Phoenix... City in the Sun in Quotes

City in the Sun in Quotes

"No country that I have yet visited presents so many striking anomalies as Arizona. Mines without miners and forts without soldiers are common. Politicians without policy, traders without trade, store-keepers without stores, teamsters without teams, and all without means, form the mass of the white population." From "A Tour Through Arizona" by J. Ross Browne, published in 1864.

"We regard it (the Salt River Valley) as one of the spots where the Saints will, sooner or later, gather to build up Zion From a letter from Brigham Young to a member of a Mormon expedition to Arizona in 1877.

"... The climate is one of the most delightful in the world and until a few years ago, one of the most healthy, too, but lately the people have been troubled with fevers, which nobody seems to know the cause... I don't believe these fevers are naturally in the country, but are caused by the people not taking proper care of themselves." From a report to the Desert News of Salt Lake City by a member of a Mormon ex-pedition to the Phoenix area in 1876.

"Maricopa county was organized February 14, 1871 Phoenix was named the county seat. There was really not much of a town at that time... - From "History of Arizona" by Richard E. Sloan and Ward R. Adams.

"Our county is blessed beyond any part of Arizona." - From the Salt River Herald in 1878.

"Here (in Phoenix) we have already a prosperous agricultural community which must grow rapidly." - Historian Hubert Howe Bancroft in 1889.

CONTEMPORARY

"Sunniest city in the U.S.A." - Holiday.

"Phoenix has the sun in the morning and the moon at night. And it's oh, so easy to love!" - Dorothy Kilgallen in Good Housekeeping.

"The real key to living in Phoenix is excitement. Partly it's the excitement of a growth town. Life is suddenly filled with activity and purpose." - Business Week.

"Phoenix is Palm Beach, Red Gap and Mr. Babbitt's Zenith all rolled into one." Saturday Evening Post.

"One of the spiffiest motor-court sections in the country." Saturday Review.

"From California's southern coastal ranges inland 375 miles to the central Arizona cities of Phoenix and Tucson, the searing desert, long a shunned part of the U.S.'s land surface, is filling up. Today thousands of pioneers are moving in, claiming a brand new empire in which to build new homes, farms, businesses and a whole new way of life." Time.

"The cleanest city I saw in America was Phoenix, Arizona." John Gunther in "Inside U.S.A."

"Greater Phoenix is the center of one of the most remarkable housing booms in the nation." - The Mortgage Banker.

"Phoenix is the driest, sunniest, clearest resort area in the United States." U. S. Weather Bureau.

"A Phoenix real-estate man tells this not-so-tall tale: His mother-in-law in New York, hearing of the (real estate) boom, asked him to invest a little money for her. Accordingly, he bought a piece of land for $4,000, paying $1,000 down. By the time her check arrived, he had sold the property for a $5,000 profit. He sent her $1,000 check back and invested the surplus for her in more real estate, naturally." - Coronet.

"The dominant characteristic of the city, since the beginning of World War II, has been its whopping, headlong growth." From Arizona: A Guide to Easier Living" by Joseph Stocker.

"I hear talk that Phoenix will hit half a million by 1960. We certainly seem to be heading in that direction. We have annexation problems, sewer problems and wouldn't you know it? traffic problems. Why, you'll see so many cars out and about on any moon-soaked, star-soaked, orange-blossom-fragrant evening that you'll think we're about to catch up with (perish forbid) Los Angeles!" - New Frontiers, magazine of the Garrett Corporation.

"The Southwest's city of surprises." - Travel.

"Phoenix is a quiet, clean city sitting amid vast acres of cotton, lettuce, dates and oranges that are wrought by irrigation from the desert of the Southwest." United Nations World.

"In the valley where we live, man has built an incredible oasis. Nowhere has he shown greater ingenuity in changing the face of nature and charting himself a better way of life." Oren Arnold in "Sun in Your Eyes."

"The city has all the problems of a full-fledged metropolis, including downtown parking problems and traffic jams and a smog threat serious enough to cause the formation of an anti-smog committee." - Newsweek.

"The gold spot of America." Roger W. Babson.

"Phoenix, a glowing green oasis in the 'Valley of the Sun,' is much more than a top tourist attraction. It is a bustling center of new electronic industry... of mammoth new irrigation proj-ects, a mushrooming population, new schools, heightened in-terest and opportunity in music and art. Sunny Phoenix, is an enterprising city that is going places fast." Life.

CLIMATE OF PHOENIX

Warmer than Rome in February-“Paris in the Spring” weather in March-Novembers clear and sharp, such as travelers seek in fabled Mexico City with its floating gardens and 7,000-foot elevation. Yes, this in part describes the climate of Phoenix and the Salt River Valley-set like a jewel with its checkerboard patterns of wide fields, soaring mountains and multi-colored verdant desert framing this city which arose from the ashes of a long forgotten race. Located close to the center of an oval shaped nearly flat valley, we find Phoenix on the banks of the Salt River whose impounded waters behind dams high in the mountains to the north and east make possible this garden in the desert. Sunshine in this 1100 foot high valley ranges up to 85 percent of the possible amount for the year. In this favored corner of the United States more hours of sunshine are recorded than in any other section of the nation. While winter storms rage over much of the nation, the Salt River Valley, on the average, experiences only six or seven cloudy days per month with bright turquoise colored skies covering this “big country” the remainder of the time. The warm sun brings average daily high temperatures from December through February into the 65 to 70 degree bracket. The air is crisp and dry during this season so that sharp cooling trends are common after the sun sinks in the west. It is well to have a wrap close by as night temperatures are as much as 25 to 30 degrees cooler than afternoon temperatures.

Snows are indeed rare in this oasis of the Arizona desert. Since 1900 only five days are recorded with measurable snowfall in Phoenix. Truly an event, long remem-bered, was the day when one inch of snow fell. During the night of January 20-21 in 1937 a dry fluffy snow brought forth an ecstatic reportorial spree which demonstrates the novelty of snow in Phoenix. The Friday morning ARIZONA REPUBLIC, following this unprecedented snow carried forth in these terms: “What? Snow in Phoenix? Why, it surely can't be, many a Phoenician told himself as he peered out at a white-mantled city upon awakening. But it was only too true, and thousands celebrated joyously during the morning hours before the snow melted under a warm sun. Snow blanketed the top of South Mountain and cacti and other desert growth was bedecked in 'white-caps.' Many automobiles driven into the business district carried an inch or more of snow on their tops and fenders. Striking scenes were the green citrus groves of the valley with bright colored oranges and grapefruit decorated with garlands of white.” So we can see what an event a rare snowfall really is in the sun drenched valley where maximum temperatures in December have climbed to 88 degrees while January has seen readings as high as 85 and February up to 92 degrees in the shade. With an annual rainfall of only 7.16 inches Phoenix is drier than Alexandria, Egypt, where 7.95 inches normally occurs in a year. Baghdad comes closer to Phoenix in yearly rainfall as the ancient city of fables, genii and tales of flying rugs totals 7.08 inches annually. Unlike Alexandria and Baghdad though, Phoenix enjoys two seasons of rainfall, such as it is, while the Egyptian and Persian cities have only a winter rainy season.