Encyclopædia Britannica, Ninth Edition/Arizona

ARIZONA, a territory of the United States, bounded N. by Utah, E. by New Mexico, S. by Mexico, and W. by California and Nevada, with an estimated area of 113,900 square miles. According to the Act creating it a territory in 1863, Arizona comprises all the lands of the United States formerly belonging to New Mexico, extending from W. long. 109° to the California line. Since then, however, the N.W. corner has been ceded to Nevada. The territory lies in the basin of the Colorado River, which enters it in about 37° N. lat., and forms its western boundary southwards from 36°. In the north there is an extensive but barren plateau, with an average elevation of 7000 feet, through which the Colorado cuts its way, and forms one of the most remarkable gorges in the world, the length being about 300 miles, and the perpendicular walls reaching heights of from 3000 to 6000 feet. South of this plateau is the valley of the Colorado Chiquito (Little Colorado, or Flax River), which joins the Colorado in 36° 15′ lat. N. and 113° long. W., while further south the ground rises into another plateau, the main portion of which is known as the Mogollon Mountains. In this district the country is reported to be beautiful and fertile, the mountains covered with noble pine-trees, and the valleys clothed with rich grama grass. Further south, again, is the basin of the Gila, with its numerous tributaries, obliquely crossed by detached prolongations of the Sierra Madre of Mexico. The inhabitants of Arizona are mostly Indians. Of these 4300 Pinas and Maricopas occupy a reservation of 64,000 acres on the Gila River; 4000 Papagoes, a wandering tribe in the south-eastern part of the territory, have no grounds allotted them; 4000 Mohaves have 75,000 acres on the Colorado River; 2000 Yumas live near the mouth of the Colorado, but belong to the Mohave reservation; while 1500 Hualapais and 8000 or 12,000 Yavapais and Apaches, without settled habitations, live in a state of continual warfare with their neighbours. Civilisation, however, is gradually asserting her claim to those fertile districts. Arizona is rich in mineral products—nearly all the mountains in the south and centre yielding gold, silver, copper, and lead. Lime, gypsum, and coal are also present, and salt of excellent quality exists in extensive deposits. The vegetable productions are ironwood, mesquite, cotton-wood, sycamore, ash, oak, willow, walnut, prickly pear, cactus, aloe, artemisia; and, under cultivation, grapes, figs, oranges, lemons, tomatoes, tobacco, Indian corn, and the other cereals. Much of the land produces two crops in the year. The towns are all of inconsiderable size, and the whole white population of the territory, in 1870, did not amount to more than 9658. The capital is Tucson, in Pima county; and the other towns, Arizona City and Prescott. Many interesting remains exist of the early inhabitants of this region. See a paper by W. A. Bell, J. of Roy. Geog. Soc., 1869; Colorado Exploration; S. W. Cozzens, The Marvellous Country.