Mesa, Arizona

The history of Mesa dates back at least 2,000 years to the arrival of the Hohokam people. The Hohokam, whose name means "All Used Up" or "The Departed Ones", built the original canal system. The canals were the largest and most sophisticated in the prehistoric New World. Some were up to 90 feet (27 m) wide and 10 feet (3.0 m) deep at their head gates, extending for as far as 16 miles (26 km) across the desert. By A.D. 1100 water could be delivered to an area over 110,000 acres (450 km²), transforming the Sonoran Desert into an agricultural oasis. By A.D. 1450, the Hohokam had constructed hundreds of miles of canals many of which are still in use today.[6]

After the disappearance of the Hohokam and before the arrival of the early settlers little is known, as explorers did not venture into this area. By the late 19th century near present-day Mesa, U.S. Army troops relocated the Apache, opening the way for settlement.[7]

Mormon pioneer Daniel Webster Jones, with Henry Clay Rogers as his right-hand man, left St. George, Utah in March 1877. Jones had been asked by Mormon officials to direct a party of people in establishing a settlement in Arizona. They traveled south and settled on the north side of the present Mesa area. This settlement was initially known as Fort Utah and later as Jonesville. It was located about where Lehi Road is now. In 1883 it was named Lehi at the suggestion of Brigham Young, Jr.[8]

About this same time, another group dubbed the First Mesa Company arrived from Utah and Idaho. Their leaders were named Francis Martin Pomeroy, Charles Crismon, George Warren Sirrine and Charles I. Robson. Rather than accepting an invitation to settle at Jones' Lehi settlement, they moved up onto the mesa that serves as the city's namesake. They dug irrigation canals and used some of the original Hohokam canals. By April 1878, water was flowing through them.[9] The Second Mesa Company arrived in 1879 and settled to the west of the First Mesa Company because of more available farmland. This settlement was called originally called Alma and later Stringtown. It was located about where Alma School Road is now.[10]

On July 17, 1878, Mesa City was registered as a 1-square-mile (2.6 km²) townsite. The first school was built in 1879. In 1883, Mesa City was incorporated with a population of 300 people. Dr. A. J. Chandler, who would later go on to found the city of Chandler, worked on widening the Mesa Canal in 1895 to allow for enough flow to build a power plant. In 1917, the city of Mesa purchased this utility company. The revenues from the company provided enough for capital expenditures until the 1960s. During the Great Depression, WPA funds provided paved streets, a new hospital, a new town hall and a library.[11]

After the founding of the city the elected official that most impacted the municipality was George Nicholas Goodman. He was mayor 5 different times[12]</ref> in parts of 3 different decade (1938–1942, 1946–1948, 1952–1956) (see: List of mayors of Mesa, Arizona). As mayor he was directly involved in the process of acquiring land for both Falcon Field and Williams Field.[12]

With the opening of Falcon Field and Williams Field in the early 1940s, more military personnel began to move into the Mesa area. With the advent of air conditioning and the rise of tourism, population growth exploded in Mesa as well as the rest of the Phoenix area. Industry—especially early aerospace companies—grew in the 1950s and 1960s. As late as 1960, half of the residents of Mesa made a living with agriculture, but this has declined substantially as Mesa's suburban growth continued on track with the rest of the Phoenix metro area.[13]

According to the 2010 Census, the racial composition of Mesa was as follows:[24]

• White: 83.8% (Non-Hispanic Whites: 62.6%)
• Hispanic or Latino (of any race): 27.4%
• Black or African American: 3.7%
• Two or more races: 3.1%
• Native American: 2.3%
• Asian: 2.0%
• Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander: 0.4%

As of the census of 2010, there were 439,041 people, 146,643 households, and 99,863 families residing in the city. The population density was 3,171.3 people per square mile (1,224.4/km²). There were 175,701 housing units at an average density of 1,405.7 per square mile (542.8/km²).

The racial make-up of the city was 81.6% White, 2.4% Black or African American, 2.2% Native American, 2.00% Asian, 0.10% Pacific Islander, 9.3% from other races, and 1.30% from two or more races. 24.0% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.

