If you grew up watching television, “Mmm, Mmm, Good” probably makes you think of Campbell’s soup. “North America’s Hospitality Dish” probably doesn’t make you think of Kentucky Fried Chicken (now known as KFC). Company founder Harland Sanders, after all, was better at cooking than he was at writing slogans. But one slogan does bring to mind the franchise he created. And it rose spontaneously to the lips of a quick-thinking Arizona restaurant manager.
The Phoenix area's resort industry can trace some of its roots to the base of Camelback Mountain, just inside the grounds of The Phoenician in Scottsdale. That’s where a Pueblo Revival-style building, the last surviving piece of the Jokake Inn, has stood for nearly a century.
Running a family business has been in the Basha family’s blood for centuries. After emigrating from Lebanon, the family operated a store in New York before moving to the desert in the early 1900s. Despite several setbacks, including destructive fires, Najeeb and Najeeby Basha managed to grow their general-store business in Arizona. But it wasn’t until 1932, after Najeeb’s death, that the business took on the family name.
The Mill Avenue Bridge crosses Tempe Town Lake, connecting the lively bars and restaurants of Mill Avenue and student life of Arizona State University to the Marquee Theatre and Papago Park. During the day, the bridge is busy with car and foot traffic as Tempe residents and visitors cross over the water on business or for views of the area’s surrounding mountains. At night, the bridge’s string lights sparkle on the water and light the way for sunset-watchers and evening explorers.
Sage Memorial Hospital, in the Navajo Nation town of Ganado, has been a pioneering medical facility for nearly a century. It’s a place that made history, too — 90 years ago, it became the first accredited nursing school in the United States for American Indian women.
He came to Arizona in 1909, fresh from Yale University, where he'd earned a degree from the first forestry school in the United States. Like many young college graduates, Aldo Leopold expected to leave his mark on the world. And he did. Through his experiences and writings, Leopold became a leading voice against America's indifference to ecology.
Tourism. It's a multibillion-dollar industry in Arizona. But the state wasn't always just a destination for people looking for a sunny getaway. During the early 20th century, it was also a haven for people who suffered from tuberculosis.
Some well-heeled patients stayed at hospitals like Desert Sanatorium and The Desert Inn Sanatorium — a sort of precursor to the resorts that would eventually go up. Sadly, the majority of patients were poor, having spent what little they had to make the journey west. Penniless and sick, they were relegated to tent cities.
It's something we take for granted every time we food shop — piles of citrus fruit waiting to be plucked from produce departments. But there was a time when citrus was more than just supermarket flotsam. Citrus was king. It was the driving force behind the state's economy, and one of Arizona's Five C's, ranking right up there with cotton, copper, cattle and climate.
