Arizona: A Very Hot State

Our forty-eighth state, is not only hot, but it is quite a place with lots of history; it is definitely a great place to visit.

Arizona, which is one of the most southwestern states, bordering with Mexico; this state is always very warm, and belongs to the “mountain region” of the United States. The official state flag that is used now was picked in 1917, with a star in the center to represent the importance of the minerals within its economy, with a solid blue bottom, and 13 alternating strips representing the original 13 colonies. The stripes are alternating red and yellow which represents the period of time when the Spanish were in control. The record high was 127 degrees in 1901, with a record low of, negative 40 in 1967, but since the state is divided into 3 sections where in the northern part of the state winters can go down to the mid forties, while the southern part will remain in the sixties or seventies.

In the northern part of Arizona, being covered by the Colorado Plateau where it is very dry, not that any other part is humid, many people who live in humid parts of the United States go west to Arizona, hoping for relief from the humidity, some love it others find it too hot, it is totally a personal choice. The southern part of Arizona is occupied today mostly by Hispanic’s mostly from Mexico, some are legally here, while others are not When tourist visit, it appears as if they were actually in Mexico, since the Mexican took with them their beautiful culture, and since it borders with Mexico, the weather is very similar, making it easy to grow many of the same foods.

The highest point is located at Humphrey’s peak, which stands at a high altitude of 12,633 feet, most peaks in the state average about 4,100 feet. There are many interesting sites to visit, such as the Yuma Territorial Prison State Historic Park, located at the very southwestern part of the state. It is where a prison is located that held many outlaws from the “old west”, were jailed during the late 1800’s and early to mid 1900’s it is a lovely park, with a museum, representing the past. While in Phoenix there is a very large privately owned zoo, covering over 123 acres, being privately owned gives the owner the ability to provide a very beautiful scenic view of the animals, where for some there is more hands on, making this a must see Zoo.

Many of the towns were named with Spanish influence or Indian influence, and then when it was to become a part of the United States, the names stayed; that was the reason for the alternating strips upon it State Flag.

The people who first explored the Arizona region about 12,000 years ago, coming through the Bering Strait, were hunters, and soon were to become known as the Anasazi Indians. They occupied the northeastern part of Arizona, over time many different tribes soon started to occupy the region. When the Europeans first set foot, they encountered, the Navajo, Apache, and Hopi Indians, just to name a few. The Navajo Indians were brought to the northern part of the state, while in 1871 the Apaches occupied the White Mountain Reservation.

By 1540 several Spanish explorers had made different discoveries, it was in 1540 when Francisco Vasquez de Coronado, searching for the infamous Seven Cities of Cibola; instead he found the Grand Canyon. It was in 1919 that the Grand Canyon National Park was named

Grand Canyon

At one time Arizona did indeed belong to Mexico, when they revolted against Spain, after years of conflicts with Spain and the different Indian tribes of the region. It was after the Mexican War of 1846-1848 that land north of the Gila River became part of the United States
Gila

Then over time the southern part became part of the US after the signing of the Gadsden Purchase.

The state underwent a lot when the Confederated try to take and maintain control, but that was short lived. There were many State Capitals before it was finally set in Phoenix in 1889. It was around this time that Arizona sought statehood and finally in 1906 the paper work was set into motion, it took about six years but finally in 1912 Arizona became the forty-eighth state.

As mentioned above about the star representing the mineral of the economy, in the beginning was the discovery of copper in 1854, then silver in Tubac in 1856, and finally gold mining began in the later part of the 1850’s, inviting people looking to get rich, when the word of gold spread.