Phoenix, Arizona

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This article is about the Arizonan city. For the mythical creature see Phoenix, and for other uses see Phoenix (disambiguation).
Phoenix is surrounded by twenty two towns and cities that have grown so closely together that it is almost impossible to distinguish one from another in this satellite image. The large cluster of light brown pixels gridded by horizontal and vertical lines (roads and highways) demarcates the Greater Phoenix urban area.

Phoenix is the capital, largest city, and largest metropolitan area of the state of Arizona, United States. As of the 2000 census, Phoenix ranked:

  • the fifth largest city of the United States, with a population of 1,321,045;
  • the fourteenth largest metropolitan area of the United States, with a population of 3,251,876; and
  • the largest capital city in the United States (including Washington, DC).

A July 1, 2003 Census estimate showed Phoenix's population rising to 1,388,416, putting it into position to quickly become the 5th largest city of the United States.

Phoenix is the county seat of Maricopa County. It was incorporated on February 5, 1881. Phoenix is the principal city of the Phoenix metropolitan area.

History

The earliest settlements in the present-day Phoenix were the Hohokam people as early as 300 BC. They were the first to farm in Phoenix, building an elaborate canal system that brought water from the Salt River. Their name is derived from the phrase, "Ho Ho Kam, the people who have gone". They lived in the Pueblo Grande ruins, which were occupied between 700 A.D. and 1400 A.D. They were industrious, enterprising and imaginative. They built an irrigation system, consisting mostly of some 135 miles of canals, and the land became fertile. The only mystery yet to be solved is the reasoning of the disappearance of the Hohokams. The accepted belief is that it was destroyed by a prolonged drought.

In 1867, Jack Swilling of Wickenburg stopped to rest his horse at the foot of the north slopes of the White Tank Mountains. He looked down and across the expansive Salt River Valley and his eyes caught the rich gleam of the brown, dry soil turned up by the horse's hooves. He saw farm land, predominately free of rocks, and in a place beyond the reach of heavy frost or snow. All it needed was water. In 1868, a small colony founded by Jack Swilling, a Confederate Soldier, had formed approximately four miles east of the present city and the town was named by Phillip Darrel Duppa. Duppa named the town Swilling's Mill in honor of Jack Swilling. He named it because the city's irrigation system was developed from the Hohokam ruins.

Phoenix officially was recognized on May 4, 1868, when the Yavapai County Board of Supervisors, the county of which we were then a part, formed an election precinct here. A post office was established in Phoenix on June 15, 1868, with Jack Swilling as postmaster. The sharp whistle of the first steam mill in the Valley added a brisk note to the sound of emerging industry. It advertised the Richard Flour Mills, built in 1869, where the Luhrs Tower now stands.

A town was surveyed in 1870 and mass meeting of the citizens of Salt River Valley was held on October 20, 1870, for purpose of selecting a suitable piece of unimproved public land for a town site. The name of town was then changed to Helling Mill, after which it became Mill City, and years later, East Phoenix. Swilling originally wanted to name the new settlement Stonewall after Stonewall Jackson. Others suggestions included the name Salina, but neither name suited the inhabitants. Darrell Duppa, John Moore, and Martin P. Griffin were appointed as a committee to make the selection of the name of the town. It was Darrell Duppa who suggested the name Phoenix, in as much as the new town would spring from the ruins of a former civilization. That is the accepted derivation of our name. They recommended the North 1/2 of sec. 8 T. 1 N., R. 3 E. and that the town be called Phoenix. Yavapai County was divided on Feb. 12, 1871, when Maricopa County was created by the Legislature. The sixth county in the state, Maricopa, gave up portions in 1875 and 1881 to help form Pinal and Gila counties, respectively. The first county election in Maricopa County was held in 1871, when Tom Barnum was elected the first sheriff of Maricopa County.

The first public school in Phoenix opened on September 5, 1872. By October 1873, a small adobe school building was completed on Center Street (now Central Avenue), a short distance north of where the San Carlos Hotel now stands.

By 1881, Phoenix had outgrown its original townsite-commissioner form of government. The Phoenix Charter Bill was passed by the 11th Territorial Legislature. The bill made Phoenix an incorporated city and provided for a mayor-council government. It was signed by Governor John C. Fremont on Feb. 25, 1881. Phoenix was incorporated with a population of approximately 2,500 and on May 3, 1881, Phoenix held its first city election.

The coming of the railroad was the first of several important events that revolutionized the economy of this area. Merchandise now flowed into the city by rail instead of wagon. Phoenix became a trade center with its products being traded in eastern and western markets. In recognition of the increased tempo of economic life, the Phoenix Chamber of Commerce was organized on Nov. 4, 1888.

In early 1888, the city offices were moved into the new City Hall, built where the downtown bus terminal now stands. This building also provided temporary offices for the territorial government when they were moved to Phoenix from Prescott in 1889.

