History of Arizona

The history of Arizona as recorded by Europeans began in 1539 with the first documented exploration of the area by Marcos de Niza, early work expanded the following year when Francisco Vásquez de Coronado entered the area as well. Arizona was part of Mexico from 1822, but the settled population was small. In 1848, the United States took possession of most of it after the Mexican-American War. The Gadsden Purchase secured the Tucson area in 1853. In 1863, Arizona was split off from the Territory of New Mexico into its own entity. The remoteness was eased by the arrival of railroads in 1880. Arizona became a state in 1912, but was primarily rural with an economy based on cattle, cotton, citrus and copper. Dramatic growth came after 1945, as retirees especially appreciated the warm weather and low costs. Major issues in recent years include ethnic hostility between Anglos and Hispanics, and the bust that followed the real estate bubble of the 2000s.