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Tucson (; ; ) is a city in
Pima County, Arizona Pima County ( ) is a County (United States), county in the south central region of the U.S. state of Arizona, one of 15 List of counties in Arizona, counties in the state. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population was 1 ...
, United States, and its
county seat A county seat is an administrative center, seat of government, or capital city of a county or parish (administrative division), civil parish. The term is in use in five countries: Canada, China, Hungary, Romania, and the United States. An equiva ...
. It is the second-most populous city in Arizona, behind Phoenix, with a population of 542,630 in the 2020 United States census. The Tucson metropolitan statistical area had 1.043 million residents in 2020 and forms part of the Tucson-Nogales combined statistical area. Tucson and Phoenix anchor the
Arizona Sun Corridor The Arizona Sun Corridor, shortened Sun Corridor, is a megaregion, or megapolitan area, in the southern area of the U.S. state of Arizona - comprising approximately 85 percent of the state's population. The Sun Corridor is comparable to Indiana ...
. The city is southeast of Phoenix and north of the
United States–Mexico border United may refer to: Places * United, Pennsylvania, an unincorporated community * United, West Virginia, an unincorporated community Arts and entertainment Films * ''United'' (2003 film), a Norwegian film * ''United'' (2011 film), a BBC Two f ...
It is home to the
University of Arizona The University of Arizona (Arizona, U of A, UArizona, or UA) is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Tucson, Arizona, United States. Founded in 1885 by the 13th Arizona Territorial Legislature, it ...
. Major incorporated suburbs of Tucson include
Oro Valley Oro Valley, incorporated in 1974, is a suburban town located north of Tucson, Arizona, United States, in Pima County. According to the 2020 census, the population of the town is 47,070, an increase from 29,700 in 2000. Dubbed the "Upscale Tech ...
and
Marana Marana may refer to: * Maraña, a village in León, Spain * Maraṇa, the Pali/Sanskrit term for death * Marana, Arizona Marana () is a List of municipalities in Arizona, town that mostly lies in Pima County, Arizona, Pima County with a smal ...
northwest of the city, Sahuarita south of the city, and South Tucson in an enclave south of downtown. Communities in the vicinity of Tucson (some within or overlapping the city limits) include
Casas Adobes Casas Adobes (Spanish: "''Adobe Houses''") is an unincorporated community and census-designated place (CDP) located in the northern metropolitan area of Tucson, Arizona (in Pima County). The population was 66,795 at the 2010 census. Casas Ad ...
, Catalina Foothills, Flowing Wells, Midvale Park, Tanque Verde, Tortolita, and
Vail Vail is a home rule municipality in Eagle County, Colorado, United States. The population of the town was 4,835 in 2020. Home to Vail Ski Resort, the largest ski mountain in Colorado, the town is known for its hotels, dining, and for the nume ...
. Towns outside the Tucson metropolitan area include Three Points, Benson to the southeast, Catalina and
Oracle An oracle is a person or thing considered to provide insight, wise counsel or prophetic predictions, most notably including precognition of the future, inspired by deities. If done through occultic means, it is a form of divination. Descript ...
to the north, and Green Valley to the south. Tucson was founded as a military fort by the Spanish when Hugo O'Conor authorized the construction of
Presidio San Agustín del Tucsón Presidio San Agustín del Tucsón was a presidio (Spanish colonization of the Americas, colonial Spanish fort) located within Tucson, Arizona, Tucson, Arizona, United States. The original fortress was built by Spanish Empire, Spanish soldiers du ...
in 1775. It was included in the state of
Sonora Sonora (), officially Estado Libre y Soberano de Sonora (), is one of the 31 states which, along with Mexico City, comprise the Administrative divisions of Mexico, Federal Entities of Mexico. The state is divided into Municipalities of Sonora, 72 ...
after Mexico gained independence from the
Spanish Empire The Spanish Empire, sometimes referred to as the Hispanic Monarchy (political entity), Hispanic Monarchy or the Catholic Monarchy, was a colonial empire that existed between 1492 and 1976. In conjunction with the Portuguese Empire, it ushered ...
in 1821. The United States acquired a region of present-day southern Arizona and southwestern
New Mexico New Mexico is a state in the Southwestern United States, Southwestern region of the United States. It is one of the Mountain States of the southern Rocky Mountains, sharing the Four Corners region with Utah, Colorado, and Arizona. It also ...
from Mexico under the
Gadsden Purchase The Gadsden Purchase ( "La Mesilla sale") is a region of present-day southern Arizona and southwestern New Mexico that the United States acquired from Mexico by the Treaty of Mesilla, which took effect on June 8, 1854. The purchase included lan ...
in 1853. Tucson served as the capital of the
Arizona Territory The Territory of Arizona, commonly known as the Arizona Territory, was a territory of the United States that existed from February 24, 1863, until February 14, 1912, when the remaining extent of the territory was admitted to the Union as the ...
from 1867 to 1877. Tucson was Arizona's largest city by population during the territorial period and early statehood, until it was surpassed by Phoenix by 1920. Nevertheless, its population growth remained strong during the late 20th century. Tucson was the first American city to be designated a "City of Gastronomy" by
UNESCO The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO ) is a List of specialized agencies of the United Nations, specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) with the aim of promoting world peace and International secur ...
in 2015. The Spanish name of the city, (), is derived from the O'odham (). is a stative verb meaning "(be) black, (be) dark". is (in this usage) a noun referring to the base or foundation of something. The name is commonly translated into English as "the base f the hillis black", a reference to a basalt-covered hill now known as Sentinel Peak. Tucson is sometimes referred to as the Old
Pueblo Pueblo refers to the settlements of the Pueblo peoples, Native American tribes in the Southwestern United States, currently in New Mexico, Arizona, and Texas. The permanent communities, including some of the oldest continually occupied settlement ...
and Optics Valley, the latter referring to its optical science and telescopes known worldwide.


History

The Tucson area was probably first visited by
Paleo-Indians Paleo-Indians were the first peoples who entered and subsequently inhabited the Americas towards the end of the Late Pleistocene period. The prefix ''paleo-'' comes from . The term ''Paleo-Indians'' applies specifically to the lithic period in ...
, who were known to have been in southern Arizona about 12,000 years ago. Recent archaeological excavations near the Santa Cruz River found a village site dating from 2100 BC. The floodplain of the Santa Cruz River was extensively farmed during the Early Agricultural Period, c. 1200 BC to AD 150. These people hunted, gathered wild plants and nuts, and ate
corn Maize (; ''Zea mays''), also known as corn in North American English, is a tall stout Poaceae, grass that produces cereal grain. It was domesticated by indigenous peoples of Mexico, indigenous peoples in southern Mexico about 9,000 years ago ...
,
beans A bean is the seed of some plants in the legume family (Fabaceae) used as a vegetable for human consumption or animal feed. The seeds are often preserved through drying (a ''pulse''), but fresh beans are also sold. Dried beans are tradition ...
, and other crops grown using irrigation canals they constructed. The Early Ceramic period occupation of Tucson had the first extensive use of pottery vessels for cooking and storage. The groups designated as the
Hohokam Hohokam was a culture in the Indigenous peoples of the North American Southwest, North American Southwest in what is now part of south-central Arizona, United States, and Sonora, Mexico. It existed between 300 and 1500 CE, with cultural p ...
lived in the area from AD 600 to 1450 and are known for their vast irrigation canal systems and their red-on-brown pottery. Italian
Jesuit The Society of Jesus (; abbreviation: S.J. or SJ), also known as the Jesuit Order or the Jesuits ( ; ), is a religious order (Catholic), religious order of clerics regular of pontifical right for men in the Catholic Church headquartered in Rom ...
missionary
Eusebio Francisco Kino Eusebio Francisco Kino, SJ (, ; 10 August 1645 – 15 March 1711), often referred to as Father Kino, was an Italian Jesuit, missionary, geographer, explorer, cartographer, mathematician and astronomer born in the Bishopric of Trent, Holy Roma ...
first visited the Santa Cruz River valley in 1692. He founded the
Mission San Xavier del Bac Mission San Xavier del Bac () is a historic Spanish Catholic mission about south of downtown Tucson, Arizona, on the Tohono O'odham Nation San Xavier Indian Reservation. The mission was founded in 1692 by Eusebio Kino in the center of a cent ...
in 1700, about upstream from the site of the settlement of Tucson. A separate Convento settlement was founded downstream along the Santa Cruz River, near the base of what is now known as "A" mountain.
Hugo Oconór Hugh O'Conor (1732 — March 8, 1779), better known by his Spanish name Hugo O'Cónor, was a military governor of northern Mexico. He was appointed governor of Texas by the Spanish viceroy of New Spain in 1767. It is recorded that O'Conor rode w ...
(Hugo O'Conor), the founding father of the city of Tucson, Arizona, authorized the construction of a military fort in that location, ''
Presidio San Agustín del Tucsón Presidio San Agustín del Tucsón was a presidio (Spanish colonization of the Americas, colonial Spanish fort) located within Tucson, Arizona, Tucson, Arizona, United States. The original fortress was built by Spanish Empire, Spanish soldiers du ...
,'' on August 20, 1775 (the present downtown
Pima County Courthouse Pima County Courthouse is the former main county courthouse building in downtown Tucson, Arizona It is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. It was designed by Roy Place in 1928 in Mission Revival architecture, Mission Revival and ...
was built near this site). During the Spanish period of the presidio, attacks such as the Second Battle of Tucson were repeatedly mounted by the
Apache The Apache ( ) are several Southern Athabaskan language-speaking peoples of the Southwestern United States, Southwest, the Southern Plains and Northern Mexico. They are linguistically related to the Navajo. They migrated from the Athabascan ho ...
. Eventually, the town came to be called ''Tucsón,'' a Spanish version of the O'odham word for the area. It was included in the state of Sonora after Mexico gained independence from the
Kingdom of Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...
and its
Spanish Empire The Spanish Empire, sometimes referred to as the Hispanic Monarchy (political entity), Hispanic Monarchy or the Catholic Monarchy, was a colonial empire that existed between 1492 and 1976. In conjunction with the Portuguese Empire, it ushered ...
in 1821 During the
Mexican–American War The Mexican–American War (Spanish language, Spanish: ''guerra de Estados Unidos-México, guerra mexicano-estadounidense''), also known in the United States as the Mexican War, and in Mexico as the United States intervention in Mexico, ...
in 1846–1848, Tucsón was captured by
Philip St. George Cooke Philip St. George Cooke (June 13, 1809 – March 20, 1895) was a career United States Army cavalry officer who served as a Union General in the American Civil War. He is noted for his authorship of an Army cavalry manual, and is sometimes calle ...
with the
Mormon Battalion The Mormon Battalion was the only religious unit in United States military history in federal service, recruited solely from one religious body and having a religious title as the unit designation. The volunteers served from July 1846 to Jul ...
, but it soon returned to Mexican control as Cooke proceeded to the west, establishing
Cooke's Wagon Road Cooke's Wagon Road or Cooke's Road was the first wagon road between the Rio Grande and the Colorado River to San Diego, through the Mexican provinces of Nuevo México, Chihuahua, Sonora and Alta California, established by Philip St. George Coo ...
to California. Tucsón was not included in the
Mexican Cession The Mexican Cession () is the region in the modern-day Western United States that Mexico Mexico, officially the United Mexican States, is a country in North America. It is the northernmost country in Latin America, and borders the United S ...
to the United States following the war. Cooke's road through Tucsón became one of the important routes into California during the
California Gold Rush The California gold rush (1848–1855) began on January 24, 1848, when gold was found by James W. Marshall at Sutter's Mill in Coloma, California. The news of gold brought approximately 300,000 people to California from the rest of the U ...
of 1849. The US acquired those portions of modern-day Arizona that lay south of the
Gila River The Gila River (; O'odham ima Keli Akimel or simply Akimel, Quechan: Haa Siʼil, Maricopa language: Xiil) is a tributary of the Colorado River flowing through New Mexico and Arizona in the United States. The river drains an arid watershed of ...
by treaty from Mexico in the
Gadsden Purchase The Gadsden Purchase ( "La Mesilla sale") is a region of present-day southern Arizona and southwestern New Mexico that the United States acquired from Mexico by the Treaty of Mesilla, which took effect on June 8, 1854. The purchase included lan ...
on June 8, 1854. Under this treaty and purchase, Tucsón became a part of the United States of America. The American military did not formally take over control until March 1856. In time, the name of the town became standardized in English in its current form, where the stress is on the first syllable, the "u" is long, and the "c" is silent. In 1857, Tucson was established as a stage station on the
San Antonio–San Diego Mail Line The San Antonio–San Diego Mail Line, also known as the Jackass Mail, was the earliest overland stagecoach and mail operation from the Eastern United States to California, in operation between 1857 and 1861. It was created, organized and financed ...
. In 1858, it became third division headquarters of the
Butterfield Overland Mail Butterfield Overland Mail (officially Overland Mail Company)Waterman L. Ormsby, edited by Lyle H. Wright and Josephine M. Bynum, "The Butterfield Overland Mail", The Huntington Library, San Marino, California, 1991. was a stagecoach service in ...
and operated until the line was shut down in March 1861. The Overland Mail Corporation attempted to continue running, but following the Bascom Affair, devastating Apache attacks on the stations and coaches ended operations in August 1861. Tucson was incorporated in 1877, making it the oldest incorporated city in
Arizona Arizona is a U.S. state, state in the Southwestern United States, Southwestern region of the United States, sharing the Four Corners region of the western United States with Colorado, New Mexico, and Utah. It also borders Nevada to the nort ...
. From 1877 to 1878, the area suffered a rash of
stagecoach A stagecoach (also: stage coach, stage, road coach, ) is a four-wheeled public transport coach used to carry paying passengers and light packages on journeys long enough to need a change of horses. It is strongly sprung and generally drawn by ...
robberies. Most notable were the two holdups committed by masked road agent William Whitney Brazelton. Brazelton held up two stages in the summer of 1878 near Point of Mountain Station, about northwest of Tucson.
John Clum John Philip Clum (September 1, 1851 – May 2, 1932) was an Indian agent for the San Carlos Apache Indian Reservation in the Arizona Territory. He implemented a limited form of self-government on the reservation that was so successful that oth ...
, of
Tombstone, Arizona Tombstone is a city in Cochise County, Arizona, Cochise County, Arizona, United States, founded in 1879 by Prospecting, prospector Ed Schieffelin in what was then Pima County, Arizona, Pima County, Arizona Territory. It became one of the last ...
, fame, was one of the passengers. Pima County Sheriff Charles A. Shibell and his citizen posse killed Brazelton on August 19, 1878, in a
mesquite Mesquite is a common name for some plants in the genera ''Neltuma'' and '' Strombocarpa'', which contain over 50 species of spiny, deep-rooted leguminous shrubs and small trees. They are native to dry areas in the Americas. Until 2022, these ge ...
bosque A bosque ( ) is a type of gallery forest habitat found along the riparian flood plains of streams, river banks, and lakes. It derives its name from the Spanish word for "forest", pronounced . Setting In the predominantly arid or semiari ...
along the Santa Cruz River south of Tucson. Brazelton had been suspected of highway robbery in the Tucson area, the
Prescott Prescott may refer to: People Given name * Prescott E. Bloom, American lawyer and politician * Prescott Bush, American banker and politician * Samuel Prescott Bush, American industrialist * Prescott F. Hall, American lawyer, author and eugenicist ...
region, and the
Silver City, New Mexico Silver City is a town in Grant County, New Mexico, United States. It is the county seat and the home of Western New Mexico University. As of the 2010 census the population was 10,315. As of the 2020 census, the population was 9,704. History ...
area. Because of the crimes and threats to his business, John J. Valentine Sr. of Wells, Fargo & Co. had sent Bob Paul, a special agent and future Pima County sheriff, to investigate. The US Army established Fort Lowell, then east of Tucson, to help protect settlers and travelers from Apache attacks. In 1882,
Morgan Earp Morgan Seth Earp (April 24, 1851 – March 18, 1882) was an American sheriff and Marshal, lawman. He served as Tombstone, Arizona, Tombstone, Arizona Territory, Arizona's Special Policeman when he helped his brothers Virgil Earp, Virgil and W ...
was fatally shot, in what was later referred to in the press as the "Earp–Clanton Tragedy". Marietta Spence, wife of
Pete Spence Pete Spence (born Elliot Larkin Ferguson; c. 1852–1914) was a small-time criminal known for his association with outlaw Cowboys Frank and Tom McLaury, and Ike and Billy Clanton, of Tombstone, Arizona Territory. Spence was also a suspect in ...
, one of the
Cochise County Cowboys The Cochise County Cowboys is the modern name for a loosely associated group of outlaws living in Pima and Cochise Counties in Arizona in the late 19th century. The term "cowboy", as opposed to " cowhand," had only begun to come into wider use ...
, testified at the coroner's inquest on Earp's killing and implicated
Frank Stilwell Frank C. Stilwell (1856 – March 20, 1882) was an outlaw Cowboy who killed at least two men in Cochise County during 1877–82. Both killings were considered to have been self-defense. For four months he was a deputy sheriff in Tombstone, Ar ...
in the murder. The
coroner A coroner is a government or judicial official who is empowered to conduct or order an inquest into the manner or cause of death. The official may also investigate or confirm the identity of an unknown person who has been found dead within th ...
's jury concluded Pete Spence, Stilwell, Frederick Bode, and Florentino "Indian Charlie" Cruz were the prime suspects in the assassination of Morgan Earp. Deputy U.S. Marshal
Wyatt Earp Wyatt Berry Stapp Earp (March 19, 1848 – January 13, 1929) was an American lawman in the American West, including Dodge City, Kansas, Dodge City, Wichita, Kansas, Wichita, and Tombstone, Arizona, Tombstone. Earp was involved in the gunfight ...
gathered a few trusted friends and accompanied
Virgil Earp Virgil Walter Earp (July 18, 1843 – October 19, 1905) was an American lawman. He was both deputy U.S. Marshal and City Marshal of Tombstone, Arizona, Tombstone, Arizona Territory, Arizona, when he led his younger brothers Wyatt Earp, Wyatt a ...
and his family as they traveled to Benson to take a train to California. They found Stilwell apparently lying in wait for Virgil Earp at the Tucson station and killed Stilwell on the tracks. After killing Stilwell, Wyatt deputized others and conducted a
vendetta Vendetta may refer to: * Feud or vendetta, a long-running argument or fight Film * ''Vendetta'' (1919 film), a film featuring Harry Liedtke * ''Vendetta'' (1950 film), an American drama produced by Howard Hughes * ''Vendetta'' (1986 film), an ...
, killing three more cowboys over the next few days before leaving the territory. Jim Leavy had built a reputation of having fought in at least 16 gunfights. On June 5, 1882, Leavy had an argument with faro dealer John Murphy in Tucson. The two agreed to have a duel on the Mexican border, but after hearing of Leavy's exploits as a gunfighter, Murphy decided to ambush Leavy instead. Together with two of his friends, Murphy ambushed Leavy as he was leaving the Palace Hotel, killing him. According to Wright, the three co-defendants in Leavy's murder later escaped from the Pima County Jail, but were later recaptured. Murphy and Gibson were found in Fenner, California, living under assumed names; they were retried for the murder before being found not guilty. Moyer was captured in Denver and sentenced to life in Yuma Territorial Prison, but was pardoned in 1888.Jim Levy – The Jewish Gunfighter
/ref>Rosa, Joseph G. ''Jim Leavy, Gunfighter'' True West Magazine


