The Hohokam people lived in the Mesa area for nearly 1,500 years. Hohokam, (a Pima Indian word meaning ‘‘those who have disappeared’’), first appeared around 1 CE initially growing beans, squash, corn and cotton serving a very small population of…

Developed along the banks of the Salt River, the cities of Phoenix, Tempe, and Mesa, Arizona, both both depended on the river and feared its seasonal flooding. Controlling the river emerged as a central challenge to economic development in the Salt…

Charles Trumbull Hayden came to the western half of the United States in search of economic gain and adventure like the many settlers before him. Shortly after the Gadsden Purchase in the 1850s, Charles Hayden opened a profitable general store in…

People usually think of homogenous suburbs when they think of Phoenix; however, the Maple-Ash neighborhood located just west of Mill Avenue is unique. Why? Flood irrigation. Flood irrigation is the process through which water is delivered to a…

Gravity draws water from the mountains east and north of the Salt River Valley into the gently sloping landscape of the Phoenix metropolitan region. Ancient Native Americans whom we call the Hohokam built canals to harness this water to irrigate…

In 2003, Tempe Town Lake finally emerged on the bed of the Salt River after nearly 40 years of planning. In 1995, the beginning of the construction was marked by a huge ceremony near Tempe Beach Park, which was a focal-point for recreation in…

A little more than a hundred years ago, Tempe was all farmland.The Hayden Flour Mill that still stands at the north end of Mill Avenue reminds us of the agricultural roots of the city and the importance of water for human habitation of the region.…

During the twentieth century, jobs,  mild winters, sunshine, and outdoor recreation attracted millions of people from all over the United States to Arizona. Boating and sport fishing on Arizona's many reservoirs lured newcomers from states like…

The Salt River Valley has a long history of agricultural production. The ancient canal systems were hand built long before the age of electricity. Fast forward to 1920 and the round table of George H. Maxwell and Arizona state representative Fred…

Until recently, this riverbed was once a dumping ground where kids from surrounding areas would come to play, throwing rocks at bottles.Now this part of the river is now once again a thriving desert riparian habitat. By 1980, between 80 and 90…

Fish hatcheries are the last thing people probably think about when they think of Arizona. During the Great Depression, however, raising fish meant jobs.The Hunt Bass Hatchery was initially commissioned in May of 1932 by Governor George W.P. Hunt as…

WaterWorks at Arizona Falls plays with the serious subjects of water and power to bring new life to the historic falls along the Arizona Canal. SRP and the Phoenix Arts Commission commissioned the project from the internationally-renowned team of…

Arizonans often joke that whiskey is for drinking, water is for fighting. Water's value to the state was made evident by the 1934 "war" with California as well as by longstanding disputes with neighboring states over the allocation of…

"Mother and daughter, father and son, may all be found splashing about in the cooling water of the Salt River canal, commonly known as the 'Town Ditch,' almost any evening now. There are regular canal 'beaches' where Phoenicians congregate in great…

There's an old joke about Arizonans and their rivers. An Arizona man is on vacation in Germany, and he visits the Rhine River. "Isn't it beautiful?" one admirer asks. The desert dweller responds, "Sure, but I can't see…

When the U.S. government sought a home for German U-boat sailors taken as prisoners-of-war during World War II, it found the ultimate contradictory landscape for the young mariners from the verdant nation along the Rhine: Phoenix's Papago…