About Casa Grande, AZ

Casa Grande was founded in 1879 by The Carter Family during the Arizona mining boom, specifically due to the presence of the Southern Pacific Railroad. In January 1880, the community of Terminus, meaning "end-of-the-line," was established despite consisting of just five residents and three buildings. 

In September 1880, railroad executives renamed the settlement, Casa Grande, after the Hohokam ruins at the nearby Casa Grande Ruins National Monument. Casa Grande grew slowly, and suffered several setbacks both in 1886 and 1893, when fires ravaged the town, destroying all wooden housing structures within it.

When the mining boom slowed in the 1890s, the town was nearly abandoned, but with the advent of agriculture, the town remained alive and well and was eventually incorporated in 1915.

 One of the founding fathers of Casa Grande was Thompson Rodney Peart. Peart Road, Peart Park, and the Peart Center, all of which are notable fixtures of Casa Grande, are named after him.  

Casa Grande was home to a collective farm society that was part of the Farm Security Administration.  

According to historian David Leighton, during World War II, from 1942 to 1945, a Japanese-American relocation camp was set up outside of Casa Grande, known as the Gila River War Relocation Center. Two notable people that were interned there were future actor Pat Morita and baseball player Kenichi Zenimura, who constructed a baseball field and set up a league in the relocation camp.

Casa Grande is home to Francisco Grande Hotel & Golf Resort, former spring training location for the San Francisco Giants. Then owner, Horace Stoneham, began developing the property in 1959. The first exhibition game was played in Casa Grande in 1961, with Willie Mays hitting a 375-foot home run. The San Francisco Giants no longer play at Francisco Grande, but the pool in a baseball bat and ball shape remains in the memory of the past ball games.

During the Cold War, Casa Grande was the location of the Casa Grande Photogrammetric Test Range. These targets consisted of concrete arrows located in and to the south of the city, which were calibrated by aerial cartographic cameras.

Casa Grande has also played a prominent role in semi-pro and collegiate baseball. The Casa Grande Cotton Kings, which were founded in 1948, qualified to play in the National Baseball Congress World Series ten straight times by winning Arizona state championships in the 1940s and 1950s, and were reactivated in the 2000s. They are now members of the Pacific Southwest Baseball League.

The City of Casa Grande is home to 19 parks, 17 miles of trails, and many sports fields and open spaces.  These vital amenities provide the community with access to a number of year-round outdoor recreational opportunities.

• Dorothy Powell Senior Center
•   Elzy Pearson Shooting Range 
• Grande Sports World 
• Len Colla Recreation Center 
• Palm Island Family Aquatic Park 
• Paul Mason Sports Complex 

Parks 

• A Leash on Life” Dog Park 
• Albert Cruz Park 
• Burruss Park 
• Carr McNatt Park 
• Casa Grande Mountain Park 
• College Park 
• Colony Park 
• Dave White Regional Park 
• Eastland Park Ed Hooper Rodeo Park Elliot Park 
• Gilbert Park 
• Ivy Park 
• Mosley Park 
• Mountain View Park 
• North Mountain Park 
• Nutt Park O’Neil Park 
• Peart Park 
• Rancho Grande Park 
• Village Park

Public Elementary  

• Cottonwood Elementary School Saguaro Elementary School 
• Evergreen Elementary School 
• Ironwood Elementary School 
• Cholla Elementary School 
• Palo Verde Elementary School Mesquite Elementary School 
• Desert Willow Elementary School McCartney Ranch Elementary School 

Public Middle School  

• Casa Grande Middle School 
• Cactus Middle School 
• Villago Middle School 

Public High School  

• Casa Grande Union High School 
• Desert Winds High School 
• Vista Grande High School 

Charter High School  

• Pinnacle Charter High School 
• Casa Verde High School 
• ASU Preparatory Academy, 
• Casa Grande Mission Heights Preparatory High School 
• PPEP TEC High School 

Charter Schools  

• Grande Innovation Academy 
• Legacy Traditional School 
• Private  St Anthony of Padua Catholic School (Private) 
• Logos Christian Academy (Private) 

Colleges  

• Central Arizona College 
• Northern Arizona University (Extended Learning Campus)