Arizona, the sixth largest state of the United States, in terms of area, is located in the Southwest. It is bordered by Utah on the north, by Colorado on the northeast, by New Mexico on the east, by Mexico on the south, and by California and Nevada on the west; its northeast corner is the only point in the United States shared by four state boundaries. Known as the Grand Canyon State, Arizona is one of the fastest-developing states of the U.S. Sunbelt. Its population is increasing at a rapid rate, and its diversified economy is dominated by manufacturing industries, many established as recently as the 1960s and 1970s. Arizona's name is derived from the Pima Indian village of Arizonac (formerly located in what is now Mexico, near modern Nogales, Ariz.), where silver was found by Spaniards about 1736. The word Arizonac probably means "place of the small spring." LAND AND RESOURCES Arizona includes many areas of great natural beauty and geological interest. The highest point in the state is Humphreys Peak (3,851 m/12,633 ft), near \TFlagstaff\t, and the lowest point is 21 m (70 ft) above sea level, in the southwest along the Colorado River. The approximate mean elevation of Arizona is 1,250 m (4,100 ft). About 43% of the state's land area is owned by the federal government and includes about 20 Indian reservations. Physiographic Regions Arizona may be divided into two major geographic regions, each of which is part of a larger physiographic area. In the north is a section of the \TColorado Plateau\t, and in the south and west is a part of the Basin and Range Region. The Colorado Plateau area, about two-fifths of the state, comprises a series of generally level plateaus, mostly separated by steep-sided chasms. The elevation is mainly between 1,525 and 2,440 m (5,000 and 8,000 ft), although some areas, such as the extensive Kaibab Plateau (2,835 m/9,300 ft high) and the volcanic San Francisco Peaks (one of which is Humphreys Peak), are higher. Other notable features of the Colorado Plateau include the 1.6-km-deep (1-mi) \TGrand Canyon\t of the Colorado River; the \TCanyon de Chelly\t, with sheer red cliffs; the \TPainted Desert\t, an extensive area of colorful sand and rock formations; the \TPetrified Forest\t, with great "logs" of jasper and agate; and \TMonument Valley\t (astride the border with Utah), containing monumental red-sandstone buttes about 305 m (1,000 ft) high. The Mogollon Rim, an escarpment (about 609 m/2,000 ft high) that extends diagonally from central Arizona to southwest New Mexico, in part separates the Colorado Plateau from the Basin and Range Region. The latter comprises several northwest-southeast trending mountain ranges, close together in central Arizona but separated by wide valleys in the southern part of the state. Ranges in the central region include the Black, Hualapai, Mazatzal, Superstition, and Gila Bend mountains; crest elevations are generally from 2,135 to 3,355 m (7,000 to 11,000 ft). The southern Arizona ranges include the Pinaleno, Chiricahua, Huachuca, Santa Rita, Santa Catalina, and Mohawk mountains; elevations are generally less than 1,340 m (4,400 ft), but isolated peaks rise more than 2,700 m (9,000 ft). In the southwest is the Sonoran Desert. Soils Soils suitable for agriculture cover only about 10% of Arizona's land area. The Colorado Plateau region of the north has very little arable land, but some of the broad basins of the south contain gray and red soils that, with the addition of fertilizer, can support productive irrigated farming. Rivers and Lakes The \TColorado River\t (rising in Colorado) and its tributaries drain most of Arizona. The Colorado flows for about 1,127 km (700 mi) in the state, entering in the north, then winding westward (in part through the Grand Canyon) before turning south to form most of Arizona's western boundary. Important components of the Colorado system in Arizona include the \TGila\t, Little Colorado, Bill Williams, Verde, Salt, and Santa Cruz rivers. The Central Arizona Project has carried water from the Colorado River to Phoenix since 1985. It is scheduled to be extended to Tucson by 1991. Most of the state's rivers and streams are intermittent, flowing only after a rainfall; the Colorado flows at all times, however. Some mountain streams, such as Havasu, or Cataract Creek (in the Grand Canyon area), form impressive waterfalls. Arizona's few natural lakes are small and situated in mountain areas. But the state has several very large artificial lakes, created by damming rivers for irrigation, flood control, and power generation. These lakes include Lake \Tmead\t and Lake Mohave (both partly in Nevada), Lake Powell (mostly in Utah), and Havasu Lake (partly in California), all on the Colorado River; Theodore Roosevelt Lake, on the Salt River; San Carlos Lake, on the Gila River; Bartlett Reservoir, on the Verde River; and Alamo Reservoir, on the Bill Williams River. The long-term Central Arizona Project, to carry scarce water eastward