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The Epic Interactive Encyclopedia 1998
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Epic Interactive Encyclopedia, The - 1998 Edition (1998)(Epic Marketing).iso
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Arizona
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1992-09-02
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48 lines
state in southwestern US; nickname Grand
Canyon State area 294,100 sq km/113,500 sq mi
capital Phoenix towns and cities Tucson,
Scottsdale, Tempe, Mesa, Glendale, Flagstaff
physical Colorado Plateau in the N and E,
desert basins and mountains in the S and W,
Colorado River, Grand Canyon features Grand
Canyon National Park (the multicolored-rock
gorge through which the Colorado River flows,
6-29 km/4-18 mi wide, up to 1.7 km/1.1 mi
deep, and 350 km/217 mi long); Organ Pipe
Cactus National Monument Park; deserts:
Painted (including the Petrified Forest of
fossil trees), Gila, Sonoran; dams:
Roosevelt, Hoover; old London Bridge
(transported 1971 to the tourist resort of
Lake Havasu City).
industries cotton under irrigation,
livestock, copper, molybdenum, silver,
electronics, aircraft population (1990)
3,665,000; including 4.5% American Indians
(Navaho, Hopi, Apache), who by treaty own 25%
of the state famous people Cochise, Wyatt
Earp, Geronimo, Barry Goldwater, Zane Grey,
Percival Lowell, Frank Lloyd Wright history
part of New Spain 1752; part of Mexico 1824;
passed to the US after the Mexican War 1848;
territory 1863; statehood achieved 1912.
Arizona is believed to derive its name from
the Spanish arida-zona (`dry belt`). The
first Spaniard to visit Arizona was the
Franciscan Marcos de Niza 1539. After 1863 it
developed rapidly as a result of the gold
rush in neighboring California. Irrigation
has been carried out on a colossal scale
since the 1920s. The Roosevelt Dam on Salt
River, and Hoover Dam on the Colorado River
between Arizona and Nevada, provide the state
with both hydroelectric power and irrigation
water. At the end of the 19th century, rich
copper deposits were found in Arizona and
subsequently deposits of many other minerals.
The post-World War II era has seen a heavy
influx of retired people and a great increase
in tourism. The manufacture of electronic
equipment has added considerably to the
growth of the state economy.