Everything about Gilbert Arizona totally explained
Gilbert is a town in
Maricopa County,
Arizona,
USA. It was founded on July 6, 1891 as a rail siding for Arizona Eastern Railway, and the town that sprang up around it was incorporated as the Town of Gilbert in 1920. Gilbert received its name from William "Bobby" Gilbert, the owner of the property that the rail siding was built on. From 1911 through the 1920s, Gilbert was known as the
Hay Capital of the World.
According to 2006 Census Bureau estimates, the population of the town is 191,517. Although it's large and growing rapidly, Gilbert is still incorporated as a
town rather than as a
city; it has the highest population of any area incorporated as a town in the United States (and the second largest in
North America, after
Markham, Ontario,
Canada), and as of the 2000 census was the only town with more than 100,000 people
(although by 2002
Cary, North Carolina had also passed this mark). Gilbert was also the fastest-growing place among all cities and towns in Arizona of any size between 1990 and 2000. The
center of population of Arizona is located in Gilbert.
Geography and Climate
Gilbert is located at (33.349941, -111.789236).
According to the
United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 43.2
square miles (111.9
km²), of which, 43.0 square miles (111.3 km²) of it's land and 0.2 square miles (0.6 km²) of it's water.
Demographics
Town of Gilbert
Population by year |
| 1950 |
1,833 |
| 1960 |
1,971 |
| 1970 |
5,717 |
| 1980 |
16,920 |
| 1990 |
29,122 |
| 2000 |
109,697 |
| 2005 |
173,989 |
| 2006 |
191,517 |
As of the census of 2000, there were 109,697 people, 35,405 households, and 28,925 families residing in the town. The
population density was 2,553.7 people per square mile (985.9/km²). There were 37,007 housing units at an average density of 861.5/sq mi (332.6/km²). The racial makeup of the town was 85.73%
White, 2.41%
Black or
African American, 0.62%
Native American, 3.59%
Asian, 0.12%
Pacific Islander, 4.77% from
other races, and 2.77% from two or more races. 11.87% of the population were
Hispanic or
Latino of any race.
There were 35,405 households out of which 50.8% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 69.5% were
married couples living together, 8.3% had a female householder with no husband present, and 18.3% were non-families. 12.7% of all households were made up of individuals and 1.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 3.10 and the average family size was 3.42.
The age distribution is 34.2% under the age of 18, 7.4% from 18 to 24, 37.8% from 25 to 44, 16.9% from 45 to 64, and 3.8% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 30 years. For every 100 females there were 98.8 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 96.1 males.
According to a 2006 estimate, the median income for a household in the town was $76,376, and the median income for a family was $82,935.
(External Link
) Males had a median income of $50,028 versus $32,381 for females. The
per capita income for the town was $24,795. About 2.5% of families and 3.2% of the population were below the
poverty line, including 3.0% of those under age 18 and 5.9% of those age 65 or over.
While various religious denominations are represented in Gilbert, the town is known for its rather large
Mormon population, a fact evidenced by the church's recent announcement to construct a
temple in Gilbert. Gilbert is also rated as a town of relatively low crime. According to the
FBI database, Gilbert was the largest city in the United States with zero murders in 2005.
Politics
Gilbert, Arizona is a predominantly
Republican and politically
conservative community that markets itself as family-friendly. The town is part of the sixth congressional district of Arizona, which is represented by Republican
Jeff Flake. The Mayor of the Town of Gilbert is
Steven M. Berman. On
March 15,
2007, the Town Council primary election took place. The voters reelected Councilman Steve Urie and current Vice Mayor Dave Crozier to the Town Council. Former Vice Mayor Linda Abbott was also elected to the Town Council. Incumbent Councilman Les Presmyk defeated challenger Dwayne Farnsworth in the most recent General Election on
May 15,
2007, retaining his seat on the Town Council.
Education
Most of Gilbert is zoned to schools in the
Gilbert Public Schools.
Other portions are zoned to:
Transportation
area freeway -- the Santan Freeway portion of the
Loop 202 beltway around the East
Valley. Several major arterials also serve the area, including Williams Field Road,
Chandler Boulevard, and Gilbert Road. The town enjoys relative closeness to
Phoenix Mesa Gateway Airport, which is located in east
Mesa; and is a twenty-five minute drive from
Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport.
Recently, a
park-and-ride facility was constructed in downtown Gilbert for bus service and future
commuter rail service. Although the facility borders the
Union Pacific (formerly
Southern Pacific) tracks and has provisions for commuter rail service, there's currently no such service. However, buses operate to downtown
Phoenix from here, and future commuter rail service to Gilbert will require little modification since most of the facilities are already built.
Sister cities
Gilbert has two
sister cities, as designated by
Sister Cities International, Inc. (SCI):
Newtownabbey, Northern Ireland, UK
Leshan, Sichuan, China
Notable natives and residents
Jim Bechtel, professional poker player, lives in Gilbert.
Dave Burba currently lives in Gilbert, Arizona. He was a former star pitcher of the late 1990s Indians teams.
Shad Chadwick, team roping (Heeler) and Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association Resistol team roping Rookie of the Year for 1995, attended Gilbert High School. (External Link)
Marquis Cooper, linebacker for the Minnesota Vikings, played for Highland High School and was drafted in the third round (79th overall) of the 2004 NFL Draft by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
Bruce Perkins, running back in NFL for 2 years in 1990-91 lives in Gilbert.
Ken Delo, American singer best known for The Lawrence Welk Show, lives in Gilbert.
Ryan Fitzpatrick, quarterback for the Saint Louis Rams played for Highland High School and made his NFL debut on November 27, 2005.,
Jineane Ford, Miss USA 1980, former television actress and news anchor KTVK-TV, KPNX-TV
Alan Gordon plays striker for the Los Angeles Galaxy in the Major League Soccer and was born in Gilbert on October 16, 1981.
Shea Hillenbrand, All-Star MLB player for the Los Angeles Dodgers, raises horses and other animals on a ranch in Gilbert with his family.
Darrin Jackson, MLB outfielder from 1985-1999; has been a TV broadcaster for the Chicago White Sox since 2001. Currently lives in Gilbert even though he's a native of Los Angeles.
Zach Lind, drummer of Jimmy Eat World, lives in Gilbert.
Carlos I. Noriega, NASA astronaut and retired U.S. Marine Corps lieutenant colonel lives in Gilbert.
Phil (Kemo) Ortega, MLB pitcher from 1960-1969, was born in Gilbert on October 7, 1939.
Roy Wayne Farris, an American Pro Wrestler (better known by his ring name, "The Honky Tonk Man"), lives in Gilbert
Groups
Lydia, band
Scary Kids Scaring Kids, bandReferences
Further Information
Get more info on 'Gilbert Arizona'.
|
External Link Exchanges
Do you know how hard it is to get a link from a large encyclopaedia? Well we're different and will prove it. To get a link from us just add the following HTML to your site on a relevant page:
<a href="http://gilbert__arizona.totallyexplained.com">Gilbert, Arizona Totally Explained</a>
Then simply click through this link from your web page. Our crawlers will verify your link, extract the title of your web page and instantly add a link back to it. If you like you can remove the words Totally Explained and embed the link in article text.
As long as your link remains in place, we'll keep our link to you right here. Please play fair - our crawlers are watching. Your site must be closely related to this one's topic. Any kind of spamming, dubious practises or removing the link will result in your link from us being dropped and, potentially, your whole site being banned. |
