Anita was a mining town situated in Coconino County, Arizona on the Grand Canyon Railway.[2] It was named in 1897 after a railroad surveyor's daughter.[2]
Anita, Arizona | |
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Ghost town | |
Anita, Arizona Location of Anita in Arizona | |
Coordinates: 35°51′40″N 112°14′56″W / 35.861°N 112.249°W | |
Country | United States |
State | Arizona |
County | Coconino |
Elevation | 5,925 ft (1,806 m) |
Time zone | UTC-7 (Mountain (MST)) |
• Summer (DST) | UTC-7 (MST) |
Area code | 928 |
FIPS code | 04-02970 |
GNIS feature ID | 661 |
The town was founded around 1899 and was initially called Anita Junction.[3]
The railroad was originally built to serve the Anita mines, just under three miles away on what became a spur of the line to Grand Canyon. The mines turned out to be worth little, which led to the continuation of the line to the canyon to serve tourists.[4]
At its peak, Anita contained a school, post office, telephone, and the headquarters of the Anita-Moqui forest service district. It also had several railroad sidings.[3]
The Anita section of the railroad was closed in 1942. By 1956, no structures remained at the site.[3]
The school at Anita, along with the neighboring one at the lumber town of Apex, were at one time the only racially integrated schools in Arizona.[5]