Remember When

100 Moments in Scottsdale’s History

By Joan Fudala

Happy Centennial! With so many stories to tell about the past 100 years, where does one begin? How about a year-by-year list of tidbits about Scottsdale history? The following is just a sample of millions of memorable moments that generations of Scottsdalians have shared since Arizona achieved statehood on Feb. 14, 1912. Enjoy!

1912 > Statehood Feb. 14; First Baptist Church of Scottsdale established

1913 > Artist Jessie Benton Evans arrived; Scottsdale town site plotted

1914 > Johnny Rose opened pool hall at Brown & Main; AZ women finally got to vote

1915 > Scottsdale Farmers Improvement Association organized

1916 > U.S. Vice President Thomas Marshall built home here; DC/Browns Ranch established

1917 > Scottsdale PTA formed; local men fought in World War I

1918 > Major flu epidemic; Scottsdale Light & Power brought first electricity to Scottsdale

1919 > Mort Kimsey opened Scottsdale Service Co. gas station; Arcadia Water Co. formed

1920 > Jack Benny’s cousin Marshall opened Kubelsky’s store on Main Street

1921 > Farmers Bank opened on Main Street (now Rusty Spur); Women’s Club formed

1922 > Salt River Valley Water Users Association sponsored Yaqui immigration for Scottsdale canal work

1923 > First class graduated from Scottsdale High

1924 > Scottsdale United Methodist Church organized

1925 > E.G. “Scotty” Scott opened the town’s second blacksmith/repair shop

1926 > Jokake tea room and Adobe House guest ranch opened; Southern Pacific rail service began to Phoenix

1927 > U.S. Post Office, Brown’s General Store and the cotton gin were key Scottsdale gathering places

1928 > New Scottsdale Grammar School opened (now Scottsdale Artists School)

1929 > Phoenix Sky Harbor Airport dedicated; Heard Museum opened in Phoenix

1930 > Valley Super Service Station opened on Brown Avenue

1931 > Hamer’s Café opened on Main Street

1932 > First Phoenix Open (at Phoenix Country Club); Arizona repealed Prohibition

1933 > Farmers Bank closed due to Great Depression; Civilian Conservation Corps worked in Papago Park; Old Mission church built by Hispanic Catholic residents

1934 > Tempe-Scottsdale
Tribune published

1935 > American Legion Post #44 established in Scottsdale

1936 > Camelback Inn opened

1937 > El Chorro and Kiami Lodges and Taliesin West opened

1938 > WPA funded additions to Scottsdale Grammar and Scottsdale High schools

1939 > Desert Botanical Garden opened; CALAPCO (APS) acquired/upgraded Scottsdale Power & Light

1940 > 4-H Club organized a Scottsdale chapter

1941 > Artist Sandy Sanderson moved to Scottsdale; Malcolm White operated Whitey’s Café & Bar

1942 > Thunderbird II opened to train aviation cadets; rationing in effect in Scottsdale stores and gas stations

1943 > Anne and Fowler McCormick establish Arabian ranch; Scottsdale led nation in per capita war bond sales

1944 > Sixty German POWs escaped from the Papago Park POW camp; U.S. Sen. Ernest McFarland of Arizona authored the GI Bill

1945 > Brownmoor School for Girls opened in the former Ingleside Inn; Paradise Inn opened

1946 > Arizona Craft Center opened at Brown & Main; VFW organized a Scottsdale post; Maine Chance became Scottsdale’s first spa

1947 > Scottsdale Chamber of Commerce chartered; Russ Lyon Realty formed; Arizona State College opened trade school in former Thunderbird II facilities

1948 > Rural Fire founded; Scottsdale Progress began publication

1949 > Federal government installed power lines up to Pinnacle Peak; Scottsdale got natural gas service

1950 > Rancho Vista Bonita guest ranch opened at Pinnacle Peak & Pima

1951 > Scottsdale incorporated as town; first Sunshine Festival (became Parada Del Sol)

1952 > First zoning map drawn for Scottsdale

1953 > Seventh– day Adventists purchased Thunderbird II facilities; Sundown Ranch golf course opened (Starfire at Scottsdale Country Club)

1954 > Scottsdale Rotary Club established

1955 > Volunteers operated the Scottsdale Public Library in the old Adobe House

1956 > Arabian Horse Show moved to Scottsdale; Baltimore Orioles inaugurated new Scottsdale Stadium for spring training

1957 > Motorola built Scottsdale plant; Pinnacle Peak Patio opened

1958 > Reata Pass opened

1959 > Messinger Mortuary and Woolworth’s opened; Howdy Dudettes formed

1960 > First sales and property taxes levied in Scottsdale; Wild Bill’s opened (Handlebar J’s)

1961 > Scottsdale Charros formed; Scottsdale Fashion Square opened

1962 > City Hospital of Scottsdale opened (Scottsdale Healthcare); sign ordinance enacted; Soleri opened Cosanti

