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
Las Vegas actually means The Meadows in Spanish. It wasn’t a barren desert when it was settled but rather grasslands fed by natural springs (the Las Vegas Springs).
Phoenix is similar. It sits along the Salt River and that river created a pretty fertile valley that supported agriculture.
So yes, while these cities are massive metropolises bc of aqueducts etc, the premise that they didn’t have water or vegetation when they were settled isn’t true.
Southern Arizona used to have running water. Rivers like the Gila provided water and habitat until large-scale irrigation dried them out. Cotton , citrus, and cattle are thirsty crops. The Hohokam lived in the PHX area for two thousand years and created 135 miles of irrigation canals. The Tucson area has also been continuously inhabited for thousands of years.
Las Vegas actually means The Meadows in Spanish. It wasn’t a barren desert when it was settled but rather grasslands fed by natural springs (the Las Vegas Springs).
Phoenix is similar. It sits along the Salt River and that river created a pretty fertile valley that supported agriculture.
So yes, while these cities are massive metropolises bc of aqueducts etc, the premise that they didn’t have water or vegetation when they were settled isn’t true.
Southern Arizona used to have running water. Rivers like the Gila provided water and habitat until large-scale irrigation dried them out. Cotton , citrus, and cattle are thirsty crops. The Hohokam lived in the PHX area for two thousand years and created 135 miles of irrigation canals. The Tucson area has also been continuously inhabited for thousands of years.
Phoenix has (or at least had, or occasionally has) rivers, and people have lived near them for thousands of years. Indigenous people in the Southwest and other parts of the Americas were quite skilled at irrigation techniques. Nothing like the Mississippi, but what is?
Phoenix also gets a lot more rain than you’d think, and hasn’t been as consistently hot as it is these days. It’s always been hot, yes, but not just global warming but the insane heat island the city creates is not necessarily the natural state of things. Drive from downtown Phoenix to another part of the valley that’s less urbanized, especially at night. You might be shocked at the temperature difference.
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.
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.
Vegas has a mound you can visit that shows how there was originally groundwater there (could still be) and that’s why people stayed there.
Phoenix has (or at least had, or occasionally has) rivers, and people have lived near them for thousands of years. Indigenous people in the Southwest and other parts of the Americas were quite skilled at irrigation techniques. Nothing like the Mississippi, but what is?
Phoenix also gets a lot more rain than you’d think, and hasn’t been as consistently hot as it is these days. It’s always been hot, yes, but not just global warming but the insane heat island the city creates is not necessarily the natural state of things. Drive from downtown Phoenix to another part of the valley that’s less urbanized, especially at night. You might be shocked at the temperature difference.
r/explainlikeimfive should really be renamed to “My original understanding of my question was wrong”.
99% of questions here have false premises. Just do a Google search before asking.
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