Why were settlements started in places like Vegas and Pheonix if they weren’t connected to a river that connected to the ocean like the Mississippi River for trade and had no viable farmland?

Question

Why were settlements started in places like Vegas and Pheonix if they weren’t connected to a river that connected to the ocean like the Mississippi River for trade and had no viable farmland?

In: 4650

Answer 1

The Salt River used to have water in it when Phoenix was established, Phoenix is at the site where the Salt and Gila rivers converged. It wasn’t until the Salt Project built a series of dams upriver that the Salt River ran dry all year round.

Tempe, a suburb of Phoenix, was established as Hayden’s Ferry, and was a ferry that operated on the Salt River at the same time.