There were 146,643 households, out of which 33.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 52.7% were married couples living together, 10.6% had a female householder with no husband present, and 31.9% were non-families. 24.2% of all households were made up of individuals, and 9.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.68 and the average family size was 3.20.

The age distribution was 27.3% under 18, 11.2% from 18 to 24, 29.7% from 25 to 44, 18.4% from 45 to 64, and 13.3% who were 65 or older. The median age was 32 years. For every 100 females, there were 98.2 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 95.6 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $42,817, and the median income for a family was $49,232. Males had a median income of $35,960 versus $27,005 for females. The per capita income for the city was $19,601. About 6.2% of families and 8.9% of the population were below the poverty line, including 10.7% of those under age 18 and 7.1% of those age 65 or over.

Mesa Grande Ruins

• HoHoKam Park of the Cactus League, home of the Oakland Athletics and former home of the Chicago Cubs during spring training, the WAC Baseball Tournament and former summer home to the now defunct Mesa Miners professional baseball team of the Golden Baseball League
• Sloan Park, opened in 2014 as the new Cactus League spring training home of the Chicago Cubs
• Mesa Arts Center
• Mesa Amphitheater
• Museums
  • i.d.e.a. Museum formerly Arizona Museum for Youth
  • Commemorative Air Force Arizona Wing Aircraft Museum, located at Falcon Field – B-17 Sentimental Journey
  • Mesa Contemporary Arts Museum, Mesa Arts Center
    • Mesa Historical Museum
    • Arizona Museum of Natural History
• Archeological sites
  • Mesa Grande Ruins
  • Park of the Canals
• Public libraries
  • Main Library (MN)
  • Dobson Ranch Branch (DR)
  • Mesa Express Library (MEL)
  • Red Mountain Branch (RM)
• Water parks
  • Golfland Sunsplash waterpark on U.S. 60
• The only highrise in Mesa is the Bank of America (formerly Western Savings) building near Fiesta Mall.
• Organ Stop Pizza, containing the world's largest Wurlitzer organ

Mesa has over 2,280 acres of parkland in the city limits. Its largest is Red Mountain Park which spans 1,146 acres. It includes a lake, playgrounds, a basketball court and a cement volleyball court.[27]

Almost all of the city of Mesa is served by public schools operated by Mesa Public Schools; however, a small southern portion is served by the Gilbert Public Schools and the Queen Creek Unified School District, and a small western portion is served by the Tempe Elementary School District and the Tempe Union High School District.

Pilgrim Lutheran School is a Christian Pre-K-8 school of the Wisconsin Evangelical Lutheran Synod in Mesa.[34]

Mesa is home to Mesa Community College, the largest of the Maricopa Community Colleges, which enrolls over 24,000 full and part-time students. The Polytechnic campus of Arizona State University lies in southeast Mesa. This satellite campus enrolls over 6,000 undergraduate and graduate students in scientific and engineering fields. A. T. Still University operates an Osteopathic Medical School in Mesa. The aviation school CAE Global Academy Phoenix is located in Mesa.

After launching a higher education initiative in 2012, Mesa became home to branch campuses of five private, liberal arts institutions: Albright College, Westminster College, Benedictine University, Upper Iowa University and Wilkes University.[35] Two have since left (Albright College and Westminster College), while a third, Wilkes University, recently announced it would move entirely online.[36]

Mesa City Hall in downtown Mesa

Several area freeways serve the Mesa area, such as U.S. Route 60, locally known as the Superstition Freeway, which runs between Apache Junction and Phoenix. It is also served by SR 87 and bypass loops Loop 101, which skirts the western city limits as the Price Freeway, and Loop 202, which bypasses the city on the north and east. The main east–west arterial road in Mesa is Main Street (former US 60/70/80/89), serving Downtown Mesa. The primary north–south arterials include Country Club Drive, Gilbert Road, and Power Road.

