prisoners from a concentration camp during World War II. His story was told in the Netflix series The Liberator.
- Esteban Edward Torres – An ambassador and politician.
- Richard F. Pedersen – A United States Ambassador to Hungary.
- Manuel V. Mendoza – A World War II hero who received the Medal Of Honor.
- Alfredo Gutierrez – A politician and Arizona State Senate majority leader.
- Nancy Gonzales - The first woman of color to become Provost and Executive Vice President of Arizona State University.
Miami's Climate
Miami has a semi-arid climate. This means it's generally dry, but it does get some rain.
| Climate data for Miami, Arizona, 1991–2020 normals, extremes 1914–2008 | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Record high °F (°C) | 81 (27) |
84 (29) |
93 (34) |
99 (37) |
106 (41) |
111 (44) |
113 (45) |
110 (43) |
108 (42) |
104 (40) |
89 (32) |
79 (26) |
113 (45) |
| Mean daily maximum °F (°C) | 62.4 (16.9) |
65.0 (18.3) |
71.6 (22.0) |
78.4 (25.8) |
87.3 (30.7) |
97.2 (36.2) |
99.5 (37.5) |
98.3 (36.8) |
94.2 (34.6) |
84.0 (28.9) |
71.9 (22.2) |
61.1 (16.2) |
80.9 (27.2) |
| Daily mean °F (°C) | 49.3 (9.6) |
51.8 (11.0) |
57.2 (14.0) |
63.6 (17.6) |
72.7 (22.6) |
82.4 (28.0) |
85.8 (29.9) |
84.6 (29.2) |
79.9 (26.6) |
69.3 (20.7) |
57.6 (14.2) |
48.1 (8.9) |
66.9 (19.4) |
| Mean daily minimum °F (°C) | 36.3 (2.4) |
38.5 (3.6) |
42.7 (5.9) |
48.7 (9.3) |
58.1 (14.5) |
67.7 (19.8) |
72.1 (22.3) |
70.9 (21.6) |
65.5 (18.6) |
54.5 (12.5) |
43.3 (6.3) |
35.2 (1.8) |
52.8 (11.6) |
| Record low °F (°C) | 8 (−13) |
14 (−10) |
19 (−7) |
29 (−2) |
32 (0) |
46 (8) |
54 (12) |
56 (13) |
43 (6) |
26 (−3) |
20 (−7) |
14 (−10) |
8 (−13) |
| Average precipitation inches (mm) | 2.29 (58) |
2.19 (56) |
1.68 (43) |
0.44 (11) |
0.30 (7.6) |
0.27 (6.9) |
2.24 (57) |
2.56 (65) |
1.14 (29) |
0.99 (25) |
1.18 (30) |
1.94 (49) |
17.22 (437.5) |
| Average precipitation days (≥ 0.01 in) | 4.9 | 4.7 | 4.3 | 2.6 | 1.7 | 1.5 | 7.3 | 8.7 | 4.3 | 3.5 | 2.7 | 4.5 | 50.7 |
| Source 1: NOAA | |||||||||||||
| Source 2: XMACIS2 | |||||||||||||
Images for kids
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Chrysocolla and quartz from the Live Oak mine. This mine is famous for these minerals.
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An antique shop in downtown Miami.
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One of five Luten arch bridges over Bloody Tanks Wash in downtown Miami.
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See also
In Spanish: Miami (Arizona) para niños