Post-frontier life

As other settlers tried to overcome violent frontier society, in 1885, the territorial legislature founded the
University of Arizona The University of Arizona (Arizona, U of A, UArizona, or UA) is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Tucson, Arizona, United States. Founded in 1885 by the 13th Arizona Territorial Legislature, it ...
as a
land-grant college A land-grant university (also called land-grant college or land-grant institution) is an institution of higher education in the United States designated by a state to receive the benefits of the Morrill Acts of 1862 and 1890, or a beneficiary ...
on what was overgrazed ranchland between Tucson and Fort Lowell. In 1890, Asians made up 4.2% of the city's population. They were predominantly Chinese men who had been recruited as workers on the railroads. By 1900, 7,531 people lived in Tucson. By 1910, the population increased to 13,913. About this time, the U.S.
Veterans Administration The United States Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) is a Cabinet-level executive branch department of the federal government charged with providing lifelong healthcare services to eligible military veterans at the 170 VA medical centers an ...
had begun construction of the present Veterans Hospital. The city's clean, dry air made it a destination for many veterans who had been gassed in World War I and needed
respiratory therapy A respiratory therapist is a specialized healthcare practitioner trained in critical care and cardio-pulmonary medicine in order to work therapeutically with people who have acute critical conditions, cardiac and pulmonary disease. Respirato ...
. In addition, these dry and high-altitude conditions were thought to be ideal for the treatment of tuberculosis, for which no cures were known before antibiotics were developed against it. The city continued to grow, with the population increasing to 20,292 in 1920 and 36,818 in 1940. In 2006, the estimated population of
Pima County Pima County ( ) is a County (United States), county in the south central region of the U.S. state of Arizona, one of 15 List of counties in Arizona, counties in the state. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population was 1 ...
, in which Tucson is located, passed one million, while the City of Tucson's population was 535,000. In 1912, Arizona was admitted as a state. This increased the number of flags that had been flown over Tucson to five: Spanish, Mexican, United States, Confederate, and the State of Arizona. During the territorial and early statehood periods, Tucson was Arizona's largest city and commercial center, while Phoenix was the seat of state government (beginning in 1889) and agriculture. The development of Tucson Municipal Airport increased the city's prominence. Between 1910 and 1920, though, Phoenix surpassed Tucson in population, and has continued to outpace Tucson in growth. In recent years, both Tucson and Phoenix have had some of the highest growth rates of any jurisdiction in the United States.


Geography

According to the
United States Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau, officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the Federal statistical system, U.S. federal statistical system, responsible for producing data about the American people and American economy, econ ...
, as of 2010, the City of Tucson has a land area of . The city's elevation is above sea level (as measured at the Tucson International Airport). Tucson is on an
alluvial plain An alluvial plain is a plain (an essentially flat landform) created by the deposition of sediment over a long period by one or more rivers coming from highland regions, from which alluvial soil forms. A ''floodplain'' is part of the process, bei ...
in the
Sonoran Desert The Sonoran Desert () is a hot desert and ecoregion in North America that covers the northwestern Mexican states of Sonora, Baja California, and Baja California Sur, as well as part of the Southwestern United States (in Arizona and California). It ...
, surrounded by five minor ranges of mountains: the
Santa Catalina Mountains The Santa Catalina Mountains, commonly referred to as the Catalina Mountains or the Catalinas, are north and northeast of Tucson in Arizona, United States, on Tucson's north perimeter. The mountain range is the most prominent in the Tucson area, w ...
and the
Tortolita Mountains The Tortolita Mountains are a modest mountain range northwest of Tucson, Arizona, USA, at the northern boundaries of Oro Valley and Marana, two suburbs of Tucson. Peak elevation is 4,696 feet (1,431 m). Much of the mountain range is protected ...
to the north, the
Santa Rita Mountains The Santa Rita Mountains ( O'odham: To:wa Kuswo Doʼag), located about southeast of Tucson, Arizona, extend from north to south, then trending southeast. They merge again southeastwards into the Patagonia Mountains, trending northwest by sout ...
to the south, the
Rincon Mountains The Rincon Mountains ( O'odham: Cew Doʼag) are a significant mountain range east of Tucson, Pima County, Arizona, in the United States. The Rincon Mountains are one of five mountain ranges surrounding the Tucson valley. The other ranges includ ...
to the east, and the
Tucson Mountains The Tucson Mountains ( O'odham: ) are a minor mountain range west of Tucson, Arizona, United States. The Tucson Mountains, including Wasson Peak, are one of four notable mountain ranges surrounding the Tucson Basin. The Santa Catalina Mountai ...
to the west. Tucson Mountains include Wasson Peak. The highest point in the area is Mount Wrightson, found in the Santa Rita Mountains at above sea level. Tucson is southeast of Phoenix and north of the
United States–Mexico border United may refer to: Places * United, Pennsylvania, an unincorporated community * United, West Virginia, an unincorporated community Arts and entertainment Films * ''United'' (2003 film), a Norwegian film * ''United'' (2011 film), a BBC Two f ...
. The 2020 United States census puts the city's population at 542,629 with a metropolitan area population at 1,043,433. In 2020, Tucson ranked as the 33rd-largest city and 53rd-largest metropolitan area in the United States. A major city in the Arizona Sun Corridor, Tucson is the largest city in southern Arizona, and the second-largest in the state after Phoenix. It is also the largest city in the area of the historic Gadsden Purchase. As of 2015, the Greater Tucson Metro area has exceeded a population of 1 million. The city is built along the Santa Cruz River, formerly a perennial river. Now a dry riverbed for much of the year, it regularly floods during significant seasonal rains.
Interstate 10 Interstate 10 (I-10) is the southernmost transcontinental highway in the Interstate Highway System of the United States. It is the fourth-longest Interstate in the country at , following I-90, I-80, and I-40. It was part of the origina ...
runs northwest through town, connecting Tucson to Phoenix to the northwest (on the way to its western terminus in
Santa Monica, California Santa Monica (; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Santa Mónica'') is a city in Los Angeles County, California, Los Angeles County, situated along Santa Monica Bay on California's South Coast (California), South Coast. Santa Monica's 2020 United Sta ...
), and to
Las Cruces, New Mexico Las Cruces (; ; lit. 'the crosses') is the List of municipalities in New Mexico, second-most populous city in the U.S. state of New Mexico and the county seat, seat of Doña Ana County, New Mexico, Doña Ana County. As of the 2020 United States ce ...
and
El Paso, Texas El Paso (; ; or ) is a city in and the county seat of El Paso County, Texas, United States. The 2020 United States census, 2020 population of the city from the United States Census Bureau, U.S. Census Bureau was 678,815, making it the List of ...
to the southeast. (Its eastern terminus is in
Jacksonville, Florida Jacksonville ( ) is the most populous city proper in the U.S. state of Florida, located on the Atlantic coast of North Florida, northeastern Florida. It is the county seat of Duval County, Florida, Duval County, with which the City of Jacksonv ...
). I-19 runs south from Tucson toward Nogales and the U.S.–Mexico border. I-19 is the only Interstate highway that uses "kilometer posts" instead of "
milepost A milestone is a numbered marker placed on a route such as a road, railway, railway line, canal or border, boundary. They can indicate the distance to towns, cities, and other places or landmarks like Mileage sign, mileage signs; or they c ...
s". However, speed limits are marked in miles per hour and kilometers per hour.


Neighborhoods


Downtown and Central Tucson

Similar to many other cities in the Western US, Tucson was developed by European Americans on a
grid plan In urban planning, the grid plan, grid street plan, or gridiron plan is a type of city plan in which streets run at right angles to each other, forming a grid. Two inherent characteristics of the grid plan, frequent intersections and orthogon ...
starting in the late 19th century, with the city center at Stone Avenue and Broadway Boulevard. While this intersection was initially near the
geographic center In geography, the centroid of the two-dimensional shape of a region of the Earth's surface (projected radially to sea level or onto a geoid surface) is known as its geographic centre or geographical centre or (less commonly) gravitational centre. In ...
of Tucson, the center has shifted as the city has expanded far to the east. Development to the west was effectively blocked by the Tucson Mountains. Covering a large geographic area, Tucson has many distinct neighborhoods. Tucson's earliest neighborhoods, some of which were redeveloped and covered by the
Tucson Convention Center The Tucson Convention Center (previously named the Tucson Community Center) is a multi-purpose convention center located in downtown Tucson, Arizona. Built in 1971, the location includes an 8,962-seat indoor arena, two performing arts venues, a ...
(TCC), include: * El Presidio, Tucson's oldest neighborhood. * Barrio Histórico, also known as Barrio Libre. * Armory Park is directly south of downtown. * Barrio Anita, named for an early settler, is located between Granada Avenue and Interstate 10. * Barrio Tiburón, now known as the Fourth Avenue arts district, was designated in territorial times as a
red-light district A red-light district or pleasure district is a part of an urban area where a concentration of prostitution and sex industry, sex-oriented businesses, such as sex shops, strip clubs, and adult theaters, are found. In most cases, red-light district ...
. * Barrio El Jardín is named for an early recreational site, Levin's Gardens. * Barrio El Hoyo is named for a lake that was part of the gardens. Before the convention center was built, the term ''El Hoyo'' (Spanish for 'pit' or 'hole') referred to this part of the city. Residents were mostly Mexican-American citizens and Mexican immigrants. * Barrio Santa Rosa, dating from the 1890s, is now listed as a historic district on the
National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government's official United States National Register of Historic Places listings, list of sites, buildings, structures, Hist ...
. Other historical neighborhoods near downtown include: * Feldman's, just north and northwest of the University of Arizona, the neighborhood is named for Alther M. Feldman (1833–1906), an Eastern European immigrant who arrived in Tucson ''circa'' 1878. Neighborhood streets Helen and Mabel are named for his daughters. Feldman owned a photographic studio known as the Arizona Tent Gallery. * Menlo Park, situated west of downtown, is adjacent to Sentinel Peak. * Iron Horse, east of Fourth Avenue and north of the railroad tracks, is named for its proximity to the railroad, informally known by that term. * West University is between the University of Arizona and downtown. * Dunbar Spring is west of West University. * Pie Allen, west and south of the university near Tucson High School, is named for John Brackett "Pie" Allen, a local entrepreneur and early mayor of Tucson. * Sam Hughes, east of the University of Arizona, is named after a European-American pioneer in Tucson. At the end of the 2010s, city planners and the business community worked to redevelop downtown Tucson. The primary project was Rio Nuevo, a large retail and community center that had been stalled in planning for more than a decade. One Rio Nuevo project that was successful is
Mission Garden Mission Garden is a living agricultural museum near Sentinel Peak (Arizona), Sentinel Peak in Tucson, Arizona. Its adobe walls enclose four acres of heritage crops and heirloom trees that represent people who have lived in the Sonoran Desert for ...
. Related to Tucson's City of Gastronomy designation, this living agricultural museum at the base of Sentinel Peak west of downtown grows heritage crops and heirloom trees that represent people who have lived in the area for thousands of years. Downtown is generally regarded as the area bordered by 17th Street to the south, I-10 to the west, and 6th Street to the north, and Toole Avenue and the
Union Pacific The Union Pacific Railroad is a Class I freight-hauling railroad that operates 8,300 locomotives over routes in 23 U.S. states west of Chicago and New Orleans. Union Pacific is the second largest railroad in the United States after BNSF, ...
(formerly
Southern Pacific The Southern Pacific (or Espee from the railroad initials) was an American Class I railroad network that existed from 1865 to 1996 and operated largely in the Western United States. The system was operated by various companies under the names ...
) railroad tracks, site of the historic train depot on the east side. Downtown is divided into the Presidio District, the Barrio Viejo, and the Congress Street Arts and Entertainment District. Some authorities include the 4th Avenue shopping district, northeast of the rest of downtown and connected by an underpass beneath the UPRR tracks. Historic attractions downtown with rich architecture include the Hotel Congress designed in 1919, the Art Deco Fox Theatre designed in 1929, the Rialto Theatre opened in 1920, and St. Augustine Cathedral completed in 1896. Included on the National Register of Historic Places is the old
Pima County Courthouse Pima County Courthouse is the former main county courthouse building in downtown Tucson, Arizona It is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. It was designed by Roy Place in 1928 in Mission Revival architecture, Mission Revival and ...
, designed by
Roy Place Roy Place (1887 – 1950) was a Tucson, Arizona architect. Born in San Diego in 1887, Place moved to Tucson in 1917 after working in Chicago and the Boston firm of Shepley, Rutan & Coolidge. Place partnered with John Lyman in 1919, together co ...
in 1928. El Charro Café, Tucson's oldest restaurant, operates its main location downtown. As one of the oldest parts of town, Central Tucson is anchored by the Broadway Village shopping center, designed by local architect Josias Joesler at the intersection of Broadway Boulevard and Country Club Road. The 4th Avenue Shopping District between downtown, the university, and the Lost Barrio just east of downtown, also has many unique and popular stores. Local retail business in Central Tucson is densely concentrated along Fourth Avenue and the Main Gate Square on University Boulevard near the UA campus.
El Con Mall El Con Center is an open-air shopping mall in the city of Tucson, Arizona, United States anchored by Cinemark Theatres, Target, The Home Depot, Walmart, Ross (30,220 ft.2), Burlington (65,680 ft.2), and Marshalls. There is 1 vacant ...
is also in the eastern part of midtown. The
University of Arizona The University of Arizona (Arizona, U of A, UArizona, or UA) is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Tucson, Arizona, United States. Founded in 1885 by the 13th Arizona Territorial Legislature, it ...
, chartered in 1885, is in midtown and includes
Arizona Stadium Arizona Stadium is an outdoor college football stadium in the southwestern United States, located on the campus of the University of Arizona in Tucson, Arizona. It is the home field of the Arizona Wildcats of the Big 12 Conference. Origin ...
and
McKale Center McKale Memorial Center is an athletic arena in the southwest United States, located on the campus of the University of Arizona in Tucson, Arizona. As the home of the university's Wildcats basketball team of the Big 12 Conference, it is primari ...
(named for J.F. "Pop" McKale, a prominent coach and athletics administrator at the university). The historic Tucson High School (designed by Roy Place in 1924) was featured in the 1987 film ''
Can't Buy Me Love "Can't Buy Me Love" is a song by the English rock band the Beatles that was released in March 1964 as the A-side and B-side, A-side of their sixth single. It was written by Paul McCartney and credited to the Lennon–McCartney partnership. The s ...
''. The Arizona Inn (built in 1930) and the Tucson Botanical Gardens are also in Central Tucson. Tucson's largest park, Reid Park, is in midtown and includes
Reid Park Zoo The Reid Park Zoo, founded in 1967, is a city-owned and -operated nonprofit zoo located within Reid Park in Tucson, Arizona. The zoo features more than 500 animals. It was unofficially established in 1965 by Gene Reid, the parks and recreatio ...
and
Hi Corbett Field Hi Corbett Field is a baseball park in the southwestern United States, located in Tucson, Arizona. With a seating capacity of approximately 9,500, it was the spring training home of the Colorado Rockies and Cleveland Indians of Major League Bas ...
. Speedway Boulevard, a major east–west arterial road in central Tucson, was named the "ugliest street in America" by ''Life'' in the early 1970s, quoting Tucson Mayor James Corbett. In the late 1990s, Speedway Boulevard was awarded "Street of the Year" by ''
Arizona Highways ''Arizona Highways'' is a magazine that contains travelogues and artistic photographs related to the U.S. state of Arizona. It is published monthly in Phoenix by a unit of the Arizona Department of Transportation (ADOT). Background The ...
.'' Speedway Boulevard was named after an historic horse racetrack, known as the Harlem River Speedway, and more commonly called "The Speedway", in New York City. The Tucson street was called "The Speedway" from 1904 to about 1906, when "The" was removed from the title. As of the early 21st century, Central Tucson is considered
bicycle-friendly Bicycle-friendly policies and practices help some people feel more comfortable about traveling by bicycle with other traffic. The level of bicycle-friendliness of an environment can be influenced by many factors including town planning and cycl ...
. To the east of the University of Arizona, Third Street is bike-only except for local traffic; it passes by the historic homes of the Sam Hughes neighborhood. To the west, East University Boulevard leads to the Fourth Avenue Shopping District. To the North, North Mountain Avenue has a full bike-only lane for half of the to the Rillito River Park bike and walk multi-use path. To the south, North Highland Avenue leads to the Barraza-Aviation Parkway bicycle path.