Phoenix also became the capital of 11th Territory. The location of what later became Arizona's Capitol, had been moved several times since 1864. It was first established at Navajo Springs, then Prescott, then Tucson after an attempt to move it to La Paz failed, then back to Prescott, and finally to Phoenix. It made its final move from Prescott to its current city Phoenix.

In 1902, President Theodore Roosevelt signed the National Reclamation Act making it possible to build dams on western streams for reclamation purposes. Valley of the Sun residents were quick to supplement this federal action by organizing the Salt River Valley Waters Users' Association on February 4, 1903, to assure proper management of the precious water supply. It still functions to this day as the major agency for controlled use of irrigation water in the Valley.

On May 18, 1911, the Theodore Roosevelt Dam, which was the largest masonry dam in the world, opened. This opened new land in the Valley for farming and secured a water supply for its livelihood.

On Feb. 14, 1912, President William Howard Taft approved Arizona's statehood which officialized Phoenix as Arizona's state capital.

In 1913, Phoenix changed its form of government from mayor-council to council-manager. Phoenix set a precedent as one of the first cities in the United States to have such form of city government.

In the early 19th Century, Phoenix began to grow into a young metropolis. By 1920, Phoenix had a population of 29,053 inhabitants. By 1930, the size of Phoenix nearly doubled again with a population of 48,118.

The year 1940 marked another turning point in Phoenix with it going from a farming center to a distribution center. During WWII, Phoenix rapidly turned into an embryonic industrial city with mass production of military supplies. Luke Field, Williams Field and Falcon Field, coupled with the giant ground training center at Hyder, west of Phoenix, brought thousands of men into Phoenix.

In 1950, 105,000 people lived within the city limits of Phoenix and thousands more lived immediately adjacent to and depended upon Phoenix for their livelihoods. The city had 148 miles of paved streets and 163 miles of unpaved streets, a total of 311 miles of streets within the city limits.

Today, the city covers almost 470 square miles and has a population of 1.15 million, making it the 7th largest city in the US.

Phoenix has been selected four times since 1950 as an "All-America City", a precedent among larger cities. The hallmark of an All-America City is the extent that its private citizens get involved in the workings of their government. Thousands of citizens have served on various city committees, boards and commissions to assure that major decisions are in the people's best interest.

Geography

Location of Phoenix, Arizona
Location of Phoenix, Arizona

Phoenix lies at an elevation of approximately 1,117 feet in the heart of the Sonoran Desert and is located in the center of Arizona in the Phoenix Valley or "Valley of the Sun" at 33°31'42" North, 112°4'35" West (33.528370, -112.076300)Template:GR. The Greater Phoenix area has a population of 3.2 million and includes Mesa, Scottsdale, Glendale, Tempe, Chandler, Gilbert, Peoria and many smaller communities such as Goodyear, Litchfield Park, and Anthem. Retirement communities include Sun Lakes, Sun City, Sun City West and Fountain Hills. The Salt River runs from the northeast of Maricopa County through the south of Phoenix, although it is typical to see the riverbed entirely dry. The Phoenix metropolitan area is surrounded by the McDowell Mountains to the northeast, South Mountain to the south, the White Tank Mountains to the west and the Superstition Mountains far to the east. Current development of the metropolitan area is beginning to push beyond the geographic boundaries to the north and west, and south through Pinal County towards Tucson.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 1,230.5 km² (475.1 mi²). 1,229.9 km² (474.9 mi²) of it is land and 0.6 km² (0.2 mi²) of it is water. The total area is 0.05% water.

Weather

Clear blue skies are typical, with an average of 300 sunny days a year. The temperature reaches or exceeds 100°F (38°C) on an average of 89 days during the year, including most days from early June through early September. In every year except 1911, the temperature has soared to 110°F or higher. On June 26, 1990, the temperature reached an all-time high of 122°F. The dry Arizona air makes the hot temperatures more tolerable early in the season; however, the influx of monsoonal moisture has been known to make August in Phoenix as humid as summers in the Southern United States.

The normal annual rainfall at Sky Harbor International Airport is 8.29 inches. March is the wettest month of the year (1.07 inches). Rain is particularly scarce from April through June, inclusive. Although thunderstorms occur on occasion during every month of the year, they are most common during the monsoon season from July to mid-September as humid air surges in from the Gulf of California. Winter storms moving inland from the Pacific Ocean occasionally produce significant rains but occur infrequently. Fog is observed from time to time during the winter months. Blowing dust and sand also can restrict visibility; these phenomoena occur most frequently during the driest months of the year, from May to July. Severe thunderstorms--bringing strong winds, large hail, or tornadoes--can occur during any month of the year, but only happen an average of once or twice per year somewhere in the metropolitan area.

At the airport, the first frost typically occurs on December 12 and the last frost on February 7; however, these dates are not representative of the city as a whole as the frequency of freezes varies considerably among neighborhoods and elevation. Compared with many areas of Phoenix, these dates err on the warm side by a month or more. The earliest frost of Record occurred on November 3, 1946 and the latest on April 4, 1945. Successive winters without any frosts at the airport are not unknown, and the longest period without a freeze occurred between November 23, 1979 and January 31, 1985.

