Map of Benson city, Arizona

Benson is a city in Cochise County, Arizona, United States, 45 miles (72 km) east-southeast of Tucson. It was founded as a rail terminal for the area, and still serves as such. As of the 2010 census, the population of the city was 5,105.

Benson city overview:
Name:	Benson city
LSAD Code:	25
LSAD Description:	city (suffix)
State:	Arizona
County:	Cochise County
Founded:	1880
Elevation:	3,586 ft (1,093 m)
Total Area:	41.69 sq mi (107.97 km²)
Land Area:	41.64 sq mi (107.84 km²)
Water Area:	0.05 sq mi (0.13 km²)
Total Population:	5,355
Population Density:	128.61/sq mi (49.66/km²)
ZIP code:	85602
Area code:	520
FIPS code:	0405770
GNISfeature ID:	1248

Online Interactive Map

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Benson online map. Source: Basemap layers from Google Map, Open Street Map (OSM), Arcgisonline, Wmflabs. Boundary Data from Database of Global Administrative Areas.

Benson location map. Where is Benson city?

Benson location on the U.S. Map. Where is Benson city. — Benson location on the U.S. Map.

Benson location on the Arizona map. Where is Benson city. — Location of Benson in Arizona.

History

The city was founded in 1880 when the Southern Pacific Railroad came through. It was named after Judge William S. Benson, a friend of Charles Crocker, president of the Southern Pacific. The railroad, coming overland from California, chose the Benson site to cross the San Pedro River. Benson then served as a rail junction point to obtain ore and refined metal by wagon, in turn shipping rail freight back to the mines at Tombstone, Fairbank, Contention City and Bisbee. For example, the railhead in Benson was about 25 miles (40 km) from Tombstone, and was the closest rail connection to it until 1882, when a feeder line was laid from Benson to Contention City.

The railhead in Benson was founded about a mile from a traditional crossing of the upper San Pedro River (known also as the Middle Crossing), used by the Southern Emigrant Trail and San Antonio-San Diego Mail Line. It was the site of the San Pedro Station of the Butterfield Overland Mail and a wagon depot, the San Pedro River Station, run since 1871 by William Ohnesorgen. In 1878 he had erected a toll bridge over which mining supplies were transported to the new mining camps such as Fairbank and Tombstone. Two years later this bridge marked the location of the railroad bridge that became the terminal site of Benson.

Apache Nitrogen Products (originally Apache Powder Company) was formed in the 1920s. It was located just outside Benson and was a major employer. Apache Park and nine nearby houses on West 6th Street in Benson, built to house company management, were listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1994 as the Apache Powder Historic Residential District.

The city today is perhaps best known as the gateway to Kartchner Caverns State Park. It is also home to the acclaimed Singing Wind Bookshop, which specializes in books about the Southwest.

Benson Road Map

Benson city Satellite Map

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, Benson has a total area of 41.5 square miles (107.4 km), of which 0.04 square miles (0.1 km), or 0.12%, is water.

Climate

Similar to other desert plains areas of Arizona, Benson receives little rainfall and is relatively hot. Some snow occasionally falls in the winter. There is a high degree of diurnal temperature variation, especially in transitional months such as October.