Southern Tucson

South Tucson is the name of an independent, incorporated town of south of downtown. It is surrounded by the City of Tucson and was incorporated in 1936 and reincorporated in 1940. The population is about 83% Mexican-American and 10% Native American, as residents self-identify in the census. South Tucson is widely known for its many Mexican restaurants and architectural styles. Bright murals have been painted on some walls, but city policy discourages this and many have been painted over. The south side of the city of Tucson is generally considered to be the area around south of 22nd Street, east of I-19, west of
Davis Monthan Air Force Base Davis may refer to: Places Antarctica * Mount Davis (Antarctica) * Davis Island (Palmer Archipelago) * Davis Station, an Australian base and research outpost in the Vestfold Hills * Davis Valley, Queen Elizabeth Land Canada * Davis, Sask ...
and southwest of Aviation Parkway, and north of Los Reales Road. The
Tucson International Airport Tucson International Airport is a civil-military airport owned by the City of Tucson south of downtown Tucson, in Pima County, Arizona, United States. It is the second busiest airport in Arizona, after Phoenix Sky Harbor International Air ...
and
Tucson Electric Park Kino Sports Complex is a multiple-use sports complex in Tucson, Arizona. The Arizona Diamondbacks and Chicago White Sox formerly utilized the complex's main ballpark, Kino Veterans Memorial Stadium, for Cactus League games each March and had thei ...
are located here.


Western Tucson

The West Side has areas of both urban and suburban development. It is generally defined as the area west of I-10. Western Tucson encompasses the banks of the Santa Cruz River and the foothills of the
Tucson Mountains The Tucson Mountains ( O'odham: ) are a minor mountain range west of Tucson, Arizona, United States. The Tucson Mountains, including Wasson Peak, are one of four notable mountain ranges surrounding the Tucson Basin. The Santa Catalina Mountai ...
. Area attractions include the International Wildlife Museum and Sentinel Peak. The Marriott Starr Pass Resort and Spa serves travelers and residents. As travelers pass the Tucson Mountains, they enter the area commonly referred to as "west of" Tucson or "Old West Tucson". In this large, undulating plain extending south into the Altar Valley, rural residential development predominates. Attractions include Saguaro National Park West, and movie set/theme park developed at the
Old Tucson Studios Old Tucson (aka Old Tucson Studios) is an American movie studio and theme park just west of Tucson, Arizona, adjacent to the Tucson Mountains and close to the western portion of Saguaro National Park and near the Desert Museum. Built in 1939 for ...
. On Sentinel Peak, just west of downtown, a giant "A" was installed in honor of the University of Arizona, resulting in the nickname "A" Mountain. Starting in about 1915, an annual tradition developed for freshmen to whitewash the A, which was visible for miles. After the September 11 terrorist attacks, the A was painted red, white, and blue. At the beginning of the
Iraq War The Iraq War (), also referred to as the Second Gulf War, was a prolonged conflict in Iraq lasting from 2003 to 2011. It began with 2003 invasion of Iraq, the invasion by a Multi-National Force – Iraq, United States-led coalition, which ...
in 2003, antiwar activists painted the A black. Competition ensued, with various sides repainting the A in different colors until the city council intervened and made the red, white, and blue colors official. In 2013, the color scheme changed back to white. Another color may be decided by a biennial election. With the tricolor scheme, some observers complain the shape of the A is hard to distinguish from the background of the peak. Since 1993, the A has been painted green for St. Patrick's Day. It has also been given other color schemes for different causes.


Northern Tucson

North Tucson includes the urban neighborhoods of Amphitheater and Flowing Wells. Usually considered the area north of Fort Lowell Road, North Tucson includes some of Tucson's primary commercial zones ( Tucson Mall and the Oracle Road Corridor). Many of the city's most upscale
boutiques A () is a retail shop that deals in high end fashionable clothing or accessories. The word is French language, French for "shop", which derives ultimately from the Ancient Greek wikt:ἀποθήκη, ἀποθήκη (''apothēkē'') "storehouse ...
, restaurants, and art galleries are also on the north side, including St. Philip's Plaza. The plaza is directly adjacent to the historic St. Philip's in the Hills Episcopal Church (built in 1936). The north side also is home to the suburban community of Catalina Foothills, in the foothills of the Santa Catalina Mountains just north of the city limits. This community includes many of the area's most expensive homes, sometimes multimillion-dollar estates. The Foothills area is generally defined as north of River Road, east of Oracle Road and west of Sabino Creek. Some of the Tucson area's major resorts are in the Catalina Foothills, including Hacienda Del Sol, Westin La Paloma Resort, Loews Ventana Canyon Resort and Canyon Ranch Resort. La Encantada, an outdoor shopping mall, is also in the Foothills. The DeGrazia Gallery of the Sun is near the intersection of Swan Road and Skyline Drive. Built by artist Ted DeGrazia starting in 1951, the property is listed on the
National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government's official United States National Register of Historic Places listings, list of sites, buildings, structures, Hist ...
and features an eclectic chapel, an art gallery, and a museum. The expansive area northwest of the city limits is diverse, ranging from the rural communities of Catalina and parts of the town of
Marana Marana may refer to: * Maraña, a village in León, Spain * Maraṇa, the Pali/Sanskrit term for death * Marana, Arizona Marana () is a List of municipalities in Arizona, town that mostly lies in Pima County, Arizona, Pima County with a smal ...
, the small suburb of Picture Rocks, the town of
Oro Valley Oro Valley, incorporated in 1974, is a suburban town located north of Tucson, Arizona, United States, in Pima County. According to the 2020 census, the population of the town is 47,070, an increase from 29,700 in 2000. Dubbed the "Upscale Tech ...
in the western foothills of the Santa Catalina Mountains, and residential areas in the northeastern foothills of the Tucson Mountains. Continental Ranch (Marana), Dove Mountain (Marana), and Rancho Vistoso (Oro Valley), and Saddlebrooke (North Oro Valley) are all master planned communities in the northwest that have thousands of residents. The community of
Casas Adobes Casas Adobes (Spanish: "''Adobe Houses''") is an unincorporated community and census-designated place (CDP) located in the northern metropolitan area of Tucson, Arizona (in Pima County). The population was 66,795 at the 2010 census. Casas Ad ...
is also on the Northwest side, with the distinction of being Tucson's first suburb, established in the late 1940s. Casas Adobes is centered on the historic Casas Adobes Plaza (built in 1948). Casas Adobes is also home to
Tohono Chul Park Tohono Chul (aka Tohono Chul Park) is a botanical garden, nature preserve, and cultural museum located in Casas Adobes, Arizona, Casas Adobes, a suburb of Tucson, Arizona. The words "tohono chul" translate as "desert corner" and are borrow ...
, which is now within the town of Oro Valley, (a nature preserve) near the intersection of North Oracle Road and West Ina Road. The attempted assassination of Representative
Gabby Giffords Gabrielle Dee Giffords (born June 8, 1970) is an American retired politician and gun violence prevention advocate. She served as a member of the United States House of Representatives representing from January 2007 until January 2012, when ...
, which resulted in the murders of chief judge for the U.S. District Court for Arizona, John Roll, and five other people on January 8, 2011, occurred at the La Toscana Village in
Casas Adobes Casas Adobes (Spanish: "''Adobe Houses''") is an unincorporated community and census-designated place (CDP) located in the northern metropolitan area of Tucson, Arizona (in Pima County). The population was 66,795 at the 2010 census. Casas Ad ...
. The Foothills Mall is also on the northwest side in Casas Adobes. This area is home to many of the Tucson area's golf courses and resorts, including the Preserve and Mountainview Golf Clubs at Saddlebrooke, Hilton El Conquistador Golf & Tennis Resort in Oro Valley, the Omni Tucson National Resort & Spa, and Westward Look Resort. The Ritz Carlton at Dove Mountain, the second
Ritz Carlton The Ritz-Carlton Hotel Company, LLC is an American multinational corporation, multinational company that operates the Hotel#Luxury, luxury hotel chain known as The Ritz-Carlton. The company has 108 conference and resort hotels, luxury hotels an ...
resort in Arizona, which also includes a golf course, opened in the foothills of the
Tortolita Mountains The Tortolita Mountains are a modest mountain range northwest of Tucson, Arizona, USA, at the northern boundaries of Oro Valley and Marana, two suburbs of Tucson. Peak elevation is 4,696 feet (1,431 m). Much of the mountain range is protected ...
in northeast Marana in 2009.


Eastern Tucson

East Tucson is relatively new compared to other parts of the city, developed between the 1950s and the 1970s, with developments such as Desert Palms Park. It is generally classified as the area of the city east of Swan Road, with above-average real estate values relative to the rest of the city. The area includes urban and suburban development near the
Rincon Mountains The Rincon Mountains ( O'odham: Cew Doʼag) are a significant mountain range east of Tucson, Pima County, Arizona, in the United States. The Rincon Mountains are one of five mountain ranges surrounding the Tucson valley. The other ranges includ ...
. East Tucson includes Saguaro National Park East. Tucson's "Restaurant Row" is also on the east side, along with a significant corporate and financial presence. Restaurant Row is sandwiched by three of Tucson's storied Vicinages: Harold Bell Wright Estates, named after the author's ranch which occupied some of that area before the depression; the Tucson Country Club (the third to bear the name Tucson Country Club), and the Dorado Country Club. Tucson's largest office building is 5151 East Broadway in east Tucson, completed in 1975. The first phases of Williams Centre, a mixed-use, master-planned development on Broadway near Craycroft Road, were opened in 1987. Park Place, a recently renovated shopping center, is also along Broadway (west of Wilmot Road). Near the intersection of Craycroft and Ft. Lowell Roads are the remnants of the Historic Fort Lowell. This area has become one of Tucson's iconic neighborhoods. In 1891, the Fort was abandoned and much of the interior was stripped of their useful components and it quickly fell into ruin. In 1900, three of the officer buildings were purchased for use as a sanitarium. The sanitarium was then sold to Harvey Adkins in 1928. The Bolsius family – Pete, Nan and
Charles Charles is a masculine given name predominantly found in English language, English and French language, French speaking countries. It is from the French form ''Charles'' of the Proto-Germanic, Proto-Germanic name (in runic alphabet) or ''* ...
– purchased and renovated surviving adobe buildings of the Fort, transforming them into spectacular artistic southwestern architectural examples. Their woodwork, plaster treatment and sense of proportion drew on their Dutch heritage and New Mexican experience. Other artists and academics throughout the middle of the 20th century, including Win Ellis, Jack Maul, Madame Germaine Cheruy and
René Cheruy René Cheruy (1880-1965) was a soldier, educator and artist who served as a secretary to French sculptor Auguste Rodin, was a professor of French language and literature, was decorated by the French and British governments receiving the Croix de ...
, Giorgio Belloli, Charles Bode, Veronica Hughart, Edward H. Spicer and Rosamond Spicer, Hazel Larson Archer and Ruth Brown, renovated adobes, built homes and lived in the area. The artist colony attracted writers and poets including beat generation Alan Harrington and
Jack Kerouac Jean-Louis Lebris de Kérouac (; March 12, 1922 – October 21, 1969), known as Jack Kerouac, was an American novelist and poet who, alongside William S. Burroughs and Allen Ginsberg, was a pioneer of the Beat Generation. Of French-Canadian ...
whose visit is documented in his iconic book ''
On the Road ''On the Road'' is a 1957 novel by American writer Jack Kerouac, based on the travels of Kerouac and his friends across the United States. It is considered a defining work of the postwar Beat and Counterculture generations, with its protagoni ...
''. This rural pocket in the middle of the city is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Each year in February the vicinage celebrates its history in the City Landmark it owns and restored the San Pedro Chapel. Situated between the
Santa Catalina Mountains The Santa Catalina Mountains, commonly referred to as the Catalina Mountains or the Catalinas, are north and northeast of Tucson in Arizona, United States, on Tucson's north perimeter. The mountain range is the most prominent in the Tucson area, w ...
and the
Rincon Mountains The Rincon Mountains ( O'odham: Cew Doʼag) are a significant mountain range east of Tucson, Pima County, Arizona, in the United States. The Rincon Mountains are one of five mountain ranges surrounding the Tucson valley. The other ranges includ ...
near Redington Pass northeast of the city limits is the affluent community of Tanque Verde. The Arizona National Golf Club, Forty-Niners Country Club, and the historic Tanque Verde Guest Ranch are also in northeast Tucson. Southeast Tucson continues to experience rapid residential development. The area includes Davis-Monthan Air Force Base. The area is considered to be south of Golf Links Road. It is the home of Santa Rita High School, Chuck Ford Park (Lakeside Park),
Lakeside Lake Lakeside Lake is located at Chuck Ford-Lakeside Park in east Tucson, Arizona, United States, on the northwest corner of Stella Road and Sarnoff Drive. History The origins of Lakeside Lake began with Hal Kinnison. Mr. Kinnison arrived in Tucson ...
, Lincoln Park (upper and lower), The Lakecrest Vicinagess, and Pima Community College East Campus. The Atterbury Wash with its access to excellent bird watching is also in the Southeast Tucson area. The suburban community of Rita Ranch houses many of the military families from Davis-Monthan, and is near the southeasternmost expansion of the current city limits. Close by Rita Ranch and also within the city limits lies Civano, a planned development meant to showcase ecologically sound building practices and lifestyles.