Snow falls roughly one year in four, but since records commenced in 1896, it has accumulated to 0.1 inch only 7 times. The worst snowstorm occurred on January 20-21, 1937, when 1 to 4 inches fell (2 to 10 cm) in parts of the city and did not melt entirely for four days. Another 1.0 inch fell on January 20, 1933. On February 2, 1935, 0.5 inches fell. Most recently, 0.4 inches fell on December 21-22, 1990. Snow also fell on March 12, 1917 (0.2 inch), November 28, 1919 (0.1 inch), and December 11, 1985 (0.1 inch).

Government

The city of Phoenix is served by a city-council form of government. The mayor current of Phoenix is Phil Gordon. There are 8-person city council that represents 8 individual districts in the city of Phoenix.

Economy

The economy of Phoenix in the last two decades has greatly diversified as the population has grown rapidly. Many of the area's residents are employed by the state government since Phoenix is the state capital of Arizona. There are many high-tech and telecommunications companies that have located in the Valley of the Sun. Arizona State University has greatly enhanced the area's population through education and its growing research capabilities.

List of Major Corporations in the Area:

Military

The military has also a signifigant presence in Phoenix with Luke Air Force Base located in the western part of the area.

Demographics

Phoenix skyline in 2001, looking west

At the census of 2000, there were 1,321,045 people, 465,834 households, and 307,450 families residing in the city. The population density was 1,074.1/km² (2,781.9/mi²). There were 495,832 housing units at an average density of 403.2/km² (1,044.2/mi²). The racial makeup of the city was 71.07% White, 5.10% African American, 2.02% Native American, 2.00% Asian, 0.13% Pacific Islander, 16.40% from other races, and 3.28% from two or more races. 34.06% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any country origin.

There were 465,834 households out of which 35.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 46.9% were married couples living together, 12.9% had a female householder with no husband present, and 34.0% were non-families. 25.4% of all households were made up of individuals and 6.3% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.79 and the average family size was 3.39.

In the city the population age distribution was 28.9% under the age of 18, 10.9% from 18 to 24, 33.2% from 25 to 44, 18.8% from 45 to 64, and 8.1% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 31 years. For every 100 females there were 103.5 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 102.7 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $41,207, and the median income for a family was $46,467. Males had a median income of $32,820 versus $27,466 for females. The per capita income for the city was $19,833. 15.8% of the population and 11.5% of families were below the poverty line. Out of the total population, 21.0% of those under the age of 18 and 10.3% of those 65 and older were living below the poverty line.

Media

Television

Phoenix is served by several major television stations:

Radio

There are also many radio stations to listen to in Phoenix.

Newspaper

Phoenix's first publication was the Salt River Valley Herald. It later changed its name to the Phoenix Herald in 1880. By this time, the paper had progressed from a weekly publication to semiweekly.

The city has two main traditional newspapers: The Arizona Republic serves the greater metropolitan area and East Valley Tribune tends to focus on East Valley issues. In addition, the city is also served by numerous free neighborhood papers and weeklies such as the Phoenix New Times, Arizona State University's State Press, and the College Times.

Sports

Sport Teams

Nine Major League Baseball teams conduct spring training in Greater Phoenix; these teams, plus three that train in Tucson, are collectively known as the Cactus League.
See also: U.S. cities with teams from four major sports.

Sport Venues

Sport Events

Museums, Attractions and other Places of Interest

Heard Museum
Taliesin West and Gammage Auditorium, both designed by Frank Lloyd Wright
Phoenix Art Museum
Fleischer Museum
Arizona Science Center
Hall of Flame
Pueblo Grande Museum and Cultural Park
Phoenix Museum of History
Arizona Historical Society Museum
America West Arena
Bank One Ballpark
Glendale Arena
Desert Botanical Garden
Phoenix Zoo
Papago Park
Tovrea Castle
Wrigley Mansion
St. Mary's Basilica
Symphony Hall for the Phoenix Symphony at the Phoenix Civic Plaza
South Mountain Park is the largest municipal park in the world
Mystery Castle
Camelback Mountain
Phoenix Mountains Park and Recreation Area
Encanto Park
Arizona Veterans Memorial Coliseum at the Arizona State Fairgrounds
Metrocenter Mall
Castles N' Coasters amusement park
Hotel San Carlos
Arizona Biltmore

Transportation

Sky Harbor International Airport
Williams Gateway Airport was converted from Williams Air Force Base, which closed in 1993.
Falcon Field Airport, Falcon Field airport in Mesa is attempting to become a commercial airport, to relieve Sky Harbor of some of the main airport's traffic. The airport has occasionally received Boeing 737's from charter airlines to carry passengers to nearby destinations.
Valley Metro, local public transit service (buses, rideshare, future light rail project)
Valley Metro Rail, a light rail project under development
Scottsdale Municipal Airport in nearby Scottsdale, attracts a large number of private jets.

List of famous Phoenix residents

Phoenix in film

City of Phoenix

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