Welcome To The Tri-state Area History

The history of the tri-state area of Arizona, Nevada, and California is defined by the Colorado River and the cultures that have depended on it for millennia. The region's story unfolds from Native American settlements to the arrival of Spanish and American explorers, the establishment of military posts, and the eventual development of modern cities and tourism hubs.

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Pre-colonial History

For thousands of years, the Colorado River sustained Native American peoples in the arid landscape. Petroglyphs found near present-day Laughlin, Nevada, suggest human habitation in the area dating back 3,000–4,000 years.

  • Ancestral Puebloans: Ancient Puebloan peoples inhabited the Arizona Strip north of the Grand Canyon until prolonged drought caused their culture to fade around 1250 AD. Their sophisticated agricultural and crafting techniques were well-suited to the area.
  • Mojave people: Also known as the Pipa Aha Macav ("the people by the river"), the Mojave lived in the river's floodplains from Black Canyon to the Picacho Mountains. Their society was agrarian, and they used the annual floods to irrigate crops like corn, beans, and pumpkins. They were also known as long-distance runners and traders
  • Chemehuevi people: As a branch of the Southern Paiute, the Chemehuevi were traditionally nomadic hunter-gatherers who lived in the Mojave Desert and along the Colorado River. They were highly skilled weavers of baskets and adapted their hunting and foraging to the desert's resources
The arrival of Europeans and Americans

The first Europeans came to the region in the 17th and 18th centuries, but initial encounters were limited. The arrival of American trappers and settlers in the 19th century had a profound and often tragic effect on the native populations.

  • Early expeditions: Spanish explorer Don Juan Onate first passed through Mojave territory in 1604, but it was Franciscan missionary Francisco Garcés who made the first extensive contact in 1775. He estimated the Mojave population at around 3,000 people
  • Conflict and conquest: Violence between Native Americans and American newcomers escalated in the mid-19th century. In 1859, following attacks on a wagon train, the U.S. military forcibly occupied Mojave land, leading to the establishment of Fort Mohave.
  • Territorial acquisition: After the Mexican-American War (1846–1848), the U.S. acquired the vast territory that includes present-day Arizona, California, and Nevada via the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo. The discovery of gold in California soon after fueled a massive westward migration
American settlement and development

The late 19th and 20th centuries saw the expansion of American interests and the development of transportation and infrastructure projects.

  • Fort Mohave: The fort served as a military post until 1890, when it was converted into a Native American boarding school, designed to forcibly assimilate local children. It was later transferred to the Fort Mojave Indian Reservation.
  • Hardyville and steamboats: William Harrison Hardy established Hardyville, a steamboat landing and ferry service, in 1864 at the site of modern-day Bullhead City, Arizona. Steamboats operated on the Colorado River from 1852 until 1916
  • Railroads and Route 66: The railroad reached the area in the 1880s, establishing the town of Needles, California, as a crucial railroad stop. With the rise of the automobile, Needles became a key stop on the famed Route 66
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