from the Colorado, connected with Phoenix in 1985 and with Tucson in 1990. Climate Because of its wide range of elevation and relief, Arizona has a varied climate pattern. The Colorado Plateau region has cool to cold winters and warm summers. In Flagstaff the mean January temperature is -3 deg C (28 deg F), and the average July temperature is 19 deg C (66 deg F). The Basin and Range Region has mild winters and hot summers. In \TPhoenix\t, the centrally located state capital, the mean January temperature is 11 deg C (52 deg F), and the average July temperature is 33 deg C (92 deg F). The city usually has little cloud cover, and each year it receives about 86% of the possible sunshine, a very high percentage. Arizona as a whole gets about 330 mm (13 in) of precipitation yearly. High mountains and plateaus receive somewhat more moisture (510-1015 mm/20-40 in per year, with up to 1.5 m/5 ft of snow), while the southwest gets much less precipitation (50-130 mm/2-5 in annually). Except in the extreme western part of the state, most of the precipitation occurs in the summer and winter months. Vegetation and Animal Life Vegetation in Arizona forms distinct zones, largely according to elevation. Lowland deserts, dominated by creosote bushes and sagebrush, include many cacti, notably the giant saguaro (whose blossom is the state flower), and yucca, such as the tall Joshua tree. The useful (because it is edible and indicative of groundwater) mesquite tree is also found in desert regions. Grasslands, some pure and others shrub-dotted, are common at somewhat higher elevations. The grasslands merge into woodlands of oak and chaparral in the warmer areas and into woodlands of pinon, juniper, and other pine trees in the cooler locations. Above the woodlands, from about 2,135 to 2,745 m (7,000-9,000 ft), are dense stands of valuable ponderosa pine. At high altitudes are forests of Douglas fir and spruce mixed with such deciduous trees as aspen, oak, and maple. Altogether, about 25% of Arizona is forested, but less than 20% of this area has commercial value. Virtually all the commercial timberland is controlled by the federal government, mostly in the state's seven national forests. Arizona has large numbers of wildlife. Bigger animals include black bear, mountain lions, desert bighorn sheep, mule deer, white-tailed deer, antelope, and elk. Among the smaller wild animals are jackrabbits, beavers, squirrels, and chipmunks. The state's numerous reptiles include the poisonous Gila monster and other kinds of lizards; rattlesnake; and coral snakes. More than 400 species of birds, including both rarities, such as the elegant trogon, and common types, such as the roadrunner, are found there. Mineral Resources Arizona has great copper deposits, principally located at Morenci, San Manuel, Ajo, Bagdad, and the area south of Tucson. Deposits of asbestos, coal, gemstones, gold, gypsum, helium, lead, molybdenum, pyrites, sand and gravel, silver, uranium, and zinc are also found. PEOPLE Arizona experienced a rapid population expansion in the post-World War II years, a result largely of persons moving into the state for its employment opportunities and for its healthful warm, dry climate. During the 1970s in-migration represented nearly three-quarters of the state's population increase, and Arizona has remained among the top five states for in-migration. From 1980 to 1990 the state's population increased about 35%, far more than the national average increase of about 10%. Most of the population is classified as urban; the principal cities are Chandler, Flagstaff, Glendale, \TMesa\t, Peoria, Phoenix, \TPrescott\t, Scottsdale, Sierra Vista, TEMPE, \TTucson\t, and \TYuma\t. The majority of Arizonans are white. Nearly 20% of Arizona residents are of Hispanic background; most of them are Mexican-Americans, concentrated in southern cities and mining centers. The Indian population of 203,527 is exceeded in size only by those of Oklahoma and California. Larger Indian groups in Arizona are the \TNavajo\t, \THopi\t, \TYuma\t, \TApache\t, Yavapai, \TPima\t, and \TPapago\t. Blacks, about 3% of the state's population, live mainly in the Phoenix and Tucson areas. In religion, most Arizonans are Protestant, but large numbers are Roman Catholics and Mormons. EDUCATION AND CULTURAL ACTIVITY The first public schools in Arizona were established in the early 1870s, but the school system became sizable only well after statehood was granted in 1912. School attendance in Arizona is compulsory to grade 10 of secondary school. Arizona has numerous public two-year colleges, including Navajo Community College (opened 1969), at Tsaile, the first U.S. college established on an Indian reservation. Other institutions of higher education in the state include Arizona State University (1885), at Tempe; Grand Canyon University (1949), at Phoenix; Northern Arizona University (1899), at Flagstaff; and the University of Arizona (1885), at Tucson (see \TArizona, state universities