Thus began Maricopa’s life as a railroad junction and for the next 40 years. Maricopa’s final move took it three miles directly east so that the town could once again take on the challenge of being a junction for two railroads, the Southern Pacific Railroad and the Maricopa and Phoenix Railroad. Its dream of being a railroad terminus was doomed when the routes were changed. However, this little city in the middle of the desert that literally rose up overnight was never a junction for two railroads. This new site, known as Maricopaville, took on the appearance of one of the gold rush boom towns of California with men working day and night building hotels, saloons, warehouses, restaurants and theatres. Maricopa Wells dropped the second part of its name in 1879 and moved its telegraph office and post office eight miles directly south in order to hook up with the Southern Pacific Railroad and to serve as a junction for two railroads. With its substantial supply of water and prosperous trading center, it was a shining beacon and vital sanctuary in the desert for thousands of travelers who depended upon its resources for their survival. The most prosperous period of time for Maricopa Wells was in the 1870s, when it provided water and food not only for the east-to-west travelers, but those who traveled to the north. During this period, nearly every resident of the Wells was employed by the stagecoach line or the trading center. It consisted of a series of watering holes that were fed by several Arizona rivers: the Gila, Santa Cruz, Vekol and Santa Rosa, which provided this oasis in the desert with an ample water supply.ĭuring the 1850s and 1860s, Maricopa Wells became a major stagecoach relay station for the first organized semi-public transportation in Arizona – the San Antonio and San Diego Mail Line and then the Butterfield Overland Mail Line. Located on the southern banks of the Gila River, Maricopa Wells (Maricopa’s first location) was a haven for thousands of immigrants who followed the southern trail in the 1800s across Arizona to California’s gold fields. Maricopa has had three locations over the years and each played an important role in the growth and development of the Southwest. It is hidden in the middle of the Sonoran Desert, surrounded by mountain ranges that include the beautiful Sierra Estrellas, Palo Verde, Saddleback Mountains and Haley Hills. ![]() Maricopa is one of the oldest and most historic communities in the state of Arizona.
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