Featured Stories
San Pablo
The area in Tempe between College Avenue and Veterans Way, on the northside of University Drive, is currently home to several Arizona State University (ASU) buildings such as the Fulton Center, Mona Plummer Aquatic Center, as well as several popular…
Alma School Station
Settled by Mormon pioneers in 1880, “Stringtown” emerged as one of Mesa's earliest settlements-a linear district running south for a couple of miles along present-day Alma School Road. Settlers dug an extension of the Mesa Canal canal bringing…
Diving Lady
An iconic blonde in blue swimsuit stands at the heart of Mesa's identity. The 78 foot tall neon light lady lit up the Starlite Motel. Owners Elmo and Richard Kaesler added the sign--now a classic piece of roadside American architecture from the…
Recent Stories
Eisendrath House
The Eisdendrath House, managed by the Tempe History Museum, is one of the best examples of Arizona's Pueblo Revival style of architecture. It was built in 1930 by a wealthy Chicago widow, Rose Eisendrath. At the time, many affluent…
Monti's La Casa Vieja
La Casa Vieja, also known as Hayden House, has long been a pillar of Tempe's history. Charles Hayden purchased a tract of land along the Salt River. He eventually built a general store, flour mill, and ferry, giving rise to the name…
The New Windsor Hotel
The City of Phoenix was incorporated in 1881 and became the territorial capital of Arizona in 1889. In the twelfth United States Census of 1890, the city of Phoenix had 3,152 residents. The burgeoning railroad system revolutionized the economy of…
Sanctuary Resort
Sanctuary Resort on Camelback Mountain sits beneath The Praying Monk, a rock formation perched upon the proverbial camel’s head. This monk has been in pious meditation since long before humans resided in the Salt River Valley. If this monk, who has…
Mecca for the Wealthy
Forty-five years before The Sanctuary Resort on Camelback Mountain opened its doors as a luxurious paradisiacal resort, the property's story began in 1956 as the Paradise Valley Racquet Club. Created during the greatest boom in Arizona's tourist…
Irish Cultural Center of Phoenix
Nearly 5,000 miles away from the white Irish shores can be found the Irish Cultural Center of Phoenix, a product of two hundred years of Irish migration, an international relationship built out of the Cold War, and one determined Arizonan…
Salt River Stories
A project by Arizona State University & Mark TebeauSalt River Stories brings the history, cultures, and communities of the Valley of the Sun, the Phoenix-Scottsdale-Tempe metro area to your fingertips. Salt River Stories is created by students & faculty at Arizona State University in collaboration with the community. It is powered by Omeka + Curatescape, a humanities-centered web and mobile framework available for both Android and iOS devices.
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