Interesting Facts about Arizona

The bed of the Colorado River at the Grand Canyon lies at about the same level as it did millions of years ago. The canyon was formed as the ground continued to rise, and the river continued to carve through it as the force of the water and the sand and boulders cut away at the rising land.

The great dome of the White Dove of the Desert mission was formed over a lofty mound of earth, piled up by the Indian converts. Learning that many coins had been buried in the earth beneath the dome, the eager Indians cleared away the entire earthen form to dig up those "riches."

Arizona humorist Dick Wick Hall was noted for his tall tales about the state. According to one of his stories, potatoes were really planted so that when onions were scratched the potatoes' eyes would water and irrigate the whole garden.

Because Arizona's conditions seemed ideal for it, Edward F. Beale brought in camels, which were actually used for a time, but camel transport proved impractical. After the animals were abandoned, "wild" camels remained for years, frightening travelers and their horses.

Famed Mission San Xavier at Tucson features a carving of a cat. On the opposite side of the mission is the carving of a mouse. According to Indian legend, the world will end when that cat catches the mouse.

Based on the legend of the phoenix bird, which is burned by fire every 500 years and then rises from its ashes, the new town that rose on the "ashes" of the prehistoric Hohokam settlement was named Phoenix.

By: Carpenter, Allan, Provorse, Carl, World Almanac of the U.S.A., 1996