Public transportation in Mesa is provided by Valley Metro via bus and light rail (Valley Metro Rail). The light rail section in Mesa spans about four miles from Sycamore/Main St in the west of the city, through downtown to Mesa Dr/Main St. Until July 2008, Mesa was the largest U.S. city with no public transit service on Sundays, but now has Sunday service available on Routes 40-Apache/Main, 61-Southern, 96-Dobson, 108-Elliot, 112-Country Club/Arizona, 156-Chandler/Williams Field, and 184-Power. Up to the final years of Southern Pacific passenger railroad service, the Sunset Limited passenger train used to make stops in Mesa.[37]

Air service in the city is provided by two airports. Falcon Field, located in the northeastern part of the area, was established as a training field for British RAF pilots during World War II and was transferred to the city at the end of the war. Falcon Field has 605 aircraft based there.[38] Boeing builds the AH-64 Apache attack helicopter at a facility adjoining Falcon Field. Phoenix-Mesa Gateway Airport is located in the far southeastern area of the city, and provides alternate but limited air service when compared to Sky Harbor International Airport. Phoenix-Mesa Gateway was formerly Williams Gateway Airport, and before that, Williams Air Force Base, which closed in 1993. Williams Gateway was announced as a new Focus City for Allegiant Air. Service started October 25, 2007.

• Jim Adkins, musician in the band from Mesa, Jimmy Eat World[39]
• Travis Alexander – murder victim
• Beau Allred – professional baseball pitcher[40]
• Janice Merrill Allred – author[41]
• Helen Andelin – author
• Authority Zero – punk rock band[39]
• John Beck – professional football player
• Mike Brown – professional basketball coach[42]
• Marcus Brunson – professional sprinter
• Austin Gibbs – musician[43]
• George Nicholas Goodman a pharmacist who was the mayor of Mesa for 5 different 2-year terms as part of 3 different decades.[44]
• Max Hall – professional football player
• Mickey Hatcher – professional baseball player
• Carl Hayden – Arizona senator, and its first representative in the House; died in Mesa on January 25, 1972[45]
• Todd Heap – professional football player
• Kalani Hilliker – dancer, actress, model, fashion designer, and YouTuber
• Jamar Hunt – professional football player[46]
• Autumn Hurlbert – actress
• Misty Hyman – Olympic gold medalist in swimming
• Julie Ertz – world champion soccer player
• Rudy Lavik – college basketball coach
• Mike Lee – United States Senator
• Albie Lopez – professional baseball player[47]
• Brad Mills – professional baseball pitcher
• Carolyn Morris – professional baseball player (A.A.G.P.B.L.)[48]
• Buck Owens – singer, member of the Country Music Hall of Fame
• Rudy Owens – professional baseball player
• John Jacob Rhodes – politician, House Minority Leader of the U.S. House of Representatives
• John Jacob Rhodes III – politician, former member of the U.S. House of Representatives
• Larry Schweikart – author
• Jake Shears – lead male singer for the pop band Scissor Sisters
• Jack Taylor – mayor of Mesa from 1966 to 1972; thereafter a member, consecutively, of both houses of the Arizona State Legislature; interred at Mesa City Cemetery[49]
• Lynn Toler – judge for Divorce Court
• Kelly Townsend – Arizona State Representative, Legislative District 16 (including parts of East Mesa)
• Don Taylor Udall – state legislator and judge
• Brooke White – singer-songwriter and fifth place finalist on the seventh season of American Idol
• Danny White – professional football player, Arizona Athlete of the Century (20th)
• Wilford "Whizzer" White – professional football player
• Roger L. Worsley – educator, formerly with Mesa High School and Mesa Community College
• Tyson Apostol – reality television star (Winner of Survivor: Blood vs. Water; Contestant on Survivor: Tocantins, Survivor: Heroes vs. Villains, & Survivor Winners at War)
• Mike VanPortfleet - singer, songwriter of Lycia
• Tara VanFlower - singer, songwriter of Lycia

Mesa has five sister cities, as designated by Sister Cities International:

• Burnaby, British Columbia, Canada
• Caraz, Peru
• Guaymas, Mexico
• Kaiping, Guangdong, China
• Upper Hutt, New Zealand

• Arizona Commemorative Air Force Museum
• The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Arizona
• City of Mesa Cemetery
• Life Teen
• Mesa Distance Learning Program
• Shooting of Daniel Shaver
• Tri City Mall

• Official government website
• Mesa Arizona Convention and Visitors Bureau – Tourism
• Mesa news, sports and things to do from The Mesa Republic newspaper
• Mesa Public Library
• Mesa Chamber of Commerce