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The capital city of the state of Arizona, Phoenix is also known as the “Valley of the Sun.” It was originally settled as an agricultural area that modeled its early irrigation systems on the ancient Hohokam canal system that riddled the valley floor. As with most Southwestern frontier towns Phoenix went through several iterations including periods of Mexican and New Mexican territorial management. The entrance of the railroad, and later the post-World War Two automobile and baby booms, led the city’s population to soar. Phoenix became one of the largest cities in the U.S., despite being located in one of the most water-poor fringes of the Sonoran desert.
"An 1885 lithograph of a bird's-eye view of the city of Phoenix, Arizona, created by C. J. Dyer and published by Schmidt Label & Lithograph Company" is licensed under Public Domain.
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References
Grady, Patrick
2012 Out of the Ruins: Pioneer Life in Frontier Phoenix, Arizona Territory 1867-1881. Cave
Creek: Arizona Pioneer Press.
VanderMeer, Philip R.
2010 Desert Visions and the Making of Phoenix, 1860-2008. Albuquerque: University of
New Mexico Press.