of\t). Lowell Observatory (founded 1894), at Flagstaff, is a noted research center of astronomy; in 1930 the existence of the planet Pluto was confirmed here by Clyde W. Tombaugh. Kitt Peak National Observatory (founded 1958), with several large reflecting telescopes and the world's biggest solar telescope, is situated on the Papago Indian Reservation, near Tucson. Cultural Institutions Arizona has several museums with historical or anthropological emphasis: the Arizona State Museum, in Tucson; the Heard Museum, in Phoenix; the Museum of Northern Arizona, in Flagstaff; and the Amerind Foundation, near Dragoon. The Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum, at Tucson, has exhibits on the region's natural environment. The principal libraries in Arizona are the state library located in Phoenix, and the University of Arizona Library at Tucson. Historic Sites Arizona has several highly interesting remains of past Indian cultures. These include cliff dwellings in \TMontezuma Castle National Monument\t, near Camp Verde; Navajo National Monument, near Tonalea; Tonto National Monument, at Roosevelt; and Walnut Canyon National Monument, near Flagstaff. Also of historical interest are the 800-year-old Hopi Indian pueblo of Oraibi and ruins of pueblos in Tuzigoot National Monument, near Clarkdale, and Wupatki National Monument, near Flagstaff. Among other historic sites are the Spanish Roman Catholic mission of San Xavier del Bac in Tucson and the city of \TTombstone\t, containing many reminders of the time when it was a lawless silver-mining boom town. The noted American architect Frank Lloyd \TWright\t lived for many years in Arizona, and buildings he designed in the state include Taliesin West, in Scottsdale, and Gammage Center for the Performing Arts, at Arizona State University in Tempe. Communications Arizona's communications media includes a number of television commercial stations and AM and FM radio stations. In 1988 there were 19 daily newspapers, with a combined daily circulation of 736,000 copies. There were also 11 Sunday papers with a circulation of 791,000 copies. Influential dailies included the Phoenix Arizona Republic, the Phoenix Gazette, the Tucson Citizen, the Tucson Arizona Daily Star, the Mesa Tribune, and the Scottsdale Progress. Arizona's first newspaper was the Weekly Arizonian, founded in 1859 at Tubac. GOVERNMENT AND POLITICS Arizona is governed under a constitution of 1911, as amended. The charter was drawn up during the Progressive Era, and it incorporated such reform measures of the period as the initiative and referendum; the recall was added in 1912. The chief executive of the state is a governor, elected to a 4-year term; the number of terms a governor may serve is unlimited. Arizona has a bicameral legislature, comprising a 30-member Senate and a 60-member House of Representatives. All the legislators are elected to 2-year terms. Two populous counties, Maricopa (including Phoenix) and Pima (including Tucson), together elect about three-fourths of the members of each chamber. The highest tribunal in the state is the Supreme Court, comprising five justices appointed by the governor to staggered 6-year terms. The state also has a Court of Appeals, and each of Arizona's 15 counties has a Superior Court. The government of each county is overseen by an elected board of supervisors. Many of the state's cities use the city-manager form of government. Following the 1990 population census, the state gained an additional U.S. representative and one more electoral vote in presidential elections. The Democratic party dominated state and local politics in Arizona until the early 1950s. Since that time the Republican party has attracted a large proportion of the state's many immigrants, and Republicans have held the majority of governorships since 1950. A similar pattern has occurred in presidential elections. The Democratic candidates won in the state during 1932-48, and the Republican nominees prevailed in the state from 1952 on. In 1964 U.S. Sen. Barry M. \TGoldwater\t of Arizona was the Republican candidate for president. ECONOMY In the first half of the 20th century Arizona's economy was dominated by copper, cattle, cotton, and climate (which lured tourists). Beginning in the 1940s, however, many factories were built; eventually the electronics industry greatly boosted Arizona's manufacturing. By the late 1980s the service industries (including trade and financial services contributed about 75% of the gross state product. Agriculture and Forestry Although now proportionately much less important, agriculture still contributes significantly to Arizona's economy. The most valuable agricultural commodities are cattle, cotton, hay, and lettuce; maize, potatoes, citrus fruit, hogs, sheep, milk, and eggs also are produced in sizable quantities. Agricultural holdings in Arizona generally are very large, and most of the farmland is used to raise livestock. Ranches are situated in the Colorado