Arizona innovation Transportation

Travel in the 1800s was very different than it is today Travel in the 1800s was very different than it is today. People did not have cars to make their daily commute. Without cars, how do you think they would get from one place to another?

Between 1800 and 1900, the way Americans moved around their world changed drastically. In 1800, the only practical way to travel and trade across long distances was along the nation’s natural waterways. As a result, settlement clung to the nation’s coasts and rivers. A few roads connected major cities, but travel on them was difficult and time consuming.

THE ROADS THROUGH ARIZONA Why did people come to Arizona?

We have discussed how many trappers and explorers came to Arizona and stayed…but most people did not originally come to Arizona on PURPOSE. Many were traveling through….trying to get to California for gold!

The Oregon Trail Distance: 3,000 miles Estimated Travel Time: 3 to 7 months Most of the people headed to Califronia in search of gold were from the midwest or the east traveled on the Oregon trail. 32,000 gold-seekers traveled through present day Nebraska, Wyoming, Idaho, and Nevada. Traveling on ship was costly so many traveled by wagons pulled by oxes or mules, but very few came by horse. Countless were afraid of native Americans attacking them, but it rarely happened. the most cause of death was by diseases and sicknesses. In the winter, the mountains of this area were difficult to cross and many froze to death. The Oregon Trail

Early Arizona “Highways” Most Americans came to Arizona simply because the trails of Southern Arizona provided a better way to get to California during the winter months. Flatter land….better weather!

The Gila Trail was one of the most used trails that brought people to southern Arizona. Towns such as Tucson and Tombstone, and eventually Phoenix were created because of this trail.

The Gila Trail and all early trails were full of traveling hazards The Gila Trail and all early trails were full of traveling hazards. Lack of water, Apache Indian raids, outlaws, flash floods, plants with thorns and animals that were poisonous, were all dangers that early, Arizona travelers faced.

Most Americans who first came to Arizona in the late 1800’s came to the territory by riding a horse or mule, riding in a wagon or simply walking. This trip usually took about four months!

The first wheeled wagon to come into Arizona was the two-wheeled “carreta” of the Spanish explorers. Since the Native Americans had not invented the wheel, this Spanish cart was a welcomed help for both the Spanish and Indian people

Between 1850-1870, it was the freight wagons that brought the supplies and goods to the soldiers and families living in the Arizona Territory.

Butterfield Stage Route

In 1857, John Butterfield won a $600,000 contract to deliver the St In 1857, John Butterfield won a $600,000 contract to deliver the St. Louis mail to San Francisco in 25 days. This contract, the largest for land mail service that had yet been given, was awarded to Butterfield's Overland Stage Company.

Stagecoaches of Early AZ THE CONCORD STAGE COACH This early means of transportation is an important part of the story of Arizona and the West. Many still exist.

Stagecoaches were built to carry passengers and mail from town to town in Territorial Arizona. With this new route, more mail and passengers could be brought to the Arizona Territory.

Perhaps the most famous of the stagecoaches were those of the Wells Fargo Stage lines. In 1857, Wells Fargo joined other express companies to form the Overland Mail Company, establishing regular twice-a-week mail service between St. Louis and San Francisco. Covering 2,500 miles of territory from California to Nebraska, Arizona to Idaho. Skilled drivers guided coaches pulled by teams of four or six horses, at an average speed of five miles per hour. There were stops every twelve miles to change horses, and about every forty-five miles to allow driver and passengers to eat a quick meal.

The first steamboat to operate on the Colorado River from Fort Yuma was named the Uncle Sam. These Arizona steamboats were very small compared to the steamboats of the Mississippi River.. They could travel up the river at a maximum speed of 15 miles per hour. Steamboats were used on the Colorado River for about 50 years. They eventually carried supplies as far north as Marble Canyon, site of today’s Hoover Dam. Around the same time, the invention of the steamboat made waterways easier to travel.

The Railroad Comes to the Arizona Territory In 1869, at Promontory, Utah, dignitaries hammered in a Golden Spike, which joined the rails of the Transcontinental Railroad — and ended Wells Fargo’s overland stageline. However, stagecoaches continued rolling wherever the railroads did not. Wells Fargo contracted with independent stageline operators to carry treasure boxes and express, even into the early 20th Century.

The Southern Pacific railroad stretched its steel ribbons across Arizona in the late 1870s, reaching Tucson in March, 1880. The rail station nearest Phoenix was 35 miles to the south at Maricopa. From the beginning, local citizens began clamoring for a railroad. With the purchase of a $3 ticket, same as the stagecoach fare, Arizonans could now make trips in relative comfort—a far cry from those leather-slung cradles on wheels called stage coaches.

Before the mid 1800’s the nation’s railroads were mostly on east connecting bigger cities. Many wanted a railroad to the Pacific but it wasn’t until the US won the land between Texas and Calfironia (Arizona is in the middle of that) did it happen. While some imagined a railroad to the Pacific, And then with the gold rush, even more people wanted to get to California. metal was found at Sutter’s Mill in Californa. In 1850 the Pacific Railroad was approved, authorizing a series of expeditions along potential railroad routes. By November, the expedition crossed into the territory that is now Arizona, reaching the San Francisco Peaks near present-day Flagstaff by Christmas. Eventually, the railroad connected Arizona to Califronia.

While trains were much more convient than stage coaches, railroads could only travel in places the tracks could be put down. Most towns were built along the rairlroad stations. But in 1907, the invention of the Ford’s model t car changed that. Now roads could be made for cars. One of the oldest and most famous roads followed the same path as the Pacific Railway. One of those roads is still in existence and can still be driven on. Have you heard of Route 66? Many toursists even today visit this famous road in Northern Arizona! (The movie cars is based on a small town on this road)