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Describes the evolution of transportation routes and transportation methods in Pima County throughout time, and the effect that modes of transportation have had on the size and form of the community. Stage, freight, and railroad transportation followed the main historic corridors established by previous cultures and technologies.
The Arizona transportation history project was conceived in anticipation of Arizona’s centennial, which will be celebrated in 2012. Following approval of the Arizona Centennial Plan in 2007, the Arizona Department of Transportation recognized that the centennial celebration would present an opportunity to inform Arizonans of the crucial role that transportation has played in the growth and development of the state.
The report consists of a historical narrative and a series of topical essays. The seven-chapter historical narrative is a history of Arizona’s highways that extends from the pre-Columbian era to the present. The 14 topical essays extend the scope of the history beyond the state’s highway system. They include overviews of the development of other transportation modes (railroads, aviation, and urban transit), a brief history of highway pavements, a lighthearted look at the motoring experience during the 1920s and 1930s, and an exploration of how changes in transportation infrastructure affected some Arizona communities. The topical essays also provide additional historical information on bridges, urban freeways, the Interstate system, ADOT and its predecessor agencies, and famous roads such as U.S. Route 66, U.S. Route 89, the Black Canyon Highway, and the Beeline Highway.
The report also includes a timeline of transportation-related developments. This chronology not only provides an accessible overview of Arizona’s transportation history; it also places that history in a larger context by including transportation-related developments from the rest of the nation and around the world. Finally, the report contains a guide to archives in Arizona that hold significant collections of historical photographs related to the state’s transportation history, a bibliography of published historical sources related to the history of highways in Arizona, and a discussion of how the historical narrative and topical essays could be used to produce publications and media that would be made available to the public.
Mounted black and white photograph with a typescript annotation, "July 17 1914. Making the trip down Bright Angel trail at the Grand Canyon of Arizona on mules. Left to right: George H. N. Luhrs, Jr., unknown, George H. N. Luhrs, Emma Luhrs, Ella Luhrs. Bright Angel Trail to the Colorado River, at bottom on canyon."
Black and white print of the Grand Canyon with a typescript annotation, "July 17, 1914. Grand Canyon Arizona. On the left side you can see some of the mules taking people down the Bright Angel Trail to the bottom of the Canyon."
Black and white print with members of the Luhrs family. Typescript annotation, "July 17th, 1914. Going down Bright Angel Canyon of Arizona, Those on the mules, from bottom up: unknown, unknown, Ella Luhrs, Emma Luhrs, George H. N. Luhrs, unknown, Roger Hunt, George Luhrs Jr., Catherine Margarita 'Gretchen' (Mrs Geo H. N.) Luhrs standing beside George Luhrs Jr." Beside the trail, a sign displays, "Photo by Kolb Brothers."
Black and white print of six men and four women (unidentified) astride mules on a trail. One man sits on rocks beside the trail.
Black and white print of one man and three women (unidentified) on a trail.
Black and white mounted print with typescript annotation, "Dec 26, 1917, at the Grand Canyon of Ariz., on his honeymoon, Arthur "Cap" Taylor." Handwritten annotation, "San Diego, 1918."