Plateau region, in the central mountains, and in the southeast. Most cattle are fattened in feedlots, concentrated in the Phoenix area. Crops are grown intensively on irrigated land. The Salt River Valley is the leading crop-producing region; it is irrigated in large part with waters from the Theodore Roosevelt Dam (completed 1911). Arizona has a relatively small forest-products industry. The chief trees cut are softwoods like yellow pine, Douglas fir, and ponderosa pine. Important centers of the industry are Flagstaff, McNary, and Williams. Mining Arizona has an important mining industry. Copper ore is by far the most valuable mineral recovered (although in the 1980s there was a major copper-industry decline). Arizona produces more than half of the nation's total copper output, mostly from open-pit mines. Significant amounts of gold, silver, and molybdenum are recovered through the processing of copper ore. Other mineral products include coal, sand and gravel, stone, asbestos, perlite, pumice, pyrites, and gemstones. Manufacturing Arizona's manufacturing has grown tremendously since the 1940s, most recently in high-technology areas. About 15% of the state's work force is in manufacturing, producing about the same percentage of the gross state product (ranking second after the overall service industries). The leading goods produced in the state's factories, mostly located in the Phoenix and Tucson metropolitan areas, are electrical machinery and electronic devices, followed by nonelectrical machinery, transportation equipment, and primary metals (mainly refined copper ore). Tourism Tourism is one of Arizona's major economic activities. Winter visitors are attracted mainly by the warm and dry climate in the southern part of the state, and summer tourists are lured principally by the state's areas of great natural beauty. The state's parks and monuments are primary attractions. There are also luxurious private resort hotels (notably in Scottsdale) and some dude ranches (formerly a mainstay of the state's tourist industry). Transportation Arizona is well equipped to move persons and freight by road, railroad, and air transport. Most major roads and railroad lines run east-west. There are about 200 airports, the busiest being at Phoenix. Energy In the mid-1980s Arizona had an installed electric generating capacity of 13.7 million kW, and the annual production of electricity was about 51 billion kW h. About two-thirds was produced in thermal plants; much of the rest was generated by hydroelectric facilities (notably \THoover\t, Glen Canyon, Davis, and Parker dams, on the Colorado). When completed, the state's controversial Palo Verde Nuclear Plant will be the largest in the nation. HISTORY Indians first inhabited the region that is now Arizona between about 25,000 and 10,000 years ago. Agriculture was introduced about 2000 BC in the southeast and spread northward. By 300 BC, maize, squash, beans, and cotton were grown, partly with the use of sophisticated irrigation systems. By AD 700 the \THohokam culture\t, centered in the lower Salt and middle Gila river basins, was among the most productive and sophisticated Indian group north of present-day Mexico. Another highly developed culture group, the \TAnasazi\t (of which the Hopi are descendants), lived on the Colorado Plateau. These people constructed many cliff dwellings that still exist. During the 16th and 17th centuries the Athapascan-speaking Apache and Navajo moved into eastern Arizona; by this time the Hohokam had abandoned their lands. Spanish Presence The first white person to enter Arizona was probably the Spanish explorer Alvar Nunez \TCabeza de Vaca\t, in 1536. Three years later the Franciscan friar Marcos de Niza and the black slave Estavan passed through the San Pedro valley in search of the fabled Seven Cities of \TCibola\t, reputed to contain great amounts of gold. In 1540-42, members of a party led by Francisco Vasquez de \TCoronado\t, also attempting to find the Seven Cities, visited the Grand Canyon of the Colorado River and some Hopi villages. During the following 100 years several Spanish explorers and missionaries traveled in Arizona. One such visitor was Juan de \TOnate\t, who went down the lower Colorado in 1605. In the early 17th century missions were established among the Hopi, Papago, and Pima Indians; the Hopi later ousted the missionaries during a great Indian revolt in 1680. In the 1690s and early 1700s the Jesuit Eusebio \TKino\t, founded missions at Tumacacori, Guevavi, and Bac (which is now called San Xavier and is still active), in the Santa Cruz valley, and at Quiburi, in the San Pedro valley. In 1752 Spanish soldiers established Arizona's first white settlement, a presidio at Tubac, and in 1776 the presidio was transferred to Tucson. During the 18th century warfare occurred between the Spanish and Indians and between the Apache and other Indians. The whites and Apache were at peace from about 1790 to 1822, but in the later 1820s