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
Both started out with a small amount of water – neither exactly have the Mississippi flowing past, but Phoenix had the Girls river, and Vegas had springs that provided enough water to sustain small settlements.
Those settlements didn’t really offer a huge amount on their own, but they do provide support and stopping points for travel routes and hubs for the industries nearby like silver mining in the Phoenix area.
Back in the day this left them fairly limited – no big employers to cause a population boom, pretty inhospitable weather, and limited resources.
Skip forwards to today and we now have the ability to bring in water over long distances to support them, air conditioning to make the heat livable (and enjoyable to many now that you can easily escape it when necessary), and industries like gambling, tech and other non-physical industries that have provided work.
Both started out with a small amount of water – neither exactly have the Mississippi flowing past, but Phoenix had the Girls river, and Vegas had springs that provided enough water to sustain small settlements.
Those settlements didn’t really offer a huge amount on their own, but they do provide support and stopping points for travel routes and hubs for the industries nearby like silver mining in the Phoenix area.
Back in the day this left them fairly limited – no big employers to cause a population boom, pretty inhospitable weather, and limited resources.
Skip forwards to today and we now have the ability to bring in water over long distances to support them, air conditioning to make the heat livable (and enjoyable to many now that you can easily escape it when necessary), and industries like gambling, tech and other non-physical industries that have provided work.
Sorry if this was stated already but some cities like Denver were settled because they were a convenient resting point before pioneers crossed the mountains to the west. Some ended up staying. It probably was a good business, selling provisions to the pioneers and repairing their wagons.
Sorry if this was stated already but some cities like Denver were settled because they were a convenient resting point before pioneers crossed the mountains to the west. Some ended up staying. It probably was a good business, selling provisions to the pioneers and repairing their wagons.
Sorry if this was stated already but some cities like Denver were settled because they were a convenient resting point before pioneers crossed the mountains to the west. Some ended up staying. It probably was a good business, selling provisions to the pioneers and repairing their wagons.
Better question… why did Los Angeles become as big as it is without any fresh water? Los Angeles is so arid that their need for water caused large lakes in the Mojave Desert to disappear due to the LA Aqueduct.
Better question… why did Los Angeles become as big as it is without any fresh water? Los Angeles is so arid that their need for water caused large lakes in the Mojave Desert to disappear due to the LA Aqueduct.
Better question… why did Los Angeles become as big as it is without any fresh water? Los Angeles is so arid that their need for water caused large lakes in the Mojave Desert to disappear due to the LA Aqueduct.
Vegas is essentially connected to the Colorado river, and had essentially unlimited water via the Hoover dam.
Phonix on the other hand was established at the fork of the Salt and Gila rivers. While they arent the size of the Mississippi or Colorado rivers, they provide access to drinking water for the city.
Both cities were founded because of the large areas available for agriculture. The problem now is that the over use of available water has led to the water demand surpassing the supply. Mostly from groundwater pumping which has led to the natural aquifers drying up, along with many smaller rivers.
Vegas is essentially connected to the Colorado river, and had essentially unlimited water via the Hoover dam.
Phonix on the other hand was established at the fork of the Salt and Gila rivers. While they arent the size of the Mississippi or Colorado rivers, they provide access to drinking water for the city.
Both cities were founded because of the large areas available for agriculture. The problem now is that the over use of available water has led to the water demand surpassing the supply. Mostly from groundwater pumping which has led to the natural aquifers drying up, along with many smaller rivers.
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