Maricopa County, named after the Maricopa Tribe, was created from portions of Pima and Yavapai counties in 1871. It was the fifth county formed in Arizona, and eventually portions were used to create Gila and Pinal counties. In the late 19th century, citizens living far south of Prescott, the territorial capital and site of the Territorial Legislature, petitioned for a more local seat of government. Residents of the Salt River Valley and the Gila River area wanted a new county in their respective locations. After weighing both proposals, the Legislature agreed with the Salt River Valley group and created Maricopa County. In 1889, Phoenix became the final site of the territorial capital and retains its status as Arizona's capital city.

More than half of the state's population resides in Maricopa County, which includes the cities of Phoenix, Mesa, Glendale, Scottsdale, Tempe, Chandler, Peoria, and Gilbert. This metropolitan area is the state's major center of political and economic activity. In addition to housing the state capital, the county is home to a growing high-tech industry; manufacturing and agricultural industries; 15 institutions of higher learning, including Arizona State University and the Thunderbird Garvin School of International Management; various cultural attractions; major league professional basketball (Phoenix Suns and Phoenix Mercury), football (Arizona Cardinals), hockey (Phoenix Coyotes) and baseball's 2001 World Champion Arizona Diamondbacks; and Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport, fifth busiest in the world with over 1,300 daily flights.

Today Maricopa County measures 9,222 square miles, 98 square miles of which is water. Twenty-nine percent of this area is owned individually or by corporation, and 28 percent is owned by the U.S. Bureau of Land Management. The U.S. Forest Service and the State of Arizona each control 11 percent of the county; an additional 16 percent is owned publicly. Almost 5 percent is Indian reservation land. Parts of 11 jurisdictions in western Maricopa County are designated Enterprise Zones as well as central and southern areas in the City of Phoenix. The cities of Tempe, Chandler and Mesa each have an Enterprise Zone in the central part of the city.

County Seat: Phoenix
2004 Population: 3,524,175
2004 Labor Force: 1,777,016
Unemployment Rate: 4.0%
Major Industries: Services; Retail Trade; Manufacturing

Demographics

As of the census2 of 2000, there are 3,072,149 people, 1,132,886 households, and 763,565 families residing in the county. The population density is 129/km² (334/mi²). There are 1,250,231 housing units at an average density of 52/km² (136/mi²). The racial makeup of the county is 77.35% White (66.22% non-Hispanic), 3.73% Black or African American, 1.85% Native American, 2.16% Asian, 0.14% Pacific Islander, 11.86% from other races, and 2.91% from two or more races. 24.85% of the population are Hispanic or Latino of any race.

There are 1,132,886 households out of which 33.00% have children under the age of 18 living with them, 51.60% are married couples living together, 10.70% have a female householder with no husband present, and 32.60% are non-families. 24.50% of all households are made up of individuals and 7.90% have someone living alone who is 65 years of age or older. The average household size is 2.67 and the average family size is 3.21.

The age distribution is 27.00% under the age of 18, 10.20% from 18 to 24, 31.40% from 25 to 44, 19.80% from 45 to 64, and 11.70% who are 65 years of age or older. The median age is 33 years. For every 100 females there are 100.10 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there are 98.10 males.

The median income for a household in the county is $45,358, and the median income for a family is $51,827. Males have a median income of $36,858 versus $28,703 for females. The per capita income for the county is $22,251. 11.70% of the population and 8.00% of families are below the poverty line. Out of the total population, 15.40% of those under the age of 18 and 7.40% of those 65 and older are living below the poverty line.

Cities and towns

• Apache Junction (part of Apache Junction is in Pinal County)
• Avondale
• Buckeye
• Carefree
• Cave Creek
• Chandler
• El Mirage
• Fountain Hills
• Gila Bend
• Gilbert
• Glendale
• Goodyear
• Guadalupe
• Litchfield Park
• Mesa
• New River
• Paradise Valley
• Peoria (part of Peoria is in Yavapai County)
• Phoenix
• Queen Creek (part of Queen Creek is in Pinal County)
• Rio Verde
• Scottsdale
• Sun City
• Sun City West
• Sun Lakes
• Surprise
• Tempe
• Tolleson
• Wickenburg
• Youngtown