List of historic properties in Peoria, Arizona

Last updated

List of historic properties
in Peoria, Arizona
City
Peoria-Old Town Peoria.jpg
Old Town Peoria as seen from an intersection between Washington St. and 83rd. Ave.
AZMap-doton-Peoria.png
Location in Maricopa County and the state of Arizona

This is a list, which includes a photographic gallery, of some of the remaining historic properties in the town of Peoria, Arizona. There are numerous properties in the city of Peoria which are considered to be historical and have been included either in the National Register of Historic Places [1] or the listings of the Peoria Register of Historic Places. The following are images of some of these properties with a short description of the same. Included are images of the ruins of a Hohokam village, early inhabitants of what is now Peoria's Lake Pleasant Regional Park, located on top of Indian Mesa. Also posted are the images of some of the historic structures of Weedville, a small community founded in 1911, in an area which at the time was outside the city limits of Peoria.

Contents

Brief history

Peoria is a city in Maricopa and Yavapai counties in the State of Arizona. Peoria was a farm community originally settled in the late 1880s by farmers from Peoria, Illinois. These settlers were recruited by William John Murphy a young engineer from Illinois who had just completed the grading of a stretch of the Atlantic and Pacific Railway (which later became the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway) and who in 1885 completed the Arizona Canal. [2] [3]

Peoria Railroad Depot - built in 1895. The station was dismantled and rebuilt at the McCormick-Stillman Railroad Park in Scottsdale, Arizona SD-Peoria Train Depot.jpg
Peoria Railroad Depot – built in 1895. The station was dismantled and rebuilt at the McCormick-Stillman Railroad Park in Scottsdale, Arizona

The rail line was beneficial to the development of the town. The rail company built a small depot on 83rd Avenue just off Grand Avenue. Thus, the local ranchers and farmers were able to ship via rail and sell their crops and cattle to other towns in the area. The people of Peoria were also able to purchase goods which arrived by rail from other locations. A fire in 1917 destroyed all but one building in the downtown core. After that event, there was a concerted effort to build with more substantial materials. Peoria was incorporated in 1954. [4]

The Peoria Arizona Historical Society was founded in 1990. Its goal is to preserve the buildings and artifacts that are reminders of Peoria's past. The historic Peoria Central School building, located at 10394 N. 83rd Ave., serves as the society's headquarters. The society established a museum which exhibits and stores a collection of historical artifacts in the building. The society provided assistance for the city's first Historic Resource Survey in 1997, which covered the area of the original town plat. [5]

Peoria razing its historical properties

Peoria's Historical Society does not have the ability to deny a demolition permit. Owners of a property, listed either in the National Register of Historic Places or the Peoria Historic Property Register may demolish the historical property. According to the "Review of Proposed Construction Activity" section of the City of Peoria Historic Preservation Master Plan: The City may request a survey prior to construction activity or other actions that involve properties that may have historic and/or archaeological significance. The Historic Preservation Commission will review survey reports that discover properties that may be eligible for inclusion on the Peoria Register of Historic Places. New construction or rehabilitation work proposed within a local historic district or on an individual local landmark must be reviewed by the Historic Preservation Commission and receive a Certificate of Appropriateness from the commission before work may begin. In its reviews, the commission follows the standards established by the Secretary of Interior, so that each structure or site reviewed is held to the same standards. Such projects then follow all other applicable development processes. [5] However, according to an article published in the Arizona Republic by Adrian Hedden and Laura Gomez, a citywide code enforcement initiative has led to the destruction of older buildings and homes in Old Town Peoria. Many owners can not afford to repair some of these properties and the city officials have insisted that rejuvenation and enforcement efforts are separate. Residents believe that the city is ignoring the historical preservation of these properties while pressing them to demolish older homes in need of repairs. [6] According to Jim McPherson, Arizona Preservation Foundation Board President:

It is crucial that residents, private interests, and government officials act now to save these elements of our cultural heritage before it is too late. [7]

Among the historic structures which no longer exist in Peoria is the old town water tower. The tower was constructed in the 1890s to provide water storage from the town's well. The tower was removed in 1936. The Edwards Hotel is another property which is in danger of being demolished. The property is boarded up and in state of abandonment. In 2017, the City of Peoria acquired a demolition permit to tear down the Edwards Hotel. They gave the Peoria Historic Preservation Commission nine days to come up with engineering studies as to why it should not be torn down. However, the century-old hotel was purchased by Dan Halbert in 2018 and will be given a second life as a vacation destination. The new owner plans to turn the hotel into a tourist attraction by advertising it as a haunted hotel. [8] However, the 103-year-old Edwards Hotel never received the second wind its last owner promised and was demolished in 2021. [9]

Buildings, etc.

The following are the images of the historic buildings in Peoria and its surrounding areas.

Houses

The following are the images of the historic houses in Peoria and its surrounding areas.

Palo Verde Ruins

The Palo Verde Ruin was once home to the largest Hohokam settlement along the New River. It is the second Peoria landmark to be listed on the National Register of Historic Places. [12]

Indian Mesa and the Hohokam village

Indian Mesa is located in the Lake Pleasant Regional Park. On top of the mesa there are ruins of a prehistoric Hohokam village which is monitored by the Arizona Site Stewards and considered an important archaeological site by the U.S. Bureau of Land Management. It is estimated that in the years AD 1000 to AD 1200, people associated with the Hohokam cultural tradition, built a community which housed anywhere from 100 to 200 people on top of the mesa. [13] [14] [15]

Weedville (Peoria)

Weedville, Arizona was a small community founded in 1911, by Reverend Ora Rush Weed, a Methodist minister from Kansas. Weedville was founded in an area which at the time was outside the city limits of Peoria. The area is located within the pockets of an unincorporated land under the jurisdiction of Maricopa County.

