History

The renovation of one of Maricopa’s most iconic historical landmarks, the Silver Horizon rail car, is progressing – with a milestone coming soon. Paul Shirk,...

The massacre of the Oatman family in 1851 sent a shock wave through the Arizona Territory. Undoubtedly, the residents of Maricopa Wells (ancestor of the...

This 1913 photo looks south from the Southern Pacific railroad crossing to the main street leading into Maricopa. The path through the trees eventually...

Like most Maricopa residents, I have driven past Pima Butte (“M” mountain) many, many times. But only recently did I learn that a significant event...

Floodwaters inundate the backyard of Dallas and Susie Smith in September 1946. Their home was just south of today’s Business Barn. Dallas Smith was...

In 1954, the Headquarters nightclub and bar was a place for people to gather and dance to hits like “Shboom” recorded by The Crew...

As a relative newcomer in Maricopa, I have been surprised by how much there is to do in our town. True, we have no...

The black-and-white view of Maricopa High School was taken in 1998 by Gray Photographs of Phoenix. The high school, which opened in 1955 with...

This flooding scene near the Richfield service station on the old Maricopa Road in 1949 was captured by a photographer looking north from atop...

This photo from the 1890s looks east along the railroad tracks while a steam engine is stopped at the Maricopa Depot, on left. The...

People are moving to Maricopa every day. But do the newcomers — or the old timers, for that matter — give any thought to the...

It’s said life can turn on a dime. For Mike Otis, it changed on a $69 DNA test. Otis, a retired technical writer, did what...

Two highly visible economic development projects – the Heritage District and South Bridge – would blend together as envisioned by city staff. During a recent...

All business owners encounter hurdles as they are getting things going; it’s part of the process. Pat Kieny, the owner of Native Grill & Wings,...

Michael “The Rolling Pilot” Glen is as passionate as ever about hot-air ballooning. Nearly a decade has passed since our last contact with Glen, who...

In 1897, an eight-year-old girl on the Upper West Side of Manhattan asked her father whether Santa Claus really existed. Dr. Philip O'Hanlon, a coroner's...

Used as both a school and a Catholic church, St. Francis of Assisi Mission was built in the Ak-Chin community in 1920-21. Despite changes over...

When Octavio Machado enlisted in the U.S. Army at age 19, he was following a family tradition that went back to his grandfather, who...

By Fran Lyons He said to himself, “No wars in the U.S.” He wanted our country to be protected and safe. He wanted freedom and he...

The O.S. Stapley store opened in Maricopa in 1955 south of the railroad tracks and east of the high school on Maricopa Road. The...

Kelly Haddad, one of the original members of city council, entered community service at the invitation of civic leader Ed Farrell when Maricopa was just a patch in the desert.  He...

The Maricopa Hotel was owned and operated by Arthur Deal (pictured with his son) from 1917 to 1931. Called Edwards Hotel in the 1890s...

Steve Chestnut, who led the Maricopa Unified School District from 2012 to 2018 as superintendent, is now living happily in Scottsdale. Chestnut left MUSD to...

Maricopa’s “ghost subdivision” is coming back to life. Dormant for a decade, the Santa Rosa Crossing development with a long history and no homes...

Mike Ingram is not crazy or stupid. That may be obvious to observers now, but 25 years ago, many of Arizona’s most knowledgeable movers and...

The 1917 perspective of what used to be the town center no longer exists but for the top of the ever-present water tower. The...

It has been three years since Brent Murphree’s career in the cotton industry took him away from his Rancho El Dorado home and local...

“We pay tribute and honor the brave men and women who perished 19 years ago. May their families bear this burden.” Those prayerful words from...

A former barracks from Williams Field Air Force Base has stood the test of time and continues to change purposes as needs arise. In...

  One of Maricopa’s more memorable floods came in 1983, when Santa Cruz waters invaded most existing structures south of the tracks, including the elementary...