Located 35 miles southwest of Phoenix, near the Gila River Indian Reservation, Americans first began arriving in Maricopa more than 150 years ago. First known as Maricopa Wells, then as Maricopaville, this early crossroads town connected Phoenix and Yuma/Tucson via the Southern Pacific Railroad. Here, the first ?mini-mall? was established that included a general store, saloon, hotel, and blacksmith shop, where many weary travelers stopped for refuge.

As a result of the visitor influx of the late 19th century gold rush, some 60,000 gold hunters passed through Maricopa; however, because of political strife and a bit of bad luck, the town almost completely disappeared. Consequently, in 1886 the ?ville? was dropped from the town name, establishing Maricopa at the convergence point of the Gila and Santa Cruz rivers.

By the 1940s, it became well known that the soils of Maricopa were fertile