Climate

Tucson has a hot
desert climate The desert climate or arid climate (in the Köppen climate classification ''BWh'' and ''BWk'') is a dry climate sub-type in which there is a severe excess of evaporation over precipitation. The typically bald, rocky, or sandy surfaces in desert ...
(
Köppen Köppen is a German surname. Notable people with the surname include: * Bernd Köppen (1951–2014), German pianist and composer * Carl Köppen (1833-1907), German military advisor in Meiji era Japan * Edlef Köppen (1893–1939), German author ...
''BWh''), with two major seasons, a hot summer and mild winter. Tucson averages of precipitation per year, concentrated during the Pacific storms of winter and the North American Monsoon of summer. Fall and spring tend to be sunny and dry. Despite being at a more southerly latitude than Phoenix, Tucson is slightly cooler and wetter due to a variety of factors, including elevation and
orographic lift Orographic lift occurs when an air mass is forced from a low elevation to a higher elevation as it moves over rising terrain. As the air mass gains altitude it quickly cools down adiabatically, which can raise the relative humidity to 100% and cr ...
in surrounding mountains, though Tucson does occasionally see warmer daytime temperatures in the winter. Summer is characterized by average daily high temperatures between and low temperatures between . Early summer is characterized by low humidity and clear skies; mid- and late summer are characterized by higher humidity, cloudy skies, and frequent rain. The sun is intense in Tucson during part of the year, and those who spend time outdoors need protection. Recent studies show that the rate of skin cancer in Arizona is at least three times higher than in more northerly regions. Additionally,
heat stroke Heat stroke or heatstroke, also known as sun-stroke, is a severe heat illness that results in a body temperature greater than , along with red skin, headache, dizziness, and confusion. Sweating is generally present in exertional heatstro ...
is a concern for hikers, mountain bikers, and adventurers who explore canyons, open desert lands, and other exposed areas. While monsoon season officially begins on June 15, the arrival of the North American Monsoon is unpredictable, as it varies from year to year. On average, Tucson receives its first monsoon storms around July 3. Monsoon activity generally persists through August and often into September.NWS Tucson Office Monsoon tracker
. Retrieved March 12, 2010.
During the monsoon, the
humidity Humidity is the concentration of water vapor present in the air. Water vapor, the gaseous state of water, is generally invisible to the human eye. Humidity indicates the likelihood for precipitation (meteorology), precipitation, dew, or fog t ...
is much higher than the rest of the year. It begins with clouds building up from the south in the early afternoon, followed by intense thunderstorms and rainfall, which can cause
flash floods A flash flood is a rapid flooding of low-lying areas: washes, rivers, dry lakes and depressions. It may be caused by heavy rain associated with a severe thunderstorm, hurricane, or tropical storm, or by meltwater from ice and snow. Flash fl ...
. The evening sky at this time of year is often pierced with dramatic lightning strikes. Large areas of the city do not have
storm sewer A storm drain, storm sewer (United Kingdom, United States, U.S. and Canada), highway drain, surface water drain/sewer (United Kingdom), or stormwater drain (Australia and New Zealand) is infrastructure designed to Drainage, drain excess rain an ...
s, so monsoon rains flood the main thoroughfares, usually for no longer than a few hours. A few underpasses in Tucson have "feet of water" scales painted on their supports to discourage fording by automobiles during a rainstorm. Arizona traffic code Title 28–910, the so-called "Stupid Motorist Law", was instituted in 1995 to discourage people from entering flooded roadways. If the road is flooded and a barricade is in place, motorists who drive around the barricade can be charged up to $2000 for costs involved in rescuing them. Despite the warnings and precautions, three Tucson drivers have drowned between 2004 and 2010. The weather in the fall is much like spring, dry, with warm/cool nights and warm/hot days. Temperatures above are possible into early October. Temperatures decline at the quickest rate in October and November, and are normally the coolest in late December and early January. Winters in Tucson are mild relative to other parts of the United States. Average daytime highs range between , with overnight lows between . Tucson typically averages three hard freezes per winter season, with temperatures dipping to the mid- or low 20 degrees F (−4 to −7 °C), but this is typically limited to only a very few nights. Although rare, snow occasionally falls in lower elevations in Tucson and is common in the Santa Catalina Mountains. The most recent snowfall was on March 2, 2023, when a
winter storm A winter storm (also known as snow storm) is an event in which wind coincides with varieties of precipitation that only occur at freezing temperatures, such as snow, mixed snow and rain, or freezing rain. In temperate continental and subarct ...
caused snow to fall throughout most of the southwest. Tucson airport recorded of snow, the seventh heaviest March snowfall on record. Early spring is characterized by gradually rising temperatures and several weeks of vivid wildflower blooms beginning in late February and into March. During this time of year the
diurnal temperature variation In meteorology, diurnal temperature variation is the variation between a high air temperature and a low temperature that occurs during the same day. Temperature lag Temperature lag, also known as thermal inertia, is an important factor in diur ...
occurs with a temperature change often surpassing daily. Since records began in 1894, the record maximum temperature was on June 27, 1990, and the record minimum temperature was on January 7, 1913. There are an average of 158 days annually with highs of or higher and an average of 12 days with lows reaching or below the freezing mark. Average annual precipitation is . On average, 47.4 days have measurable precipitation. The wettest year was 1905, with and the driest year was 2020 with . The most precipitation in one month was in July 2021. The most precipitation in 24 hours was on July 29, 1958. Annual snowfall averages . The most snow in one winter was in winter 1971–1972. The most snow in one month was in December 1971.


Demographics

According to 2020 United States census, the racial composition of Tucson was: *
Non-Hispanic white Non-Hispanic Whites, also referred to as White Anglo Americans or Non-Latino Whites, are White Americans who are classified by the United States census as "White" and not of Hispanic or Latino origin. According to annual estimates from the Unit ...
: 43.6% *
African American African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from an ...
(including Hispanics): 5.6% * Native American (including Hispanics): 2.9% *
Asian American Asian Americans are Americans with ancestry from the continent of Asia (including naturalized Americans who are immigrants from specific regions in Asia and descendants of those immigrants). Although this term had historically been used fo ...
(including Hispanics): 3.2% *
Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander Asian/Pacific American (APA) or Asian/Pacific Islander (API) or Asian American and Pacific Islanders (AAPI) or Asian American and Native Hawaiians/Pacific Islander (AANHPI) is a term sometimes used in the United States when including both Asian A ...
(including Hispanics): 0.3% * Hispanic or Latino: 42.2% According to the 2010 American Census Bureau, the racial composition of Tucson was: *
Non-Hispanic White Non-Hispanic Whites, also referred to as White Anglo Americans or Non-Latino Whites, are White Americans who are classified by the United States census as "White" and not of Hispanic or Latino origin. According to annual estimates from the Unit ...
: 47.2% * Black or African American (including Hispanics): 5.0% * Native American (including Hispanics): 2.7% * Asian (including Hispanics): 2.9% *
Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander Asian/Pacific American (APA) or Asian/Pacific Islander (API) or Asian American and Pacific Islanders (AAPI) or Asian American and Native Hawaiians/Pacific Islander (AANHPI) is a term sometimes used in the United States when including both Asian A ...
(including Hispanics): 0.2% * Other race (including Hispanics): 17.8% *
Two or more races Multiracial Americans, also known as mixed-race Americans, are Americans who have mixed ancestry of two or more races. The term may also include Americans of mixed-race ancestry who self-identify with just one group culturally and socially (cf. t ...
(including Hispanics): 3.4% * Hispanic or Latino: 41.6%;
Mexican American Mexican Americans are Americans of full or partial Mexico, Mexican descent. In 2022, Mexican Americans comprised 11.2% of the US population and 58.9% of all Hispanic and Latino Americans. In 2019, 71% of Mexican Americans were born in the Unite ...
s made up 36.1% of the city's population.


2020 census

As of the census of 2010, 520,116 people, 229,762 households, and 112,455 families resided in the city. The population density was . The 209,609 dwelling units had an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 69.7% White (down from 94.8% in 1970), 5.0% Black or African-American, 2.7% Native American, 2.9% Asian, 0.2% Pacific Islander, 16.9% from other races, and 3.8% from two or more races. Hispanics or Latinos of any race were 41.6% of the population.
Non-Hispanic Whites Non-Hispanic Whites, also referred to as White Anglo Americans or Non-Latino Whites, are White Americans who are classified by the United States census as "White" and not of Hispanic or Latino origin. According to annual estimates from the Unit ...
were 47.2% of the population in 2010, down from 72.8% in 1970. The largest ancestries reported in Tucson according to 2022 estimates were Mexican (39.9%),
German German(s) may refer to: * Germany, the country of the Germans and German things **Germania (Roman era) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizenship in Germany, see also Ge ...
(11%), English (7.7%),
Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, a Romance ethnic group related to or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance languag ...
(3.4%),
American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, p ...
(2.8%), and
Polish Polish may refer to: * Anything from or related to Poland, a country in Europe * Polish language * Polish people, people from Poland or of Polish descent * Polish chicken * Polish brothers (Mark Polish and Michael Polish, born 1970), American twin ...
(1.8%). According to research by demographer William H. Frey using data from the 2010 United States census, Tucson has the lowest level of Black-White segregation of any of the 100 largest metropolitan areas in the United States. Of the 192,891 households, 29.0% had children under 18 living with them, 39.7% were married couples living together, 13.8% had a female householder with no husband present, and 41.7% were not families. About 32.3% of all households were made up of individuals, and 9.3% had someone living alone who was 65 or older. The average household size was 2.42, and the average family size was 3.12. In the inner city, the population has 24.6% under 18, 13.8% from 18 to 24, 30.5% from 25 to 44, 19.2% from 45 to 64, and 11.9% who were 65 or older. The median age was 32 years. For every 100 females, there were 96.0 males. For every 100 females 18 and over, there were 93.3 males. The median income for a household in the city was $30,981, and for a family was $37,344. Males had a median income of $28,548 versus $23,086 for females. The
per capita income Per capita income (PCI) or average income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. In many countries, per capita income is determined using regular population surveys, such ...
for the city was $16,322. About 13.7% of families and 18.4% of the population were below the
poverty line The poverty threshold, poverty limit, poverty line, or breadline is the minimum level of income deemed adequate in a particular country. The poverty line is usually calculated by estimating the total cost of one year's worth of necessities for ...
, including 23.6% of those under 18 and 11.0% of those 65 or over.


Economy

Much of Tucson's economic development has centered on the development of the University of Arizona, which is the city's largest employer. Davis-Monthan Air Force Base, on the city's southeastern edge, also provides many jobs for Tucson residents. Its presence, as well as the presence of the US Army Intelligence Center (
Fort Huachuca Fort Huachuca is a United States Army military base, installation, in Cochise County, Arizona, Cochise County in southeast Arizona, approximately north of the Mexico–United States border, border with Mexico and at the northern end of the Huac ...
, the region's largest employer, in nearby Sierra Vista), has led to the development of many high-technology industries, including government contractors. The city of Tucson is also a major hub for the Union Pacific Railroad's Sunset Route that links the Los Angeles ports with the South/Southeast regions of the country.
Raytheon Raytheon is a business unit of RTX Corporation and is a major U.S. defense contractor and industrial corporation with manufacturing concentrations in weapons and military and commercial electronics. Founded in 1922, it merged in 2020 with Unite ...
Missiles and Defense (formerly Hughes Aircraft Co.),
Texas Instruments Texas Instruments Incorporated (TI) is an American multinational semiconductor company headquartered in Dallas, Texas. It is one of the top 10 semiconductor companies worldwide based on sales volume. The company's focus is on developing analog ...
,
IBM International Business Machines Corporation (using the trademark IBM), nicknamed Big Blue, is an American Multinational corporation, multinational technology company headquartered in Armonk, New York, and present in over 175 countries. It is ...
, Intuit Inc., Universal Avionics,
Honeywell Aerospace Honeywell Aerospace Technologies is a manufacturer of aircraft engines and avionics, as well as a producer of auxiliary power units (APUs) and other aviation products. Headquartered in Phoenix, Arizona, it is a division of the Honeywell Intern ...
, Sunquest Information Systems,
Sanofi-Aventis Sanofi S.A. is a French multinational pharmaceutical and healthcare company headquartered in Paris, France. The corporation was established in 1973 and merged with Synthélabo in 1999 to form Sanofi-Synthélabo. In 2004, Sanofi-Synthélabo merg ...
,
Ventana Medical Systems Ventana Medical Systems, Inc. was a medical device company that develops, manufactures, and markets instrument reagent systems that automate tissue and slide staining in anatomic pathology laboratories. These products assist in the diagnosis and tr ...
, Inc., and
Bombardier Aerospace Bombardier Aviation, a division of Bombardier Inc., is headquartered in Dorval, Quebec, Canada. The company currently produces the Global and Challenger series of business jets. At its peak, Bombardier operated manufacturing plants in 27 c ...
all have a large presence in Tucson. Roughly 150 Tucson companies are involved in the design and manufacture of
optics Optics is the branch of physics that studies the behaviour and properties of light, including its interactions with matter and the construction of optical instruments, instruments that use or Photodetector, detect it. Optics usually describes t ...
and
optoelectronics Optoelectronics (or optronics) is the study and application of electronic devices and systems that find, detect and control light, usually considered a sub-field of photonics. In this context, ''light'' often includes invisible forms of radi ...
systems, earning Tucson the nickname "
Optics Valley Optics Valley is a region in southern Arizona, centered on Tucson, that is home to a high concentration of optics companies spawned by research at the University of Arizona. Based on the idea of a technology cluster, akin Silicon Valley, Optics V ...
". Much of this comes from the
Steward Observatory Steward Observatory is the research arm of the Department of Astronomy at the University of Arizona (UArizona). Its offices are located on the UArizona campus in Tucson, Arizona (US). Established in 1916, the first telescope and building were ...
at the University of Arizona, which is one of few locations in the world that can cast the enormous mirrors used in telescopes around the world and in space. Tourism is another major industry in Tucson. The city's many resorts, hotels, and attractions bring in $2 billion and over 3.5 million visitors annually. One of the major annual attractions is the
Tucson Gem and Mineral Show The Tucson Gem, Mineral & Fossil Showcase are gem and mineral shows that take place annually in late January and February at multiple locations across the city of Tucson, Arizona. Most of the shows are open to the public, except for certain tr ...
, and its associated shows, all held generally in the first two weeks of February. These associated shows (such as gems, jewelry, beads, and fossils) are held throughout the city, with 43 different shows in 2010. This makes Tucson's the largest such exposition in the world. Its yearly economic impact in 2015 was evaluated at $120 million. In addition to vacationers, many winter residents, or "
snowbirds Snowbird may refer to: Places * Snowbird, Utah, an unincorporated area and associated ski resort in the United States * Snowbird Lake, a lake in the Northwest Territories, Canada * Snowbird Glacier, a hanging alpine glacier in the Talkeetna Moun ...
", are attracted to Tucson's mild winters and live here on a seasonal basis. They also contribute to the local economy. Snowbirds often purchase second homes in Tucson and nearby areas, contributing significantly to the property tax base.


