Peoria, AZ
"The City of Peoria began as a small farming community near
Phoenix in the
1880s. William J. Murphy’s vision of fertile farm lands fed by water from the
Salt River became reality with the completion of the
Arizona Canal in
1885. Once this canal was completed, Murphy travelled east to interest people in settling in this new community. He was successful in catching people’s attention – over 5,000 acres (20 km²) of land in the new district was purchased by citizens from
Peoria, Illinois. Four families from Peoria, Illinois were among the first to move to Arizona to occupy and work their land. The founders decided to name the new area Peoria to bring a sense of home to this unfamiliar area.
Residences in the new community quickly sprang up, and by
1888, the population of the town was 27. A school and Post Office were established by
1889. More people followed the original families and Peoria continued to grow as a farming community. The farmlands were fertile and the people made a good living, despite having to battle swarms of red ants and the occasional rattlesnake in the kitchen.
By
1910, the city's population was 300, and by
1920, the population had reached 2,370. The population did not grow too much until the
1990s, and in
1998 it had reached 87,048 and in
1999 was 101,235.
Peoria was incorporated as a city in
1954, with boundaries covering one square mile (2.6 km²) of land. The warm climate and small-town atmosphere of Peoria continued to attract people, and still do today."