much fighting occurred in Arizona, since 1821 a part of independent Mexico. U.S. Annexations As a result of the \TMexican War\t (1846-48) the United States annexed Arizona north of the Gila River, and the area was made part of the New Mexico Territory in 1850. The United States also sought the region south of the Gila, partly as a transportation route to California, and it gained this territory from Mexico through the \TGadsden Purchase\t (1853). In the late 1850s silver was mined near Tubac, and copper was produced at Ajo. Southern Arizona was settled mainly by Americans from the South, and during the Civil War considerable sentiment for the Confederacy existed. One military engagement occurred in Arizona, at Picacho Pass (between Casa Grande and Tucson) in April 1862. On Feb. 24, 1863, the separate Union territory of Arizona was created. Its first capital was Fort Whipple; in 1864 Prescott was established nearby and made the capital. The capital was moved to Tucson in 1867, back to Prescott in 1877, and finally to Phoenix in 1889. In the 1860s several agricultural settlements, such as Gila Bend (1864), Phoenix (late 1860s), and Florence (1866), were founded, and in the 1870s and '80s many large cattle and sheep ranches were established. In 1877 much silver was discovered at what became (1879) Tombstone. Also in the 1870s, the Mormons founded a number of settlements on the Colorado Plateau and in the Salt and upper Gila river valleys. In 1878 the railroad reached Yuma from California, and during 1881-83 a rail line was built westward across northern Arizona. From the 1860s to 1880s fighting occurred between whites and the Apache, led by chiefs \TMangas Coloradas\t, \TCochise\t, and \TGeronimo\t (surrendered 1886). In the 1880s and '90s several corporations opened large-scale copper mines, and the area of irrigated agriculture reached about 81,000 ha (200,070 acres) by 1900. The completion, in 1911, of Theodore Roosevelt Dam on the Salt River resulted in a considerable growth of irrigated farming. As the state's economy and population grew, many Arizonans sought statehood for their territory. Having rejected proposals for the creation of a state including both Arizona and New Mexico, Arizona was permitted (1910) to draft a constitution by itself. The resulting charter was vetoed (1911) by President William Howard Taft, as it permitted the recall of judges by popular vote. After the recall provision was deleted, Taft signed (Feb. 14, 1912) the proclamation admitting Arizona as the 48th state. At the first state election the recall was restored. Statehood The first governor of the state was George W. P. Hunt, a Democrat; he held the office for seven 2-year terms before his death in 1934. The copper-mining industry grew during this period, but serious labor unrest existed at the mines. Major strikes occurred at Clifton and Morenci in 1915, at Ajo and Jerome in 1916, and at Bisbee in 1917. In the 1920s and '30s commercial agriculture expanded as new irrigation projects were constructed. Arizona's economy received a great boost during World War II when many defense installations (notably air bases) and industries were established in the state. In the postwar period manufacturing became the leading segment of the economy, and agriculture, mining, and tourism also expanded rapidly. The population began to increase at a rapid rate as well. With the great economic and population growth came a need for more fresh water. In 1963 the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that Arizona was entitled to 3.45 billion cu m (2.8 million acre-ft) of water per year from the Colorado River, and in 1968 the U.S. Congress authorized the great Central Arizona Project. The project delivered water from the Colorado to Phoenix in 1985 and to Tucson in 1990. In February 1988 the Arizona house voted to impeach Gov. Evan Mecham, a Republican; in April the state senate convicted him on two charges of official misconduct and removed him from office. Only the seventh U.S. governor to have been impeached and removed from office, Mecham was succeeded by Arizona secretary of state Rose Mofford, a Democrat. In 1991, Fife Symington, a Republican, became governor. Melvin E. Hecht Bibliography: Arizona Yearbook: A Guide to Government in Arizona (annual); Comeaux, Malcolm, Arizona: A Geography (1981); Faulk, Odie B., Arizona: A Short History (1977); Fireman, B. M., Arizona: Historic Land (1982); Goldwater, Barry, Arizona (1978); Miller, Tom, ed., Arizona: The Land and the People (1986); Mountain States of America (1972); Powell, L. C., Arizona (1990); Smiley, T. L., et al., eds., Landscapes of Arizona: The Geological Story (1984); Trimble, Marshall, Roadside History of Arizona (1987); University of Arizona Faculty, Arizona: Its People and Resources, rev. 2d ed. (1972); Wagoner, J. J., Arizona Government (1985), and Early Arizona: Prehistory to Civil War (1975); Walker, Henry P., and Bufkin Don, Historical Atlas of Arizona 2d ed. (1983).