Top employers

According to Tucson's 2023
Annual Comprehensive Financial Report An Annual Comprehensive Financial Report (ACFR), formerly called a Comprehensive Annual Financial Report (CAFR)) is a set of U.S. government financial statements comprising the financial report of a state, municipal or other governmental entity t ...
, the top employers in the city are:


Arts and culture


Annual cultural events and fairs


Tucson Gem and Mineral Show

The
Tucson Gem & Mineral Show The Tucson Gem, Mineral & Fossil Showcase are gem and mineral shows that take place annually in late January and February at multiple locations across the city of Tucson, Arizona. Most of the shows are open to the public, except for certain tr ...
is one of the largest gem and mineral shows in the world and has been held for over 50 years. The show is only one part of the gem,
mineral In geology and mineralogy, a mineral or mineral species is, broadly speaking, a solid substance with a fairly well-defined chemical composition and a specific crystal structure that occurs naturally in pure form.John P. Rafferty, ed. (2011): Mi ...
,
fossil A fossil (from Classical Latin , ) is any preserved remains, impression, or trace of any once-living thing from a past geological age. Examples include bones, shells, exoskeletons, stone imprints of animals or microbes, objects preserve ...
and
bead A bead is a small, decorative object that is formed in a variety of shapes and sizes of a material such as stone, bone, shell, glass, plastic, wood, or pearl and with a small hole for threading or stringing. Beads range in size from under 1 ...
gathering held across more than 45 different sites in Tucson. The shows run from late January to mid-February, with the official show lasting two weeks in February.


Tucson Festival of Books

Since 2009, the Tucson Festival of Books has been held annually over a two-day period in March at the
University of Arizona The University of Arizona (Arizona, U of A, UArizona, or UA) is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Tucson, Arizona, United States. Founded in 1885 by the 13th Arizona Territorial Legislature, it ...
. By 2010 it had become the fourth largest book festival in the United States, with 450 authors and 80,000 attendees. In addition to readings and lectures, it features a science fair, varied entertainment, food, and exhibitors ranging from local retailers and publishers to regional and national nonprofit organizations.


El Tour de Tucson

El Tour de Tucson is a cycling race that has been happening in Tucson since 1983. The race tends to happen in the month of November, before American Thanksgiving. There are a number of distances available to ride, from 1-mile fun rides to a long distance ride that spans the whole city resulting in 102 miles. In addition to being a competitive race, this race also allows non-profit charities to raise funds for their organizations. The race was first held by the Perimeter Bicycling Association in 1983 with less than 200 cyclists, and raised $4,500; by 2023 there have been close to 9,000 cyclists and raised $5.8 million. It was recently named a top 10 road race in the United States, ranking at #4.


Tucson Folk Festival

For the past 33 years, the Tucson Folk Festival has taken place the first Saturday and Sunday of May in downtown Tucson's El Presidio Park. In addition to nationally known headline acts each evening, the Festival highlights over 100 local and regional musicians on five stages and is one of the largest free festivals in the country. All stages are within easy walking distance. Organized by the Tucson Kitchen Musicians' Association, volunteers make this festival possible. KXCI 91.3-FM, Arizona's only community radio station, is a major partner, broadcasting from the Plaza Stage throughout the weekend. There are also many workshops, events for children, sing-alongs, and a popular singer-songwriter contest. Musicians typically play 30-minute sets, supported by professional audio staff volunteers. A variety of food and crafts are available at the festival, as well as local microbrews. All proceeds help fund future festivals.


Fourth Avenue Street Fair

There are two Fourth Avenue Street Fairs, in December and late March/early April, staged between 9th Street and University Boulevard, that feature arts and crafts booths, food vendors and street performers. The fairs began in 1970 when Fourth Avenue, which at the time had half a dozen thrift shops, several New Age bookshops and the Food Conspiracy Co-Op, was a gathering place for
hippies A hippie, also spelled hippy, especially in British English, is someone associated with the counterculture of the 1960s, counterculture of the mid-1960s to early 1970s, originally a youth movement that began in the United States and spread to dif ...
, and a few merchants put tables in front of their stores to attract customers before the holidays. These days, the street fair has grown into a large corporate event, with most tables owned by outside merchants. It hosts mostly traveling craftsmen selling various arts such as pottery, paintings, wood working, metal decorations, candles, and many others.


Tucson Rodeo (Fiesta de los Vaqueros)

Another popular event held in February, which is early spring in Tucson, is the Fiesta de los Vaqueros, or
rodeo Rodeo () is a competitive equestrian sport that arose out of the working practices of cattle herding in Spain and Mexico, expanding throughout the Americas and to other nations. It was originally based on the skills required of the working vaqu ...
week, founded by winter visitor, Leighton Kramer. While at its heart the Fiesta is a sporting event, it includes what is billed as "the world's largest non-mechanized parade". The Rodeo Parade is a popular event as most schools give two rodeo days off instead of Presidents' Day. The exception is Presidio High (a non-public charter school), which does not get either. Western wear is seen throughout the city as corporate dress codes are cast aside during the Fiesta. The Fiesta de los Vaqueros marks the beginning of the rodeo season in the United States.


Tucson Meet Yourself

Every October for the past 30 years, the Tucson Meet Yourself festival has celebrated the city's many ethnic groups. For one weekend, the downtown area features dancing, singing, artwork, and food from more than 30 different ethnicities. The event is held at and around the Jacome Plaza, located in front of the Joel D. Valdez Main Library. All performers are from Tucson and the surrounding area, in keeping with the idea of "meeting yourself". The records of the Tucson Meet Yourself Festival reside at the University of Arizona Special Collections Library.


Tucson Modernism Week

Since 2012, during the first two weekends of October, the
Tucson Historic Preservation Foundation The Tucson Historic Preservation Foundation is a private, nonprofit organization dedicated to the preservation of the historic, architectural, as well as cultural heritage of Tucson, Arizona. Through advocacy initiatives, educational programs, arc ...
hosts Tucson Modernism Week. The event includes more than 30 programs including tours, lectures, exhibits, films and parties. The events are in mid-century modern buildings and neighborhoods throughout the city and highlight the work of significant architects and designers who contributed to the development and history of southern Arizona including: architect
Arthur Brown Arthur Brown may refer to: Entertainment * Arthur William Brown (1881–1966), Canadian commercial artist * H. Arthur Brown (1906–1992), American orchestral conductor * Arthur Brown (musician) (born 1942), English rock singer * Arthur Brown, ...
, fashion designer Dolores Gonzales, architect Bob Swaim, architect Anne Rysdale, textile designers Harwood and Sophie Steiger, architect Nick Sakellar, architectural designer Tom Gist, furniture designer Max Gottschalk, architect Ned Nelson, landscape architect Guy Green, architect Juan Worner Baz, and many others.


All Souls Procession Weekend

The All Souls Procession, held in early November, is one of Tucson's largest festivals. Modeled on the Mexican holiday
Dia de los Muertos The Day of the Dead () is a holiday traditionally celebrated on November 1 and 2, though other days, such as October 31 or November 6, may be included depending on the locality. The multi-day holiday involves family and friends gathering to pa ...
(Day of the Dead), it combines aspects of many different cultural traditions. The first All Souls Procession was organized by local artist Susan Kay Johnson in 1990 and involved 35 participants; by 2013, participation was estimated at 50,000. The Procession, held at sundown, consists of a non-motorized parade through downtown Tucson featuring many floats, sculptures, and memorials, in which the community is encouraged to participate. The parade is followed by performances on an outdoor stage, culminating in the burning of an urn in which written prayers have been collected from participants and spectators. The event is organized and funded by the non-profit arts organization Many Mouths One Stomach, with the help of volunteers and donations from the public and local businesses.


Cyclovia Tucson

Cyclovia Tucson is an annual event supported by Living Streets Alliance that invites people of all ages and abilities to walk, bike, and roll down car-free streets for a day. Cyclovia is an Open Streets initiative designed to maximize the enormous amount of space taken up by roads in sprawling cities like Tucson. Since 2012, Cyclovia transforms the streets of metro Tucson into a block party atmosphere to socialize, incorporating partnerships with small businesses, and giving people the opportunity to move freely through the streets without moving cars. Cyclovia happens twice a year, typically in the spring and in the fall.


Cultural and other attractions

Cultural and other attractions include: *
Mission Garden Mission Garden is a living agricultural museum near Sentinel Peak (Arizona), Sentinel Peak in Tucson, Arizona. Its adobe walls enclose four acres of heritage crops and heirloom trees that represent people who have lived in the Sonoran Desert for ...
, an agricultural museum of the Sonoran Desert *
Arizona Historical Society The Arizona Historical Society (AHS) is a non-profit organization whose mission is to connect people through the power of Arizona's history. It does this through four regional divisions. Each division has a representative museum A museum is ...
* The Fremont House is an original adobe house in the Tucson Community Center that was saved when one of Tucson's earliest barrios was razed as part of urban renewal. * Fort Lowell Museum *
Mission San Xavier del Bac Mission San Xavier del Bac () is a historic Spanish Catholic mission about south of downtown Tucson, Arizona, on the Tohono O'odham Nation San Xavier Indian Reservation. The mission was founded in 1692 by Eusebio Kino in the center of a cent ...
*
Old Tucson Studios Old Tucson (aka Old Tucson Studios) is an American movie studio and theme park just west of Tucson, Arizona, adjacent to the Tucson Mountains and close to the western portion of Saguaro National Park and near the Desert Museum. Built in 1939 for ...
, built as a set for the movie ''
Arizona Arizona is a U.S. state, state in the Southwestern United States, Southwestern region of the United States, sharing the Four Corners region of the western United States with Colorado, New Mexico, and Utah. It also borders Nevada to the nort ...
'', is a
movie studio A film studio (also known as movie studio or simply studio) is a major entertainment company that makes films. Today, studios are mostly financing and distribution entities. In addition, they may have their own studio facility or facilities; howe ...
and
theme park An amusement park is a park that features various attractions, such as rides and games, and events for entertainment purposes. A theme park is a type of amusement park that bases its structures and attractions around a central theme, often fea ...
for classic
Westerns The Western is a genre of fiction typically set in the American frontier (commonly referred to as the "Old West" or the "Wild West") between the California Gold Rush of 1849 and the closing of the frontier in 1890, and commonly associated wit ...
. * The Tucson Museum of Art was established as part of an art school, the Art Center, which was founded by local Tucson artists, including Rose Cabat.Regan, Margaret. "Ninety and Nimble". ''Tucson Weekly''. Tucson, Arizona. October 7, 2004. * The
University of Arizona Museum of Art The University of Arizona Museum of Art (UAMA) is an art museum in Tucson, Arizona, operated by the University of Arizona. The museum's permanent collection includes more than 6,000 works of art, including paintings, sculptures, prints and draw ...
includes works by
Franz Kline Franz Kline (May 23, 1910 – May 13, 1962) was an American painter. He is associated with the Abstract Expressionist movement of the 1940s and 1950s. Kline, along with other action painters like Jackson Pollock, Willem de Kooning, Robert Mo ...
,
Jackson Pollock Paul Jackson Pollock (; January 28, 1912August 11, 1956) was an American painter. A major figure in the abstract expressionist movement, Pollock was widely noticed for his "Drip painting, drip technique" of pouring or splashing liquid household ...
and
Mark Rothko Mark Rothko ( ; Markus Yakovlevich Rothkowitz until 1940; September 25, 1903February 25, 1970) was an American abstract art, abstract painter. He is best known for his color field paintings that depicted irregular and painterly rectangular reg ...
as part of the Edward J. Gallagher Memorial Collection, a tribute to a young man who was killed in a boating accident. The museum also includes the Samuel H. Kress Collection of European works from the 14th to 19th centuries and the C. Leonard Pfeiffer Collection of American paintings. *
Center for Creative Photography The Center for Creative Photography (CCP), established in 1975 and located on the University of Arizona's Tucson campus, is a research facility and archival repository containing the full archives of over sixty of the most famous American ph ...
, a leading museum with many works by major artists such as
Ansel Adams Ansel Easton Adams (February 20, 1902 – April 22, 1984) was an American landscape photographer and environmentalist known for his Monochrome photography, black-and-white images of the American West. He helped found Group f/64, an association ...
and
Edward Weston Edward Henry Weston (March 24, 1886 – January 1, 1958) was an American photographer. He has been called "one of the most innovative and influential American photographers" and "one of the masters of 20th century photography." Over the course ...
. * The DeGrazia Gallery in the Sun is an iconic Tucson landmark in the foothills of the Santa Catalina Mountains. *
Titan Missile Museum The Titan Missile Museum, also known as Air Force Facility Missile Site 8 or as Titan II ICBM Site 571-7, is a former ICBM (intercontinental ballistic missile) site located about south of Tucson, Arizona in the United States. It was constructed ...
is about south of the city on I-19. This is a Cold War-era
Titan Titan most often refers to: * Titan (moon), the largest moon of Saturn * Titans, a race of deities in Greek mythology Titan or Titans may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Fictional entities Fictional locations * Titan in fiction, fictiona ...
nuclear
missile silo A missile launch facility, also known as an underground missile silo, launch facility (LF), or nuclear silo, is a vertical cylindrical structure constructed underground, for the storage and launching of intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBM ...
(billed as the only remaining intact post-Cold War Titan missile silo) turned tourist stop. *
Pima Air & Space Museum The Pima Air & Space Museum is an aerospace museum in Tucson, Arizona, US. It features a display of nearly 400 aircraft spread out over on a campus occupying . It has also been the home to the Arizona Aviation Hall of Fame since 1991. Overv ...
has a wide assortment of aircraft on display both indoors and outdoors. * Pima County Fair * Trail Dust Town is an outdoor shopping mall and restaurant complex built from the remains of a 1950 western movie set. * Museum of the Horse Soldier * Jewish History Museum *
Centennial Hall Centennial Hall (, ) may refer to: in Canada * Centennial Hall (London, Ontario), London, Ontario, Canada * Centennial Concert Hall, Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada * Saskatoon Centennial Auditorium, former name of TCU Place in Germany * , 1902 * Ce ...
opened in 1937 as the University of Arizona's campus auditorium, designed by architect
Roy Place Roy Place (1887 – 1950) was a Tucson, Arizona architect. Born in San Diego in 1887, Place moved to Tucson in 1917 after working in Chicago and the Boston firm of Shepley, Rutan & Coolidge. Place partnered with John Lyman in 1919, together co ...
. * Tucson Chinese Cultural Center * Tucson Loop Shared Use Bike Path *
Arizona State Museum The Arizona State Museum (ASM), founded in 1893, was originally a repository for the collection and protection of archaeological resources. Today, however, ASM stores artifacts, exhibits them and provides education and research opportunities. I ...
(on the University of Arizona campus) * Museum of Contemporary Art, Tucson Fourth Avenue, near the
University of Arizona The University of Arizona (Arizona, U of A, UArizona, or UA) is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Tucson, Arizona, United States. Founded in 1885 by the 13th Arizona Territorial Legislature, it ...
, is home to many shops, restaurants, and bars, and hosts the annual 4th Avenue Street Fair every December and March. University Boulevard, leading directly to the UA Main Gate, is also the center of numerous bars, retail shops, and restaurants most commonly frequented by the large student population of the UA. El Tiradito is a religious shrine in the downtown area. The shrine dates back to the early days of Tucson. It is based on a love story of revenge and murder. People stop by the shrine to light a candle for someone in need, a place for people to go give hope.
Biosphere 2 University of Arizona Biosphere 2 is an American Earth system science research facility located in Oracle, Arizona. Its mission is to serve as a center for research, outreach, teaching, and lifelong learning about Earth, its living systems, and i ...
is a educational facility designed to mimic a tropical or sub-tropical climate-controlled environment.