1963 > ZIP codes for Scottsdale (85257, 85251, 85258); George Tewksbury hired to develop Airpark

1964 > Prestige Cleaners opened

1965 > Saguaro High opened

1966 > Dick Van Dyke was grand marshal of Parada del Sol

1967 > Scottsdale Municipal Airport (SDL) opened

1968 > City Hall and Civic Center Library dedicated; Scottsdale Historical Society formed; Casa Precision became first Thunderbird Industrial Airpark tenant

1969 > PCS Health Systems founded (CVS/Caremark); Alamos Mexico became first Scottsdale Sister City

1970 > Scottsdale Community College moved to its new campus; Fountain Hills founded

1971 > First Barrett-Jackson Auto Auction; first Fiesta Bowl; McCormick Ranch became Scottsdale’s first master planned community

1972 > Chaparral High School opened

1973 > Efrem Zimbalist Jr. filmed “FBI” episode at Scottsdale Airport; STARS founded

1974 > City annexed land east to Fountain Hills; Sen. Barry Goldwater dedicated FAA tower at Scottsdale Airport

1975 > Scottsdale Center for the Arts opened; Pinnacle Peak General Store and McCormick Railroad Park opened

1976 > Armour Dial R&D facility opened in the Airpark

1977 > Scottsdale Airport Advisory Commission established; Scottsdale voters enacted a bed tax

1978 > First Scottsdale Culinary Festival held; “Hogan’s Heroes” Bob Crane founded murdered in Scottsdale apartment

1979 > Tourism slogan: “Scottsdale—A Vacation Place for All Seasons”

1980 > Gainey Ranch developed

1981 > Scottsdale Airpark News founded

1982 > City Cable 7 (11) went on the air; China Mist Tea founded; Scottsdale Airport runway extended

1983 > Inaugural Skins Game at new Desert Highland Golf Course (Palmer, Nicklaus, Watson, Player)

1984 > City annexed land north to Carefree and Tonto Forest; Scottsdale Memorial Hospital-North dedicated

1985 > Indian Bend Wash dedicated; Schumacher European and Thunderbird Suites opened in Airpark

1986 > Discount Tire moved headquarters to Airpark; TPC Scottsdale and Troon Country Club golf courses opened

1987 > Phoenix Open moved to TPC Scottsdale; “Raising Arizona” filmed in Scottsdale; Price Club opened in Airpark; Scottsdale Princess opened; Mayo Clinic

1988 > The Phoenician Resort opened; the Scottsdale Cultural Council was formed

1989 > Voters passed bond issue for new stadium, library expansion, parks and road improvements; new control tower built at Scottsdale Airport; Arabian Horse Show moved to WestWorld

1990 > McDowell Sonoran Land Trust (Conservancy) founded; FFCA opened first building at Perimeter Center

1991 > Residents and businesses participated in Scottsdale Visioning; first Celebration of Fine Art held

1992 > Scottsdale Stadium rebuilt; Scottsdale’s Boys and Girls Clubs merged

1993 > Scottsdale named “Most Livable City” by U.S. Conference of Mayors; CrackerJax opened

1994 > Grayhawk Golf Course opened; Frank Lloyd Wright Boulevard completed

1995 > Voters passed sales tax increase to fund purchase of the McDowells; the city of Scottsdale and Scottsdale Convention & Visitors Bureau established sites on World Wide Web

1996 > Scottsdale hosted many Super Bowl XXX events; photo radar begins in Scottsdale; first Starbucks opened in Scottsdale

1997 > City acquired WestWorld; Pacesetter (St. Jude Medical) opened in the Perimeter Center; Dial moved headquarters to the Airpark

1998 > Ice Den, Mayo Hospital, JDA Software and Casino Arizona opened

1999 > Scottsdale Marriott at McDowell Mountains, the Promenade and Four Seasons opened; art installed along Loop 101 Pima Freeway

2000 > Walmart and Sam’s Club opened in Airpark; Shops at Kierland Commons opened

2001 > Virginia G. Piper Cancer Center opened; patriotism flourishes in wake of 9/11

2002 > Notre Dame Preparatory High School opened

2003 > Kohl’s opened on Northsight

2004 > Frank Lloyd Wright spire erected at The Promenade

2005 > City brought fire service in-house; Wingate Inn and Hilton Garden Inn opened in the Airpark area

2006 > The CAP Sports Basin Complex opened

2007 > The Aquatic Center and stand-alone Arabian Library opened in McDowell Mountain Ranch; Scottsdale Healthcare Thompson Peak hospital opened

2008 > Henkel (formerly Dial) moved into new headquarters at Scottsdale Road and Loop 101

2009 > Scottsdale Quarter opened; many big box and independent retailers and restaurants in Scottsdale fell victim to the recession

2010 > Talking Stick Resort & Casino opened

2011 > Salt River Fields spring training baseball complex opened

Joan Fudala is a Scottsdale-based community historian and writer. More: jfudala@cox.net.