Central is located between the towns of Thatcher and Pima, all west of the Graham County seat, Safford.

By 1884 twenty families, including Cluff, Norton, Shurtz, Bigler, and Webster households resided in Central.

In December 1883 the Central Ward of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints was organized and Joseph Cluff was ordained the first bishop.

A plaque east of Hwy 70 on Central Road commemorates the original home of the St. Joseph Stake Academy that later moved to Thatcher and became Eastern Arizona College.

[6] The Gila Valley Arizona Temple of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, opened in 2010, is located in Central.