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THE ARRIVAL OF THE EUROPEANS
The earliest documented Spanish activity in southern Arizona is
the 1539 expedition headed by Fray Marcos de Niza, in search of
the fabled Seven Cities of Cibola. Their stay in Arizona was brief
and transitory, as they quickly passed into New Mexico and into
the history of that region. Coronado’s expedition, in 1540,
also likely passed through the southeastern portion of Arizona,
although the exact route is still a matter of considerable controversy.
Although the Spanish interacted with Puebloan populations in northern
Arizona during the latter half of the 16th century, it was not until
the 1690’s that the Spanish began to explore the southern
deserts systematically.
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| Map
showing contact period settlements and indigenous groups. »Enlarge
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When the Spanish entered southern Arizona, they encountered populations
living in numerous villages along the San Pedro and Santa Cruz rivers
The Sobaipuri were living along the San Pedro River and the inhabitants
of the Santa Cruz and Gila river valleys were called Pimas. All
spoke dialects of the Piman/O’odham language and their territory
came to be known as the Pimeria Alta in Spanish chronicles. Once
contacts were made, the Spanish military and clergy soon established
outposts to enforce their claim on the region. The most famous clergyman,
Father Kino, established a series of missions in northern Sonora
and southern Arizona beginning in 1687.
The presence of the Europeans and the introduction of Christianity
dramatically changed indigenous life ways. Spaniards introduced
livestock and new crops such as wheat, and inadvertently new diseases
that decimated many native communities. Many of the settlements
were re-organized around presidios (fortified encampments/towns)
and missions to further consolidate Spanish administrative control.
At the same time the natives sought to develop alliances with these
newcomers because they were increasingly threatened by raiding Apaches,
who had begun to push against the eastern boundary of the Pimeria
Alta shortly before the arrival of the Europeans. Thus both the
Pimans and the Spaniards saw advantages in forming alliances, although
these arrangements often led to tensions between them and periods
of unrest and revolt. Tensions also developed between the Spanish
civil authorities and missionaries over control of the native populations.
Many of the secular interests saw the indigenous people as a labor
source for the presidios, mines and ranches that were being developed
in the region. Growing discontent among the Piman-speaking populations
culminated in the Pima Revolt of 1751, when several missions in
the region were attacked and burned. Although the revolt was eventually
suppressed, it led to the establishment of the Presidio San Ignacio
de Tubac (Tubac, Arizona) in 1753.
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| The
ruins of the Santa Cruz de Terrenate presidio chapel »Enlarge
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In the 1770s, the intensity of Apache raiding increased. This led to
the founding of the Presidio Santa Cruz de Terrenate on the San Pedro
River in 1775, and to the abandonment of most of the Sobaipuri communities
in the San Pedro River valley. For the most part, these groups resettled
along the Santa Cruz River, particularly in the Tucson Basin. As part
of the realignment of the region at this time, the Tubac presidio moved
north, to become the Presidio San Agustin de Tucson, which was established
in 1776. Eventually, the Tubac presidio was re-established in 1787, and
the region enjoyed a period of relative calm that lasted until the era
of the Mexican Republic.
Next: Mexican Era
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