scottsdale az    Scottsdale Then & NowScottsdale’s rich and varied history is steeped in Native American culture and cowboy lore. For at least 12,000 years, much of the Sonoran Desert was home to native peoples, including the Hohokam who formed a sophisticated agrarian society in the area from about A.D. 1 to A.D. 1450. An artistic and inventive people, the Hohokam are perhaps best known for developing the largest web of irrigation canals in pre-Columbian North America. 

When tragic circumstances, including massive flooding and internal political conflict, forced the Hohokam to abandon their villages and canals by the 1500s, their way of life in the desert was carried on by both their descendants, the Pima Indians, and, eventually, settlers from the East. In 1888, one of those settlers, U.S. Army Chaplain Winfield Scott purchased a 640-acre parcel of desert land for $2.50 an acre. Scott and his brother, George, farmed the land and soon more families followed to settle and raise their own crops, which included citrus, peaches, sweet potatoes, wheat and peanuts. The name “Scottsdale” was first officially used for fledgling town in 1894.

Over the  click here to go to home page thanks!years, more people flocked to their area, including cowboys and ranchers who rode onto the land to fence and farm it; miners who searched for copper, silver and gold; families who came in search of health in the desert’s clear, dry air; and artists who found their muse in the beauty of the Sonoran Desert. Each group that explored and settled here left its imprint on this remarkable landscape and contributed to the unique story that is Scottsdale’s history.

Today, Scottsdale is one of the world’s premier business and vacation destinations. And, although Winfield Scott might not recognize the sophisticated urban city that has grown from the seeds of his frontier settlement, he no doubt would appreciate the warm Southwestern hospitality that embraces visitors and residents alike.

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