Arizona

About Arizona

History of Arizona

Beyond its original native inhabitants, Marcos de Niza, a Franciscan, explored the area in 1539. Coronado’s expedition entered the area in 1540–42 during its search for Cíbola. Father Kino developed a chain of missions and taught the Indians Christianity in Pimería Alta (now southern Arizona and northern Sonora) in the 1690s and early 1700s. Spain founded fortified towns (presidios) at Tubac in 1752 and Tucson in 1775. All of what is now Arizona became part of Mexico’s northwest frontier upon the Mexican assertion of independence from Spain in 1810. The United States took possession of most of Arizona at the end of the Mexican War in 1848. In 1853 the land below the Gila River was acquired from Mexico in the Gadsden Purchase. Arizona was administered as part of the Territory of New Mexico until it was organized into a separate territory on February 24, 1863.

Brigham Young sent Mormons to Arizona in the mid to late 1800s. They founded Mesa, Snowflake, Heber, Safford and other towns. They also settled in the Phoenix Valley (or “Valley of the Sun”), Tempe, Prescott, among other areas.

Arizona was the site of a German and Italian prisoner of war camp during WWII. The site was purchased after the war by the Maytag family, and is currently utilized as the Phoenix Zoo. A Japanese internment camp was located on Mount Lemmon, just outside of the state’s southeastern city of Tucson.

Arizona became a U.S. state on February 14, 1912.

Arizona

Benson     Buckeye     Bullhead City     Camp Verde     Carefree     Casa Grande     Catalina     Chambers     Chandler     Chinle     Cottonwood     Eagar     Ehrenberg     Flagstaff     Fountain Hills     Gila Bend     Gilbert     Glendale     Globe     Gold Canyon     Goodyear     Grand Canyon     Green Valley     Heber     Holbrook     Kayenta     Kingman     Lake Havasu City     Litchfield Park     Marana     Maricopa     Mesa     Miami     Nogales     Oro Valley     Page     Paradise Valley     Parker     Payson     Peach Springs     Peoria     Phoenix     Pinetop-Lakeside     Prescott     Prescott Valley     Rio Rico     Safford     San Carlos     Scottsdale     Sedona     Show Low     Sierra Vista     Snowflake     St. Johns     St. Michaels     Sun City     Surprise     Tempe     Tolleson     Tombstone     Tuba City     Tucson     Wickenburg     Willcox     Williams     Winslow     Yuma