Paradise, Arizona
Paradise, Arizona | |
---|---|
Location in the state of Arizona | |
Coordinates: 31°56′5″N 109°13′8″W / 31.93472°N 109.21889°W | |
Country | United States |
State | Arizona |
County | Cochise |
Founded | 1901 |
Abandoned | 1943 |
Elevation | 5,482 ft (1,671 m) |
Population (2011) | |
• Total | 5 |
Time zone | UTC-7 (MST (no DST)) |
Post Office opened | October 23, 1901 |
Post Office closed | September 30, 1943 |
GNIS feature ID | 9192 |
Paradise is a small ghost town located in Cochise County in the U.S. state of Arizona. The town was settled in 1901 in what was then the Arizona Territory.
History[edit]
In 1901 the Chiricahua Development Company located a vein of ore here. A post office was established on October 23, 1901, and at its peak, the town had saloons, general stores, a jail and a hotel. The town was essentially abandoned when the local mines failed, and the post office closed on September 30, 1943.[2][3] However, a few residents remained. In June 2011, there were five permanent residents and 29 standing structures[4] when the Horseshoe 2 Fire swept through the area.[5] A few homes and cemetery remain.[6]
Geography[edit]
Paradise is located 5.7 miles west (up-mountain) from Portal, Arizona, and is surrounded by Coronado National Forest land.[1]
Climate[edit]
According to the Köppen Climate Classification system, Paradise has a hot-summer mediterranean climate, abbreviated "Csa" on climate maps. The hottest temperature recorded in Paradise was 104 °F (40.0 °C) on July 8, 1912, while the coldest temperature recorded was −2 °F (−18.9 °C) on February 3, 2011.[7]
Climate data for Paradise, Arizona, 1991–2020 normals, extremes 1906–present | |||||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
Record high °F (°C) | 75 (24) | 81 (27) | 88 (31) | 89 (32) | 96 (36) | 103 (39) | 104 (40) | 101 (38) | 96 (36) | 95 (35) | 89 (32) | 78 (26) | 104 (40) |
Mean daily maximum °F (°C) | 54.4 (12.4) | 58.5 (14.7) | 64.8 (18.2) | 72.5 (22.5) | 81.0 (27.2) | 89.7 (32.1) | 87.5 (30.8) | 83.7 (28.7) | 79.7 (26.5) | 74.3 (23.5) | 63.2 (17.3) | 54.2 (12.3) | 72.0 (22.2) |
Daily mean °F (°C) | 39.3 (4.1) | 43.4 (6.3) | 49.1 (9.5) | 55.7 (13.2) | 63.3 (17.4) | 72.3 (22.4) | 74.1 (23.4) | 70.9 (21.6) | 66.2 (19.0) | 58.1 (14.5) | 47.5 (8.6) | 39.9 (4.4) | 56.7 (13.7) |
Mean daily minimum °F (°C) | 24.3 (−4.3) | 28.3 (−2.1) | 33.4 (0.8) | 38.9 (3.8) | 45.6 (7.6) | 54.9 (12.7) | 60.8 (16.0) | 58.2 (14.6) | 52.6 (11.4) | 42.0 (5.6) | 31.9 (−0.1) | 25.7 (−3.5) | 41.4 (5.2) |
Record low °F (°C) | 1 (−17) | −2 (−19) | 8 (−13) | 16 (−9) | 25 (−4) | 37 (3) | 39 (4) | 44 (7) | 27 (−3) | 18 (−8) | 4 (−16) | 2 (−17) | −2 (−19) |
Average precipitation inches (mm) | 1.14 (29) | 1.28 (33) | 0.89 (23) | 0.33 (8.4) | 0.31 (7.9) | 0.61 (15) | 3.58 (91) | 3.41 (87) | 1.80 (46) | 1.01 (26) | 1.07 (27) | 1.53 (39) | 16.96 (432.3) |
Source 1: NOAA[8] | |||||||||||||
Source 2: National Weather Service[7] |
In media[edit]
The ghost-town of Paradise is also notably featured in media, such as video games and motion pictures.[citation needed]
- Postal (1997)
- Postal 2 (2003)
- Postal 2: Apocalypse Weekend (2005)
- Postal Babes (2009)
- Postal 2: Paradise Lost (2015)
- A Long Ride From Hell (1968 - Motion Picture)
See also[edit]
References[edit]
- ^ a b U.S. Geological Survey Geographic Names Information System: Paradise
- ^ Sherman, James E.; Barbara H. Sherman (1969). "Paradise". Ghost Towns of Arizona (First ed.). University of Oklahoma Press. pp. 114–115. ISBN 0806108436.
- ^ Granger, Byrd H. (1970) Arizona Place Names, Tucson: University of Arizona Press [page needed][ISBN missing]
- ^ Southwest Incident Management Team (21 May 2011) "Emergency Bulletin: Horseshoe Two Fire Update; Precautionary Evacuation Remains in Effect" Arizona Emergency Information Network (AzEIN)
- ^ Rocky Basin Type-2 Incident Management Team (10 June 2011) "Emergency Bulletin: Horseshoe Two Fire 40 Percent Contained; Winds Expected from Southwest" Arizona Emergency Information Network (AzEIN)
- ^ Varney, Philip (1980). "Eleven: The Chiricauhua Ghosts". Arizona's Best Ghost Towns. Flagstaff: Northland Press. p. 122. ISBN 0873582179. LCCN 79-91724.
- ^ a b "NOAA Online Weather Data – NWS Tucson". National Weather Service. Retrieved August 10, 2023.
- ^ "U.S. Climate Normals Quick Access – Station: Paradise, AZ". National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Retrieved August 10, 2023.
Further reading[edit]
- Alden Hayes, A Portal to Paradise, University of Arizona Press (1999), ISBN 0816521441
External links[edit]
- Media related to Paradise, Arizona at Wikimedia Commons
- Ghost towns travel guide from Wikivoyage