Further reading

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Peoria, Arizona</span> City in Arizona, United States

Peoria is a city in Maricopa and Yavapai counties in the U.S. state of Arizona. Most of the city is located in Maricopa County, while a portion of it in the north is in Yavapai County. It is a major suburb of Phoenix. As of the 2020 census, the population of Peoria was 190,985, up from 154,065 in 2010. It is the sixth-largest city in Arizona in land area and the ninth-largest in population. It was named after Peoria, Illinois. The word peoria is a corruption of the Miami-Illinois word for "prairie fire". It is the spring training home of the San Diego Padres and Seattle Mariners, who share the Peoria Sports Complex.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pueblo Grande Ruin and Irrigation Sites</span> Archaeological park in Arizona

Pueblo Grande Ruin and Irrigation Sites are pre-Columbian archaeological sites and ruins, located in Phoenix, Arizona. They include a prehistoric platform mound and irrigation canals. The City of Phoenix manages these resources as the S’edav Va’aki Museum.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mesa Grande</span> Archaeological site in Arizona, United States

Mesa Grande Cultural Park, in Mesa, Arizona, preserves a group of Hohokam structures constructed during the Classic Period. The ruins were occupied between AD 1100 and 1400 and were a product of the Hohokam civilization that inhabited the Salt River Valley. There the Hohokam constructed an extensive system of water canals. It is one of only two Hohokam mounds remaining in the metro Phoenix area, with the other being the Pueblo Grande Museum Archaeological Park. The site's central feature is a massive ruin of adobe walls and platforms.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Scorpion Gulch</span> Historic building in Phoenix, Arizona

Located in South Mountain Park in Phoenix, Arizona, Scorpion Gulch was built as a home and store by William Lunsford. Lunsford's store sold curios, Indigenous-made items, sodas, and candy. It was still in operation in 1966, when Lunsford was 75. In the 1970s, it became a bar. According to the Phoenix Historic Property Register, Scorpion Gulch was built in 1936, and was first listed on the historic preservation register in October 1990. Historical photographs show a sign on the original building entitled, "South Mountain Trading Post", under which jewelry, Indian curios, and leather goods are advertised.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lescher & Mahoney</span> Architectural firm based in Phoenix, Arizona

Lescher & Mahoney was an American architectural firm from Phoenix, Arizona.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Indian Mesa</span> Landform in the Lake Pleasant Regional Park, Arizona

Indian Mesa is a flat top hill whose sides are steep cliffs. Indian Mesa is located within the Lake Pleasant Regional Park grounds by the shores of Lake Pleasant and Agua Fria River in the Bradshaw Mountain Range. Lake Pleasant Regional Park is within the municipal boundaries of Peoria, Arizona. On top of the mesa there are ruins of a prehistoric Hohokam village which is monitored by the Arizona Site Stewards and considered an important archaeological site by the U.S. Bureau of Land Management. There is a small, steep and narrow path which begins at the skirt of the hill and leads to the top of the mesa.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Weedville, Arizona</span> Populated place in Arizona, United States

Weedville is a populated place situated within the city limits of Peoria in Maricopa County, Arizona, United States. It was a small community founded in 1911, in an area which, at the time, was outside the city limits of Peoria. The area is located within the pockets of unincorporated land under the jurisdiction of Maricopa County. All of the census and demographic data for the residents of Weedville are part of the information reported for the city of Peoria, since Weedville is located within the limits of that city.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ora Rush Weed</span> Arizona pioneer (1868–1942)

Ora Rush Weed was a Methodist minister who founded Weedville, a small farming community in Arizona. Weedville's utilities are provided by the City of Peoria. The area is unincorporated which means that the land is not governed by Peoria, the local municipal corporation, instead it is administered by the county.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Levi Ruggles</span> Arizona pioneer (1824–1889)

Levi Ruggles (1824–1889) known as the "Father of Florence, Arizona" was a soldier and pioneer who founded the town of Florence, Arizona.

References

  1. 1 2 National Register of Historic Places
  2. ↑ Official Government Website
  3. ↑ Peoria Public Library's Website
  4. ↑ Downtown FacadeStudy
  5. 1 2 "Community Development/Planning and Zoning/Historic Preservation" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2016-01-24. Retrieved 2015-08-30.
  6. ↑ "Is Peoria razing its past in order to promomote it?"; Arizona Republic; by: Adrian Hedden and Laaura Gomez; November 25, 2016; page 1A
  7. ↑ Arizona Preservation Foundation
  8. ↑ Arizona Central
  9. ↑ AZCentral; Peoria's 103-year-old Edwards Hotel now a pile of rubble
  10. ↑ Peoria Register of Historic Places
  11. ↑ Old Town Peoria 83rd Ave. & Madison St. Residential Area
  12. ↑ Palo Verde Ruin
  13. ↑ Indian Mesa Ruins
  14. ↑ Lake Pleasant Events Archived 2013-12-16 at the Wayback Machine
  15. ↑ America’s Old West Photographer
  16. ↑ "Lake Pleasant (Images of America)", Author: Gerard Giordano; p. 13; Arcadia Publishing; ISBN   978-0738571768
  17. ↑ Ruins Seldom Seen
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