Page 81 - (DK Eyewitness) Travel Guide - Southwest USA & National Parks

ARIZ ONA  79

PHOENIX AND
SOUTHERN ARIZONA

Mountain ranges and sun-bleached plateaus ripple the wide
landscapes of southern Arizona, a staggeringly beautiful
region dominated by pristine tracts of desert, parts of which
are protected within the Saguaro National Park and the
Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument. This land was first
farmed around 400 BC by the Hohokam people (see p42), who
carefully used the meager water supplies to irrigate their crops.
When the Spanish settled here in the 18th century, they built fortified
outposts throughout the region. This Hispanic heritage is recalled by the beautiful
mission churches of San Xavier del Bac and Tuma cácori and in the popular historic
city of Tucson that grew up around the 1776 Spanish fort. When silver was discovered
nearby in the 1870s, the scene was set for a decade of rowdy frontier life. Today, towns
such as Tombstone, famous for the “Gunfight at the OK Corral”, recreate this wild
west era. The influx of miners also spurred the growth of Phoenix, a farming town
established on the banks of the Salt River in the 1860s. Phoenix is now the largest
city in the Southwest, known for its warm winter climate and recreational facilities.

Sights at a Glance
Historic Towns and Cities Parks, Museums, and Areas of Natural Beauty
1 Phoenix National Monuments 2 The Apache Trail
3 Globe 4 Casa Grande Ruins National
5 Tucson Monument
6 Yuma 7 Organ Pipe Cactus
8 Tubac National Monument
9 Nogales w Kartchner Caverns State Park
0 Bisbee e Amerind Foundation Key
q Tombstone r Chiricahua National Monument Interstate
Major highway
Highway
Railroad

Payson
95 89 17
Parker
Wickenburg 87
60
Blythe 60 Verde
Quartzite 10 Sun City Phoenix Salt 60
Apache San Carlos
95 Junction 191
Gila Gila
Bend
Casa 77 70 Thatcher
Yuma Grande 79
8 Safford
Wellton
85
10 Catalina
Ajo Saguaro
National Saguaro Willcox
Park West National 10
Tucson Park East
86
2
Golfo de Sonoyta Sells 19 Green Benson
Santa Valley 191 80
Sierra 80
0 kilometers 75 Vista
90 Douglas
0 miles 75
Nogales
2
The Baroque church at San Xavier del Bac Mission, Tucson For keys to symbols see back flap
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