50 Interesting Facts About Arizona

Facts About Arizona

Facts About Arizona

  • Arizona was the 48th state to join the United States of America on February 14, 1912.
  • The Sonoran Desert in Arizona is the only place on earth where the saguaro cactus grows.
  • There are 13 species of rattlesnake in Arizona, more than in any other state.
  • There are 22 national parks and monuments in Arizona.
  • There are more than 100 wineries and 22 varietals of wine produced in Arizona.
  • There are only 15 counties in Arizona. These are Apache, Cochise, Coconino, Gila, Graham, Greenlee, La Paz, Maricopa, Mohave, Navajo, Pima, Pinal, Santa Cruz, Yavapai, and Yuma.
  • The first Europeans to cross into Arizona were with a Spanish missionary by the name of Marcos de Niza in 1539.
  • Arizona has 35 state parks and natural areas preserving the state’s natural, cultural and recreational resources.
  • The Grand Canyon National Park is one of the Seven Natural Wonders of the World, and the only one located within the United States.
  • Arizona leads the nation in copper production.
  • The very first McDonald’s drive-through was built in Arizona.
  • Arizona’s lowest point is the Colorado River which sits at 70 ft.
  • Arizona is the first of the three states with official state neckwear: the bola tie.
  • The saguaro cactus blossom is the official state flower.
  • A person from Arizona is called an Arizonan.
  • People lived in the area that’s now Arizona at least 20,000 years ago, before written history. But in the 1200s, this civilization disappeared, probably due to a drought.
  • Arizona is 27% forest.
  • Arizona, among all the states, has the largest percentage of its land set aside and designated as Indian lands.
  • The geographic centre of Arizona is 55 miles southeast of Prescott.
  • Arizona has a meteor crater that is one of the best kept in the entire world. The Barringer Meteor Crater is a crazy one mile wide and 570 ft deep and is estimated to have hit Earth 50,000 years ago.
  • Arizona is nicknamed the Copper State as it leads the country in copper production.
  • Arizona’s name may have come from an early Arizona explorer of Spanish descent, Juan Bautista de Anza, who may have called it “place of oaks,” or from Papago Native American words that translate to “place of the young spring.”
  • The Arizona trout can be found only in Arizona.
  • Arizona is one of the four corner states, which means that you can be in all four states at the same time, the other four corner states are New Mexico, Colorado, and Utah.
  • Arizona’s most abundant mineral is copper.
  • The roof of the Arizona Capitol building is made of copper and uses the equivalent of nearly 5 million pennies.
  • In 1926, the Southern Pacific Railroad connected Arizona with the eastern states.
  • Arizona’s official state colours are blue and gold.
  • Arizona attained statehood on 14th February which coincides with Valentine’s Day.
  • In 1968, Robert P. McCulloch, Sr., the founder of Lake Havasu City, bought the world’s largest antique for $2.46 million. The London Bridge.
  • Arizona had the world’s largest Kokopelli, with a 32 ft statue of the god of wealth and fertility.
  • Humphreys Peak at 12,633 feet is the highest point in Arizona.
  • Arizona is known as The Grand Canyon State.
  • Arizona’s state bird is the black, white and brown cactus wren.
  • One of the world’s tallest water fountains in the world is located in Fountain Hills, Arizona, just east of Scottsdale.
  • The largest Native American Reservation, the Navajo Nation, is found in Arizona. The Navajo Nation reserves an area of 17,544,500 acres.
  • Arizona was once a Mexican state.
  • Arizona is home to 22 Native American tribes that span back as far as 12,000 years ago.
  • Arizona is bordered by Nevada in the northwest, Utah in the north, New Mexico in the east, Mexico in the south, and California in the west.
  • Prescott, Arizona is home to the World’s Oldest Rodeo, which started back in 1888 and has continuously continued that tradition for over 130 years.
  • Arizona also has the deepest dam in the world, the Parker Dam, with a structural height of 320 feet, of which only eighty-five feet extend above the river bed.
  • The Spanish were the first European settlers to arrive in Arizona.
  • The Rodeo-Chediski Fire began on June 18, 2002, and was not controlled until July 7. It was the worst forest fire in Arizona’s recorded history until June 14, 2011 when the Wallow Fire surpassed Rodeo-Chediski as the largest fire in Arizona history.
  • The largest metropolitan area in Arizona is the Greater Phoenix area.
  • Pluto was discovered by Clyde Tombaugh at Lowell Observatory at Flagstaff on February 18, 1930.
  • The right to remain silent began in Arizona in 1966.
  • The capital city of Arizona is Phoenix.
  • The Gila Monster, the largest lizards native to the United States are from Arizona. The Gila Monster gets its name from Arizona’s Gila River basin, where they were first discovered.
  • The average precipitation in Arizona is 11.80 inches.
  • The warmest temperature ever recorded in Arizona was 120 °F on August 10th, 1936 & The coldest temperature ever recorded in Arizona was -40 °F on January 7th, 1971.

 

Facts About Arizona
Facts About Arizona