Literary arts

The accomplished and awarded writers (poets, novelists, dramatists, nonfiction writers) who have lived in Tucson include
Edward Abbey Edward Paul Abbey (January 29, 1927 – March 14, 1989) was an American author and essayist noted for his advocacy of environmental issues, criticism of public land policies, and anarchist political views. His best-known works include the nov ...
,
Erskine Caldwell Erskine Preston Caldwell (December 17, 1903 – April 11, 1987) was an American novelist and short story writer. His writings about poverty, racism and social problems in his native Southern United States, in novels such as '' Tobacco Road'' (19 ...
,
Barbara Kingsolver Barbara Ellen Kingsolver (born April 8, 1955) is a Pulitzer Prize-winning American novelist, essayist, and poet. Her widely known works include '' The Poisonwood Bible'', the tale of a missionary family in the Congo, and '' Animal, Vegetable, Mira ...
and
David Foster Wallace David Foster Wallace (February 21, 1962 – September 12, 2008) was an American writer and professor who published novels, short stories, and essays. He is best known for his 1996 novel ''Infinite Jest'', which ''Time (magazine), Time'' magazine ...
. Some were associated with the University of Arizona, but many were independent writers who chose to make Tucson their home. The city is particularly active in publishing and presenting contemporary innovative poetry in various ways. Examples are the
Chax Press Charles Alexander (born 1954) is an American poet, publisher, and book artist. He is the director and editor-in-chief of Chax Press. Alexander also served as the director of the Minnesota Center for the Book Arts from 1993 until 1995, and as book ...
, a publisher of poetry books in trade and book arts editions, and the
University of Arizona Poetry Center The University of Arizona Poetry Center in Tucson, Arizona, is among the most extensive collections of contemporary poetry in the United States. It is the largest such collection which is "open shelf." History of the collection and the center Th ...
, which has a sizable poetry library and presents readings, conferences, and workshops.


Performing arts

Theater groups include the
Arizona Theatre Company The Arizona Theatre Company is an American nonprofit regional theater company operating in Phoenix, Arizona. History The Arizona Theatre Company (ATC) was founded by Sandy Rosenthal in 1966 as the Arizona Civic Theatre. It originally performe ...
, which performs in the Temple of Music and Art, and Arizona Onstage Productions, a not-for-profit theater company devoted to musical theater.
Broadway in Tucson Broadway in Tucson/A Nederlander Presentation is part of the nationally recognized Nederlander Producing Company of America. The Nederlander organization was awarded a contract by the City of Tucson in 2003 to present a series of Broadway musi ...
presents the touring reproductions of many Broadway-style events. The Gaslight Theater produces musical melodrama parodies in the old Jerry Lewis Theater and has been in Tucson since 1977. Tucson is home to the Tucson Symphony Orchestra, the oldest performing arts organization in the state of Arizona. The annual Tucson Fringe Festival, held in various local venues in and around Downtown Tucson, offers non-traditional artistic performances at low cost to the public. The festival is held in early January each year.


City of Tucson Designated Historic Landmarks

* San Pedro Chapel, Designated 1981 * Smith House, Designated 1986 * Cannon-Douglas House, Designated 1986 * Sosa–Carrillo–Fremont House, Part of TCC PAD, Designated 1987 * El Con Water Tower, Designated 1991 * El Tiradito Wishing Shrine, Designated 1995 * Valley of the Moon, Designated, 2015 * Broadway Village, Designated 2015 * Voorhees-Pattison House, Designated 2015 * Rubinstein House, Designated 2018 * Williamson House, Designated 2018 * Hirsh's Shoes, Designated 2018 * Benedictine Monastery, Designated 2019 *
Ball-Paylore House The Ball-Paylore House, designed by architect Arthur T. Brown, FAIA, and built in 1952, is an example of post-WWII American architecture in Tucson, Arizona. When built the house was published locally and nationally. Today it is listed in the Na ...
, Designated 2020 * Kirby Lockard House, Designated 2020 * Beck House, Designated 2021 * Loerpabel Joesler House, Designated 2022


Music

Musical organizations include the
Tucson Symphony Orchestra The Tucson Symphony Orchestra, or TSO, is the primary professional orchestra of Tucson, Arizona. Founded in 1928, when the season consisted of just two concerts, the TSO is the oldest continuously running performing arts organization in the Sout ...
(founded in 1929) and
Arizona Opera Arizona Opera is an opera company which operates in both Phoenix, Arizona, Phoenix and Tucson, Arizona. History Arizona Opera was established in 1971 as the Tucson Opera Company, under founding general director James P. Sullivan, and presented i ...
(founded as the Tucson Opera Company in 1971). The Tucson Arizona Boys Chorus, founded in 1939 and performing a wide-ranging repertoire that incorporates rope tricks, has represented the city as "Ambassadors in Levi's" at local, national, and international concerts. The Tucson Girls Chorus runs six choirs and numerous satellite choirs which perform locally, nationally, and internationally. Tucson is considered an influential center for
Mariachi Mariachi (, , ) is a genre of regional Mexican music dating back to at least the 18th century, evolving over time in the countryside of various regions of western Mexico. The usual mariachi group today consists of as many as eight violins, two ...
music and is home to a large number of Mariachi musicians and singers. The Tucson International Mariachi Conference, hosted annually since 1982, involves several hundred mariachi bands and folklorica dance troops during a three-day festival in April. The Norteño Festival and Street Fair in the
enclave An enclave is a territory that is entirely surrounded by the territory of only one other state or entity. An enclave can be an independent territory or part of a larger one. Enclaves may also exist within territorial waters. ''Enclave'' is so ...
city of South Tucson is held annually at the end of summer. Tucson is also known nationally for its
punk Punk or punks may refer to: Genres, subculture, and related aspects * Punk rock, a music genre originating in the 1970s associated with various subgenres * Punk subculture, a subculture associated with punk rock, or aspects of the subculture s ...
scene. Since the late 1970s
punk subculture The punk subculture includes a diverse and widely known array of Punk rock, music, Punk ideologies, ideologies, Punk fashion, fashion, and other forms of expression, Punk visual art, visual art, dance, Punk literature, literature, and film. La ...
has flourished in Tucson. At present there are multiple punk bars downtown and house venues in the surrounding neighborhoods. Prominent musicians based in Tucson or with ties to the city include
Linda Ronstadt Linda Maria Ronstadt (born July 15, 1946) is an American singer who has performed and recorded in diverse genres including rock, country, light opera, the Great American Songbook, and Latin music. Ronstadt has earned 11 Grammy Awards, three A ...
,
Lalo Guerrero Eduardo "Lalo" Guerrero Jr. (December 24, 1916 – March 17, 2005) was an American guitarist, singer and farm labor activist best known for his strong influence on later Latin musical artists. Early life Eduardo Guerrero Jr., nicknamed "Lalo" ...
,
The Dusty Chaps The Dusty Chaps was an American country rock band based in Tucson, AZ from 1969 through the early 1980s. In 1975 they released their first album Honky Tonk Music on a small Tucson label, Bandoleer Records. The band subsequently signed with Capit ...
,
Howe Gelb Howard “Howe” Gelb (born October 22, 1956, in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania) is an American singer-songwriter, musician and record producer based in Tucson, Arizona. Projects Gelb's approach to music is collaborative and he has recorded wit ...
, Bob Log III,
Calexico Calexico () is a city in southern Imperial County, California. Situated on the Mexican border, it is linked economically with the much larger city of Mexicali, the capital of the Mexican state of Baja California. It is about east of San Dieg ...
,
Giant Sand Giant Sand (formerly Giant Sandworms) is an American musical group from Tucson, Arizona, United States. Its most constant member is singer-songwriter Howe Gelb. The groups have developed idiosyncratic sound rooted in alternative country, but t ...
, Hipster Daddy-O and the Handgrenades,
The Bled The Bled is an American post-hardcore/metalcore band from Tucson, Arizona, formed in 2001. They released four albums ('' Pass the Flask'', '' Found in the Flood'', '' Silent Treatment'' and '' Heat Fetish'') before disbanding in 2012. History ...
, AJJ, Ramshackle Glory, and Tucson's official troubadour Ted Ramirez. The Tucson Area Music Awards, or TAMMIES, are an annual event.


Television and film

Tucson has been the setting and filming location for multiple films. Some notable films that have been filmed in Tucson include ''
Revenge of the Nerds ''Revenge of the Nerds'' is a 1984 American comedy film directed by Jeff Kanew and starring Robert Carradine, Anthony Edwards, Ted McGinley, and Bernie Casey. The plot follows a group of nerds at the fictional Adams College trying to st ...
'', ''
Can't Buy Me Love "Can't Buy Me Love" is a song by the English rock band the Beatles that was released in March 1964 as the A-side and B-side, A-side of their sixth single. It was written by Paul McCartney and credited to the Lennon–McCartney partnership. The s ...
'', '' Major League'', ''
Tombstone A gravestone or tombstone is a marker, usually stone, that is placed over a grave. A marker set at the head of the grave may be called a headstone. An especially old or elaborate stone slab may be called a funeral stele, stela, or slab. The us ...
'', and '' Tin Cup''. The city is also a common filming location and setting for
Western films The Western is a film genre defined by the American Film Institute as films which are "set in the American West that mbodythe spirit, the struggle, and the demise of the Frontier Thesis, new frontier." Generally set in the American frontier b ...
, most were filmed at Old Tucson. The television show ''
Hey Dude ''Hey Dude'' is an American Western comedy series that aired on Nickelodeon from July 14, 1989, to August 30, 1991, consisting of 65 half-hour episodes produced over five seasons. The TV series "Hey Dude" is set on the fictitious Bar None Ranc ...
'' was filmed at Tanque Verde Ranch. Additionally, the fictional motorcycle clubs the Sons of Anarchy and Mayans from the television shows ''
Sons of Anarchy ''Sons of Anarchy'' is an American Action film, action crime drama television series created by Kurt Sutter for FX (TV channel), FX. Originally aired from September 3, 2008, to December 9, 2014, ''Sons of Anarchy'' follows the lives of a close-k ...
'' and ''
Mayans M.C. ''Mayans M.C.'' (also known simply as ''Mayans'') is an American crime drama television series created by Kurt Sutter and Elgin James, that premiered on September 4, 2018, on FX. The show takes place in the same fictional universe as ''Sons o ...
'' both have Tucson chapters that are featured in the show. In the
season 4 Season 4 may refer to: * "Season 4" (''30 Rock'' episode), an episode of ''30 Rock'' See also * * Season One (disambiguation) * Season 2 (disambiguation) Season 2 may refer to: * ''Season 2'' (Infinite album), 2014 * ''2econd Season'', an album ...
''Sons of Anarchy'' episode "Una Venta", the cast travels to Tucson to discuss an issue with the Tucson chapter. The upcoming TV series ''Duster'' began filming in Tucson in October 2021. The series is specifically being filmed in downtown Tucson and the
Tucson Mountains The Tucson Mountains ( O'odham: ) are a minor mountain range west of Tucson, Arizona, United States. The Tucson Mountains, including Wasson Peak, are one of four notable mountain ranges surrounding the Tucson Basin. The Santa Catalina Mountai ...
region of
Saguaro National Park Saguaro National Park is a List of national parks of the United States, national park of the United States in southeastern Arizona. The park consists of two separate areas—the Tucson Mountain District (TMD), about west of Tucson, Arizona, T ...
.


Cuisine

Tucson is well known for its
Sonora Sonora (), officially Estado Libre y Soberano de Sonora (), is one of the 31 states which, along with Mexico City, comprise the Administrative divisions of Mexico, Federal Entities of Mexico. The state is divided into Municipalities of Sonora, 72 ...
n-style Mexican food. Since the turn of the century, other ethnic restaurants and fine dining choices have proliferated. Tucson cuisine is influenced by a diverse group of peoples, from Native Americans to Spanish settlers, Anglo-American ranchers and rail workers from China. In 2015 the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (
UNESCO The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO ) is a List of specialized agencies of the United Nations, specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) with the aim of promoting world peace and International secur ...
) designated Tucson a "world city of gastronomy" under the
Creative Cities Network The UNESCO Creative Cities Network (UCCN) is a flagship city programme of UNESCO launched in 2004 to promote cooperation among cities which have recognized culture and creativity as strategic drivers of sustainable urban development Urban means ...
program, becoming thus the first city of gastronomy in the United States. The city's focus on food includes
Mission Garden Mission Garden is a living agricultural museum near Sentinel Peak (Arizona), Sentinel Peak in Tucson, Arizona. Its adobe walls enclose four acres of heritage crops and heirloom trees that represent people who have lived in the Sonoran Desert for ...
, a living agricultural museum that showcases the crops and trees that have been grown in the area for over 4000 years. The
Sonoran hot dog The Sonoran hot dog is a style of hot dog that originated in Hermosillo, the capital of the Mexican state of Sonora, in the late 1980s. It is popular in Tucson, Phoenix, and elsewhere in southern Arizona. It consists of a hot dog that is wrapp ...
is very popular in Tucson. A hot dog is wrapped in bacon and grilled, served on a
bolillo A ''bolillo'' () (in Mexico) or ''pan francés'' (in Central America) (meaning "French bread") is a type of savory bread made in Mexico and Central America. It is a variation of the baguette, but shorter in length and is often baked in a stone o ...
-style hot dog bun, and topped with pinto beans, onions, tomatoes, and a variety of additional condiments, often including mayonnaise, mustard, and jalapeño salsa. Tucson also has a strong, though contested, claim to being the place of origin of the
chimichanga A chimichanga ( , ) is a deep-fried burrito that is common in Tex-Mex and other Southwestern U.S. cuisine. The dish is typically prepared by filling a flour tortilla with various ingredients, most commonly rice, cheese, beans, and a meat, such ...
. Tucson is also the birthplace of Chinese Chorizo, a Sino-Mexican fusion dish consisting of pork sausage seasoned with soy sauce, rice wine and chili. This version of
chorizo ''Chorizo'' ( , ; ; see #Names, below) is a type of pork sausage originating from the Iberian Peninsula. It is made in many national and regional varieties in several countries on different continents. Some of these varieties are quite differe ...
originated from local Chinese grocery stores, which existed during the 1880s to 1970s. Since 2022, the Chinese Chorizo Festival is held every October, and participants invent new dishes involving the sausage.


Nicknames

Tucson is commonly known as "The Old Pueblo". While the exact origin of this nickname is uncertain, it is commonly traced back to Mayor R. N. "Bob" Leatherwood. When
rail service Rail transport (also known as train transport) is a means of transport using wheeled vehicles running in tracks, which usually consist of two parallel steel rails. Rail transport is one of the two primary means of land transport, next to road ...
was established to the city on March 20, 1880, Leatherwood celebrated the fact by sending telegrams to various leaders, including the
President of the United States The president of the United States (POTUS) is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president directs the Federal government of the United States#Executive branch, executive branch of the Federal government of t ...
and the
Pope The pope is the bishop of Rome and the Head of the Church#Catholic Church, visible head of the worldwide Catholic Church. He is also known as the supreme pontiff, Roman pontiff, or sovereign pontiff. From the 8th century until 1870, the po ...
, announcing the "ancient and honorable pueblo" of Tucson was now connected by rail to the outside world. The term became popular with newspaper writers who often abbreviated it as "A. and H. Pueblo". This in turn transformed into the current form of "The Old Pueblo". In the early 1980s, city leaders ran a contest searching for a new nickname. The winning entry was the "Sunshine Factory". The new nickname never gained popular acceptance, allowing the old name to remain in common use. Tucson was dubbed "
Optics Valley Optics Valley is a region in southern Arizona, centered on Tucson, that is home to a high concentration of optics companies spawned by research at the University of Arizona. Based on the idea of a technology cluster, akin Silicon Valley, Optics V ...
" in 1992 when ''
Business Week ''Bloomberg Businessweek'', previously known as ''BusinessWeek'' (and before that ''Business Week'' and ''The Business Week''), is an American monthly business magazine published 12 times a year. The magazine debuted in New York City in Septembe ...
'' ran a cover story on the Arizona Optics Industry Association.


