Maricopa & Phoenix Railroad: 1st train into Salt River Valley

The year was 1887, and the citizens of the Salt River Valley (Phoenix, Tempe, Mesa and Kyrene) had one thing in common…they all were excited about the arrival of the railroad! 

The Maricopa & Phoenix Railroad from Maricopa would be at their door soon and open up unlimited opportunities for industry and growth for the entire country. As the tracks passed through Tempe, one excited citizen put her enthusiasm on paper:  “The track is rapidly creeping into town, and by Saturday evening Tempe will have a connection with the great outside world by bands of iron up to her very front doors, we trust, never more to be separated.”

On July 4, 1887, a large crowd assembled at the terminus in Phoenix to welcome the first Maricopa steam engine with its whistle blowing full force into town. The town pulled all stops to celebrate this event with a brass band, parade and picnics. Guest speakers spoke about the great and prosperous times ahead, and fireworks lit up the evening sky. That evening, the train returned 35 miles to Maricopa…in reverse…as no turntable had been built yet. Thus began the golden age of the Maricopa & Phoenix Railroad (later Arizona Eastern Railroad) and Maricopa’s beginning as a railroad junction.  

Editor’s note:  Maricopa factoids are a regular feature on InMaricopa.com. They are provided by the Maricopa Historical Society, a branch of the Friends of the Maricopa Public Library. Most of the photos and information come from “Reflections of a Desert Town” by author and historical society chairperson Patricia Brock.