Sports

Tucson is not represented in any of the five major sports leagues of the United States: the
NFL The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league in the United States. Composed of 32 teams, it is divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The N ...
,
MLB Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball league composed of 30 teams, divided equally between the National League (baseball), National League (NL) and the American League (AL), with 29 in the United States and 1 in Canada. MLB i ...
, the
NBA The National Basketball Association (NBA) is a professional basketball league in North America composed of 30 teams (29 in the United States and 1 in Canada). The NBA is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United States and Ca ...
, the
NHL The National Hockey League (NHL; , ''LNH'') is a professional ice hockey league in North America composed of 32 teams25 in the United States and 7 in Canada. The NHL is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United States and Cana ...
, or
MLS Major League Soccer (MLS) is a professional soccer league in North America and the highest level of the United States soccer league system. It comprises 30 teams, with 27 in the United States and 3 in Canada, and is sanctioned by the United ...
. The
University of Arizona The University of Arizona (Arizona, U of A, UArizona, or UA) is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Tucson, Arizona, United States. Founded in 1885 by the 13th Arizona Territorial Legislature, it ...
's athletic teams, most notably the
men's basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appro ...
,
football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...
,
baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball games, bat-and-ball sport played between two team sport, teams of nine players each, taking turns batting (baseball), batting and Fielding (baseball), fielding. The game occurs over the course of several Pitch ...
, and
softball Softball is a Variations of baseball, variation of baseball, the difference being that it is played with a larger ball, on a smaller field, and with only underhand pitches (where the ball is released while the hand is primarily below the ball) ...
teams, have strong local interest. The men's basketball team, formerly coached by Hall of Fame head coach
Lute Olson Robert Luther "Lute" Olson (September 22, 1934 – August 27, 2020) was an American basketball coach, who was inducted into both the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame and the National Collegiate Basketball Hall of Fame. He was the head co ...
and currently coached by Tommy Lloyd, made 25 straight NCAA Tournaments appearances (1985–2009) and won the 1997 National Championship. Arizona's softball team has reached the NCAA National Championship game 12 times and has won 8 times, most recently in 2007. Arizona's baseball team won
NCAA The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates College athletics in the United States, student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, and Simon Fraser University, 1 in Canada. ...
National Championships in 1976, 1980, 1986, and 2012. The university's
swim teams Swim or SWIM may refer to: Movement and sport * Swim, a fad dance * Aquatic locomotion, the act of biologically propelled motion through a liquid medium * Human swimming, the useful or recreational activity of movement through water * Swimming ( ...
have gained international recognition, with swimmers coming from as far as Japan and Africa to train with coach Frank Busch, who has also worked with the U.S. Olympic swim team for numerous years. Both men's and women's swim teams won the 2008
NCAA The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates College athletics in the United States, student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, and Simon Fraser University, 1 in Canada. ...
National Championships. In
ice hockey Ice hockey (or simply hockey in North America) is a team sport played on ice skates, usually on an Ice rink, ice skating rink with Ice hockey rink, lines and markings specific to the sport. It belongs to a family of sports called hockey. Tw ...
, the
Tucson Roadrunners The Tucson Roadrunners are a professional ice hockey team based in Tucson, Arizona. They are the American Hockey League (AHL) affiliate of the National Hockey League's (NHL) Utah Mammoth. They play their home games at the Tucson Convention Cente ...
of the
American Hockey League The American Hockey League (AHL) is a professional ice hockey league in North America that serves as the primary developmental league of the National Hockey League (NHL). The league comprises 32 teams, with 26 in the United States and 6 in Cana ...
began play during the 2016–2017 season after relocating to Tucson in 2016. They play at the Tucson Convention Center Arena from October to April, and are the top affiliate of the
Utah Mammoth The Utah Mammoth are a professional ice hockey team based in Salt Lake City. The Mammoth compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Central Division (NHL), Central Division in the Western Conference (NHL), Western Conference. ...
. Between 1975 and 1979, there were three professional ice hockey teams in Tucson. The Tucson Mavericks of the Central Hockey League (1963-1984), Central Hockey League from 1975 to 1976, the Tucson Icemen of the Southwest Hockey League from 1976 to 1977, and the Tucson Rustlers of the Pacific Hockey League from 1978 to 1979. Later in 1997, the Tucson Gila Monsters were unveiled and played from 1997 to 1999 in the West Coast Hockey League. After the Gila Monsters folded in 1999 a team was announced that were to begin play for the Western Professional Hockey League called the Tucson Scorch they never played a game due to the owner not posting a financial guarantee which was required for a team to begin play in the league. In American football, the Indoor Football League announced in 2018 they were bringing an expansion team to Tucson to play at the
Tucson Convention Center The Tucson Convention Center (previously named the Tucson Community Center) is a multi-purpose convention center located in downtown Tucson, Arizona. Built in 1971, the location includes an 8,962-seat indoor arena, two performing arts venues, a ...
's newly renovated Tucson Arena starting in 2019. That team would be announced as the Tucson Sugar Skulls. In baseball, the Tucson Saguaros of the independent Pecos League began play in 2016 and play at the Kino Veterans Memorial Stadium. They won the league in their inaugural season and won two more championships in 2020 and 2021. The Tucson Padres played at Kino Veterans Memorial Stadium from 2011 to 2013. They served as the AAA affiliate of the San Diego Padres. The team, formerly known as the Portland Beavers, temporarily moved to Tucson from Portland, Oregon, Portland while the team awaited a new stadium in Escondido, California, Escondido. Legal issues derailed the plans to build the Escondido stadium, so they moved to
El Paso, Texas El Paso (; ; or ) is a city in and the county seat of El Paso County, Texas, United States. The 2020 United States census, 2020 population of the city from the United States Census Bureau, U.S. Census Bureau was 678,815, making it the List of ...
for the 2014 season and onward. Previously, the Tucson Sidewinders, a triple-A affiliate of the Arizona Diamondbacks from 1998 to 2008, won the Pacific Coast League championship and unofficial AAA championship in 2006. The Sidewinders played at
Tucson Electric Park Kino Sports Complex is a multiple-use sports complex in Tucson, Arizona. The Arizona Diamondbacks and Chicago White Sox formerly utilized the complex's main ballpark, Kino Veterans Memorial Stadium, for Cactus League games each March and had thei ...
(now called Kino Sports Complex) and were in the Pacific Conference South of the PCL. The Sidewinders were sold in 2007 and moved to Reno, Nevada after the 2008 season. They now compete as the Reno Aces, who have served as a triple-A affiliate for the Arizona Diamondbacks since 2009. In Association football, soccer, Tucson is host to the Mobile Mini Sun Cup, the largest pre-season Major League Soccer (MLS) tournament in the country. As many as 11 MLS soccer clubs train in Tucson every winter. Tucson is also host to FC Tucson, a professional soccer club that plays at the Kino Sports Complex North Stadium in the third-tier USL League Two. The United States Handball Association Hall of Fame is in Tucson. Tracks include Tucson Raceway Park and Rillito Downs. Tucson Raceway Park hosts NASCAR-sanctioned auto racing events and is one of only two asphalt short tracks in Arizona. Rillito Downs is an in-town destination on weekends in January and February each year. This historic track held the first organized quarter horse races in the world, and they are still racing there. The racetrack is threatened by development. The Moltacqua racetrack, was another historic horse racetrack on what is now Sabino Canyon Road and Vactor Ranch Trail, but it no longer exists.


Parks and recreation

The city has more than 120 parks, from small and local to larger parks with ballfields, natural areas, lakes, 5 public golf courses, and
Reid Park Zoo The Reid Park Zoo, founded in 1967, is a city-owned and -operated nonprofit zoo located within Reid Park in Tucson, Arizona. The zoo features more than 500 animals. It was unofficially established in 1965 by Gene Reid, the parks and recreatio ...
. The The Loop (Tucson), Loop is a popular system of shared-use paths encircling the city primarily along washes and is usually well-separated from traffic. Several scenic parks and points of interest are also nearby, including the Tucson Botanical Gardens,
Tohono Chul Park Tohono Chul (aka Tohono Chul Park) is a botanical garden, nature preserve, and cultural museum located in Casas Adobes, Arizona, Casas Adobes, a suburb of Tucson, Arizona. The words "tohono chul" translate as "desert corner" and are borrow ...
,
Saguaro National Park Saguaro National Park is a List of national parks of the United States, national park of the United States in southeastern Arizona. The park consists of two separate areas—the Tucson Mountain District (TMD), about west of Tucson, Arizona, T ...
, Sabino Canyon, and
Biosphere 2 University of Arizona Biosphere 2 is an American Earth system science research facility located in Oracle, Arizona. Its mission is to serve as a center for research, outreach, teaching, and lifelong learning about Earth, its living systems, and i ...
(just north of the city, near the town of
Oracle An oracle is a person or thing considered to provide insight, wise counsel or prophetic predictions, most notably including precognition of the future, inspired by deities. If done through occultic means, it is a form of divination. Descript ...
). Tumamoc Hill is an active research site maintained by the
University of Arizona The University of Arizona (Arizona, U of A, UArizona, or UA) is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Tucson, Arizona, United States. Founded in 1885 by the 13th Arizona Territorial Legislature, it ...
and
Pima County Pima County ( ) is a County (United States), county in the south central region of the U.S. state of Arizona, one of 15 List of counties in Arizona, counties in the state. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population was 1 ...
that doubles as a popular walking/running trail. The paved trail on Tumamoc Hill is 1.5 miles uphill (3 miles full trip), divided into two parts. The lower half is a much more gradual slope compared to the steep upper half reaching a final elevation of 2,340 ft where it overlooks most of the city of Tucson. The trail attracts around 1500 visits a day from various demographics of the Tucson area. Mt. Lemmon is north (by the Catalina Highway) and over above Tucson in the Santa Catalina Mountains in the Coronado National Forest. Outdoor activities in the Catalinas include hiking, mountain biking, birding, rock climbing, picnicking, camping, swimming in mountain stream pools, sky rides at Ski Valley, fishing, and photography. In winter with enough snow, the sky ride converts back to skiing at the southernmost ski resort in the continental United States. Summerhaven, Arizona, Summerhaven, a community near the top of Mt. Lemmon, is also a popular destination. The League of American Bicyclists gave Tucson a gold rating for bicycle friendliness in late April 2007. Tucson hosts the largest perimeter cycling event in the United States. The ride, called " El Tour de Tucson", takes place each November on the Saturday before Thanksgiving. El Tour de Tucson produced and promoted by Perimeter Bicycling has had as many as 10,000 participants from all over the world. In 2019, ridership is expected to be 6,000 cyclists. Tucson is one of only nine cities in the U.S. to receive a gold rating or higher for cycling friendliness from the League of American Bicyclists. The city is known for its winter cycling opportunities, with teams and riders from around the world spending a portion of the year training in Tucson's year-round biking climate. Popular mountain biking areas include Tucson Mountain Park, Sweetwater Preserve, the Tortolita Mountain trail systems, and Fantasy Island. Road cyclists take on Catalina Highway's steep climb year-round.


Government

Pima County supported John Kerry 53% to 47% in the 2004 United States presidential election, 2004 U.S. Presidential Election, and Barack Obama 54% to 46% in the 2008 United States presidential election, 2008 U.S. Presidential Election. In the latter year, Pima was the only county to vote against Arizona's Same-sex marriage, gay marriage ban. In 2013, Tucson became the second city in Arizona to approve of civil unions for same-sex partners. The city was the first in the state to pass a domestic partnership registry earlier in 2003. In general, Tucson and Pima County support the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, while the state's largest metropolitan area, greater Phoenix, has traditionally supported the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party. Congressional redistricting in 2013, following the publication of the 2010 Census, divided the Tucson area into three Federal Congressional districts (the first, second and third of Arizona). The city center is in the 7th District, represented by Raul Grijalva, a Democrat, from 2003 until his death in 2025, while the more affluent residential areas to the east are in the 6th District, represented by Republican Juan Ciscomani since 2022, and the exurbs north and west between Tucson and Phoenix in the 2nd District are represented by Republican Eli Crane since 2022. The United States Postal Service operates post offices in Tucson. The Tucson Main Post Office is at 1501 South Cherrybell Stravenue.


City government

Tucson follows the "weak mayor" model of the council–manager government, council-manager form of local government. The six-member city council holds exclusive legislative authority, and shares executive authority with the mayor, who is elected by the voters independently of the council. An appointed city manager is responsible for the day-to-day operations of the city. Tucson is the only city in Arizona that holds officially partisan elections for city offices, with candidates nominated through party primaries. Both the council members and the mayor serve four-year terms; none face term limits. Council members are nominated by their wards via a ward-level primary held in August. The top vote-earners from each party then compete at-large for their ward's seat on the November ballot. In other words, on Election Day (politics), election day the whole city votes on all the council races up for that year. Council elections are severed: Wards 1, 2, and 4 (as well as the mayor) are up for election in the same year (most recently 2015), while Wards 3, 5, and 6 share another year (most recently 2017). Tucson is known for being a trailblazer in voluntary partial campaign finance, publicly financed campaigns. Since 1985, both mayoral and council candidates have been eligible to receive matching public funds from the city. To become eligible, council candidates must receive 200 donations of $10 or more (300 for a mayoral candidate). Candidates must then agree to spending limits equal to 33¢ for every registered Tucson voter, or $79,222 in 2005 (the corresponding figures for mayor are 64¢ per registered voter, or $142,271 in 2003). In return, candidates receive matching funds from the city at a 1:1 ratio of public money to private donations. The only other limitation is that candidates may not exceed 75% of the limit by the date of the primary. Many cities, such as San Francisco and New York City, have copied this system, albeit with more complex spending and matching formulas. Mayor Regina Romero (D) was sworn into office on December 2, 2019, succeeding Jonathan Rothschild (D) who was sworn into office on December 5, 2011, succeeding Robert E. Walkup (R), who took office in 1999. Walkup was preceded by George Miller (Arizona politician), George Miller (D), 1991–1999; Tom Volgy (D), 1987–1991; Lew Murphy (R), 1971–1987; and Jim Corbett (politician), Jim Corbett (D), 1967–1971.


Education


Post-secondary education

*
University of Arizona The University of Arizona (Arizona, U of A, UArizona, or UA) is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Tucson, Arizona, United States. Founded in 1885 by the 13th Arizona Territorial Legislature, it ...
: established in 1885; the second largest university in the state in terms of enrollment with over 36,000 students. * Pima Community College has ten campuses. * Catholic University of America, The Catholic University of America has a Tucson branch campus. * Tucson College has one Tucson campus. * Brookline College has one Tucson campus. * University of Phoenix has four Tucson campuses. * Prescott College has a Tucson branch campus. * Northern Arizona University has a Tucson branch campus. * Arizona School of Acupuncture & Oriental Medicine * The Art Center Design College has two Tucson campuses. * Wayland Baptist University has one Tucson campus.


Primary and secondary schools

Primarily, students of the Tucson area attend public schools in the Tucson Unified School District (TUSD). TUSD has the second highest enrollment of any school district in Arizona, behind Mesa Unified School District in the Phoenix metropolitan area. There are also many publicly funded charter schools with a specialized curriculum. Other notable districts include Sunnyside Unified School District, Marana Unified School District, Amphitheater Unified School District, Vail Unified School District, and Flowing Wells Unified School District. In 1956, Tucson High School had the largest enrollment of any secondary school in the United States, with a total of more than 6,800 students. In 2018, Tucson High School enrollment was just over 3,000. The facility operated on a two-shift basis while construction went on for two other high schools that opened within a year to educate children in the rapidly booming Tucson population.


Media


Print

Tucson has one daily newspaper, the morning ''Arizona Daily Star''. Wick Communications publishes the daily legal paper ''The Daily Territorial'', while Boulder, Colo.-based 10/13 Communications publishes ''Tucson Weekly'' (an "alternative" publication), ''Inside Tucson Business'' and the ''Explorer (newspaper), Explorer''. TucsonSentinel.com is a nonprofit independent online news organization. ''Tucson Lifestyle Magazine'', ''Times Media Group (Arizona), Lovin' Life in Tucson'', ''DesertLeaf'', and ''Zócalo Magazine'' are monthly publications covering arts, architecture, decor, fashion, entertainment, business, history, and other events. The ''Arizona Daily Wildcat'' is the University of Arizona's student newspaper, and the ''Aztec News'' is the Pima Community College student newspaper. ''Catholic Outlook'' is the newspaper for the Roman Catholic Diocese of Tucson, and the ''Arizona Jewish Post'' is the newspaper of the Jewish Federation of Southern Arizona.


Television

The Tucson metro area is served by many local television stations and is the 65th largest media market, designated market area (DMA) in the U.S. with 433,330 homes (0.39% of the total U.S.). It is limited to the three counties of southeastern Arizona (Pima, Santa Cruz County, Arizona, Santa Cruz, and Cochise County, Arizona, Cochise)Holmes, Gary. The major television networks serving Tucson are: * KVOA 4 (National Broadcasting Company, NBC) * KUAT-TV 6 is a Public Broadcasting Service, PBS member station run by the University of Arizona (as is sister station KUAS 27). * KGUN 9 (American Broadcasting Company, ABC) * KMSB-TV 11 (Fox Broadcasting Company, Fox) * KOLD-TV 13 (CBS) * KUDF-LP 14 (Estrella TV) * KTTU (TV), KTTU 18 (The CW, CW, with MyNetworkTV on DT2) * KPCE-LD 29 (Daystar (TV network), Daystar) * KHRR-TV 40 (Telemundo) * KUVE-DT 46 (Univision) * KWBA-TV 58 (Independent station, Independent)


Infrastructure


Energy

Tucson's primary electrical power source is a natural gas power plant managed by Tucson Electric Power that is within the city limits on the southwestern boundary of Davis-Monthan Air-force base adjacent to Interstate 10. The air pollution generated has raised some concerns as the Sundt operating station has been online since 1962 and is exempt from many pollution standards and controls due to its age. Solar has been gaining ground in Tucson with its ideal over 300 days of sunshine climate. Federal, state, and even local utility credits and incentives have also enticed residents to equip homes with solar systems. Davis-Monthan AFB has a 3.3 Megawatt (MW) ground-mounted solar photovoltaic (PV) array and a 2.7 MW rooftop-mounted PV array, both of which are in the Base Housing area. The base will soon have the largest solar-generating capacity in the United States Department of Defense after awarding a contract on September 10, 2010, to SunEdison to construct a 14.5 MW PV field on the northwestern side of the base. Global Solar Energy, which is at the University of Arizona's science and technology park, is one of the planet's largest Copper indium gallium selenide solar cells, CIGS solar fields at 750 kilowatts.


Light pollution

Tucson and Pima County adopted Dark-sky movement, dark sky ordinances to control light pollution in support of the region's astronomical observatory, observatories in 1972. Last amended in 2012, the City of Tucson/Pima County Outdoor Lighting Code establishes maximum illumination levels, shielding requirements, and limits on signage in "continuing support of astronomical activity and minimizing wasted energy, while not compromising the safety, security, and well-being of persons engaged in outdoor nighttime activities."


Water

Less than 100 years ago, the Santa Cruz River flowed nearly year-round through Tucson. This supply of water has slowly disappeared, causing Tucson to seek alternative sources. In 1881, water was pumped from a well on the banks of the Santa Cruz River and flowed by gravity through pipes into the distribution system. Tucson currently draws water from two main sources: Central Arizona Project (CAP) water and groundwater. In 1992, Tucson Water delivered CAP water to some customers that was unacceptable due to discoloration, bad odor and flavor, as well as problems it caused with some customers' plumbing and appliances. Tucson's city water currently consists of CAP water mixed with groundwater. In an effort to conserve water, Tucson is recharging groundwater supplies by running part of its share of CAP water into various open portions of local rivers to seep into their aquifer. Additional study is scheduled to determine how much water is lost through evaporation from the open areas, especially during the summer. The City of Tucson provides reclaimed water to its inhabitants, but it is only used for "applications such as irrigation, dust control, and industrial uses". These resources have been in place for more than 27 years, and deliver to over 900 locations. To prevent further loss of groundwater, Tucson has been involved in water conservation and groundwater preservation efforts, shifting away from its reliance on a series of Tucson area wells in favor of conservation, consumption-based pricing for residential and commercial water use, and new wells in the more sustainable Avra Valley aquifer, northwest of the city. An allocation from the Central Arizona Project Aqueduct (CAP), which passes more than across the desert from the Colorado River, has been incorporated into the city's water supply, annually providing over 20 million gallons of "recharged" water which is pumped into the ground to replenish water pumped out. Since 2001, CAP water has allowed the city to remove or turn off over 80 wells.


Water harvesting

The city of Tucson, Arizona provides financial incentives for residents to harvest their rainwater. Tucson's water supply, like many Western cities, is drawn from two main sources: surface water that is pumped more than 300 miles from the Colorado River and groundwater. The pump expends a significant amount of energy and the Colorado River is diminishing as a result of climate change and overuse. In 2012, the city began a program that rebates residents as much as $2,000 for the purchase of water harvesting systems. "Water harvesting" refers to rainwater, which is gathered from building surfaces, and stormwater'','' which collects nonpotable storm runoff from streets and earth. The program is financed by a water bill fee of 10 cents per 748 gallons of city water used. In the first few years, the rebate program was not conserving water as efficiently as they anticipated. But in fiscal year 2018 to 2019, the rebate program saved 52.1 million gallons of water. That is enough water to meet the annual usage of 160 households. The city has been trying to grow the approximately 250 people who obtain active rebates each year by introducing a loan program to bring rebates within reach of lower-income residents. The city government has an ambitious goal to be carbon neutral by 2030 and is integrating changes that will help change local resident's conventional thinking and practices. On May 1, 2020, Tucson began charging residents and businesses within city limits a monthly Green Stormwater Infrastructure fee (13 cents per 748 gallons of city water used), which is projected to raise some $3 million a year for public stormwater capture installations and other projects. But this comes at a time when unemployment is rising and the number of low income residents facing unaffordable bills between 2010 and 2018 doubled to 46% as the average bill increased by 119% in Tucson. Additionally, as part of the citywide climate resiliency effort, Mayor Regina Romero recently announced the planting of a million trees over the next decade.


Transportation


Public transit

Tucson's Sun Tran bus system serves greater Tucson with standard, express, regional shuttle, and on-demand shuttle bus service. It was awarded American Public Transportation Association, Best Transit System in 1988 and 2005. A streetcar line, Sun Link, connects the
University of Arizona The University of Arizona (Arizona, U of A, UArizona, or UA) is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Tucson, Arizona, United States. Founded in 1885 by the 13th Arizona Territorial Legislature, it ...
campus with 4th Avenue, downtown, and the Mercado District west of
Interstate 10 Interstate 10 (I-10) is the southernmost transcontinental highway in the Interstate Highway System of the United States. It is the fourth-longest Interstate in the country at , following I-90, I-80, and I-40. It was part of the origina ...
and the Santa Cruz River. Ten-minute headway passenger service began July 25, 2014. The streetcar uses Sun Tran's card payment and transfer system, connecting with the University of Arizona's CatTran shuttles, Amtrak, and Greyhound Lines, Greyhound intercity bus service. Sun Tran has been Free public transport, fare-free since the spring of 2020. Initially this change was made to limit contact between riders and drivers due to the COVID-19 pandemic, but the city council voted to eliminate fares indefinitely in 2023.


Rail

Amtrak, the national passenger rail system, provides service to Tucson station, Tucson three times weekly in both directions, operating its ''Sunset Limited'' between Los Angeles, California and New Orleans, Louisiana; and ''Texas Eagle'' service between Los Angeles and Chicago, Illinois.


Airport

Tucson International Airport Tucson International Airport is a civil-military airport owned by the City of Tucson south of downtown Tucson, in Pima County, Arizona, United States. It is the second busiest airport in Arizona, after Phoenix Sky Harbor International Air ...
, is south of the city's center. TIA is the second-largest commercial airport in Arizona (behind Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport, Sky Harbor in Phoenix), providing nonstop flights to 15 destinations throughout the United States. In addition to passenger and freight service, TIA supports the 162nd Wing, 162nd Fighter Wing's fleet of seventy General Dynamics F-16 Fighting Falcon, F-16s stationed at the Tucson Air National Guard Base. There are two general aviation reliever airports in the area. The city of Tucson operates Ryan Airfield southwest of the city center, and the town of Marana operates Marana Regional Airport to the northwest. Pinal Airpark is also within the metropolitan area.


Roadways

There are two Interstate Highway System, Interstate highways in the metropolitan area. Interstate 10 in Arizona, Interstate 10 runs southeast from Phoenix through Marana, passes west of downtown, and continues east toward El Paso. Interstate 19 leaves the I-10 south of downtown and heads south to the Mexican border. Arizona State Route 210 is a shorter expressway that links downtown with Davis-Monthan Air Force Base and Tucson's southeast side. Tucson does not have a ring road, beltway system, and relies almost entirely on surface streets. Freeways and state highways in Tucson include: * Interstate 10 in Arizona, Interstate 10 * Interstate 19 * Arizona State Route 77, State Route 77 * Arizona State Route 86, State Route 86 * Arizona State Route 210, State Route 210


Cycling

Cycling is popular in Tucson. Tucson and Pima County maintain an extensive network of marked bike routes, signal crossings, on-street bike lanes, mountain-biking trails, and dedicated shared use path, shared-use paths. The Loop (Tucson), The Loop is a network of seven linear parks, built mainly along river beds, comprising of paved, vehicle-free trails that encircles the majority of the city with links to Marana and Oro Valley. The Tucson–Pima County Bicycle Advisory Committee (TPCBAC) serves in an advisory capacity to local governments on issues relating to bicycle recreation, transportation, and safety. The League of American Bicyclists awarded Tucson a gold rating for bicycle-friendliness in 2006.


Notable people


Sister cities

Tucson's Sister city, sister cities are: * Ciudad Obregón,
Sonora Sonora (), officially Estado Libre y Soberano de Sonora (), is one of the 31 states which, along with Mexico City, comprise the Administrative divisions of Mexico, Federal Entities of Mexico. The state is divided into Municipalities of Sonora, 72 ...
, Mexico * Guadalajara, Jalisco, Mexico * Mazatlán Municipality, Mazatlán, Sinaloa, Mexico * Pécs, Hungary * Puerto Peñasco Municipality, Puerto Peñasco,
Sonora Sonora (), officially Estado Libre y Soberano de Sonora (), is one of the 31 states which, along with Mexico City, comprise the Administrative divisions of Mexico, Federal Entities of Mexico. The state is divided into Municipalities of Sonora, 72 ...
, Mexico * Roscommon, Connacht, Ireland * Sulaymaniyah, Kurdistan Region, Kurdistan region, Iraq


See also

* Davis–Monthan Air Force Base * Iskashitaa Refugee Network, based in Tucson * List of tallest buildings in Tucson * List of historic properties in Tucson, Arizona * National Register of Historic Places listings in Pima County, Arizona *
Optics Valley Optics Valley is a region in southern Arizona, centered on Tucson, that is home to a high concentration of optics companies spawned by research at the University of Arizona. Based on the idea of a technology cluster, akin Silicon Valley, Optics V ...
* ''Sons of Tucson'' * Tucson Garbage Project * USS Tucson, USS ''Tucson'', 2 ships


Notes


References


Further reading


Bancroft, Hubert Howe, 1888, ''History of Arizona and New Mexico, 1530–1888.'' The History Company, San Francisco.
* Cooper, Evelyn S., 1995, ''Tucson in Focus: The Buehman Studio.'' Arizona Historical Society, Tucson. ().
Spanish Colonial Tucson
, Henry F. Dobyns, Dobyns, Henry F, 1976, University of Arizona Press, Tucson. . * Drachman, Roy P., 1999, ''From Cowtown to Desert Metropolis: Ninety Years of Arizona Memories.'' Whitewing Press, San Francisco. (). * Fontana, Bernard L., 2015, ''San Xavier Del Bac: Portrait of a Desert Church.'' Southwestern Mission Research Center, Tucson. () * Hand, George, 1995, ''Whiskey, Six-Guns and Red-Light Ladies.'' High Lonesome Books, Silver City, New Mexico. (). * Hand, George, 1996, ''The Civil War in Apacheland.'' High Lonesome Books, Silver City, New Mexico. (). * Harte, John Bret, 2001, ''Tucson: Portrait of a Desert Pueblo.'' American Historical Press, Sun Valley, California. (). * Henry, Bonnie, 1992, ''Another Tucson.'' Arizona Daily Star, Tucson. (). * Kalt III, William D., 2007
''Tucson Was a Railroad Town.''
VTD Rail Publishing, Tucson. (). * Logan, Michael F. ''Desert Cities: The Environmental History of Phoenix and Tucson.'' (2006). 240 pp. * McIntyre, Allan J. and the Arizona Historical Society, 2008
''The Tohono O'odham and Pimeria Alta.''
Arcadia Publishing, Charleston, South Carolina. (). * Moisés, Rosalio, 2001, ''The Tall Candle: The Personal Chronicle of a Yaqui Indian.'' University of Nebraska Press. (). * Painter, Muriel Thayer, 1971, ''A Yaqui Easter.'' University of Arizona Press, Tucson. ()

* Ronstadt, Edward E. (editor), 1993, ''Borderman: The Memoirs of Federico Jose Maria Ronstadt.'' University of New Mexico Press, Albuquerque. (

* Schellie, Don, 1968, ''Vast Domain of Blood: The Story of the Camp Grant Massacre.'' Westernlore Press, Tucson. * Sheaffer, Jack and Steve Emerine, 1985, ''Jack Sheaffer's Tucson, 1945–1965.'' Arizona Daily Star, Tucson. (). * Sheridan, Thomas E., 1983, ''Del Rancho al Barrio: The Mexican legacy of Tucson.'' Arizona Historical Society, Tucson. * Sheridan, Thomas E., 1992, ''Los Tucsonenses: The Mexican Community in Tucson, 1854–1941.'' University of Arizona Press, Tucson. (). * Sonnichsen, C. L., 1987, ''Tucson: The Life and Times of an American City.'' University of Oklahoma Press, Norman. (). * *Warnock, John, 2019, ''Tucson: A Drama in Time.'' Wheatmark, Tucson. (). * Woosley, Anne I. and the Arizona Historical Society: 2008
''Early Tucson.''
Arcadia Publishing, Charleston, South Carolina. ().


External links


Official City of Tucson government website

Metropolitan Tucson Convention & Visitors Bureau

Resources for seniors in the Tucson area

Tucson Metropolitan Chamber of Commerce
*
Tucson AZ ZIP Code Map
* {{Authority control Tucson, Arizona, Tucson metropolitan area, Cities in Arizona County seats in Arizona Arizona placenames of Native American origin Populated places in the Sonoran Desert Populated places established in 1775 1775 establishments in New Spain Butterfield Overland Mail San Antonio–San Diego Mail Line Stagecoach stops in the United States Cities in Pima County, Arizona Metropolitan areas of Arizona Tuberculosis in Arizona