Portal:Arizona

Arizona
Arizona
State
	State of Arizona
	Flag Seal
	Location of Arizona in the United States
Website	az.gov

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Arizona is a landlocked state in the Southwestern United States, sharing the Four Corners region with Colorado, New Mexico, and Utah. It also borders Nevada to the northwest and California to the west, and shares an international border with the Mexican states of Sonora and Baja California to the south and southwest. Its capital and largest city is Phoenix, which is the most populous state capital and fifth-most populous city in the United States. Arizona is divided into 15 counties.

Arizona is the sixth-largest state by area and the 14th-most-populous of the 50 states. It is the 48th state and last of the contiguous states to be admitted to the Union, achieving statehood on February 14, 1912. Historically part of the territory of Alta California and Nuevo México in New Spain (Spanish Empire), it became part of independent Mexico in 1821. After being defeated in the Mexican–American War, Mexico ceded much of this territory to the United States in 1848, where the area became part of the New Mexico Territory. The southernmost portion of the state was acquired in 1853 through the Gadsden Purchase.

Southern Arizona is known for its desert climate, with extremely hot summers and mild winters. Northern Arizona features forests of pine, Douglas fir, and spruce trees; the Colorado Plateau; mountain ranges (such as the San Francisco Mountains); as well as large, deep canyons, with much more moderate summer temperatures and significant winter snowfalls. There are ski resorts in the areas of Flagstaff, Sunrise, and Tucson. In addition to the internationally known Grand Canyon National Park, which is one of the world's seven natural wonders, there are several national forests, national parks, and national monuments.

Arizona is home to a diverse population. About one-quarter of the state is made up of Indian reservations that serve as the home of 27 federally recognized Native American tribes, including the Navajo Nation, the largest in the state and the country, with more than 300,000 citizens. Since the 1980s, the proportion of Hispanics has grown significantly owing to migration from Mexico and Central America. A substantial portion of the population are followers of the Roman Catholic Church and the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Arizona's population and economy have grown dramatically since the 1950s because of inward migration, and the state is now a major hub of the Sun Belt. Many large companies, such as PetSmart and Circle K, have headquarters in the state, and Arizona is home to major universities, including the University of Arizona, Arizona State University, and Northern Arizona University. (Full article...)

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The Gird Block containing the Mining Exchange Building where the hearing was held.

The O.K. Corral hearing and aftermath was the direct result of the 30-second Gunfight at the O.K. Corral in Tombstone, Arizona Territory, on October 26, 1881. During that confrontation, Deputy U.S. Marshal and Tombstone Town Marshal Virgil Earp, Assistant Town Marshal Morgan Earp, and temporary deputy marshals Wyatt Earp and Doc Holliday shot and killed Billy Clanton, and Tom and Frank McLaury. Billy's brother Ike, who had repeatedly threatened to kill the Earps for some time, had been present at the gunfight but was unarmed and fled. As permitted by territory law, he filed murder charges against the Earps and Doc Holliday on October 30.

In an unusual preliminary hearing, Justice of the Peace Wells Spicer heard testimony from a large number of witnesses during the next 30 days. Friends of the Cowboys, most notably Cochise County Sheriff Johnny Behan, testified that the Cowboys had thrown up their hands or opened their coats and been shot in cold blood. Initially persuasive, his testimony motivated Spicer to jail Wyatt Earp and Doc Holliday who had been free on bond. Virgil and Morgan were recuperating from their wounds. Friends of the lawman and several key neutral witnesses then testified that the Cowboys had drawn their guns and that Virgil Earp had called out, "Hold, I don't want that!" or words to that effect. In a lengthy ruling, Spicer concluded there was no basis for a trial. Although he criticized Virgil Earp's use of Wyatt and Holliday as deputies, he concluded that no laws were broken by the lawmen. He said the evidence indicated that the Earps and Holliday acted within the law and that Holliday and Wyatt had been properly deputized by Virgil. He described Frank McLaury's insistence that he would not give up his weapons unless the marshal and his deputies also gave up their arms as a "proposition both monstrous and startling!" (Full article...)

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... that the Boundary Fire burned 17,788 acres (7,199 ha) of the Coconino and Kaibab National Forests in Arizona?
... that Arizona voters rejected a 2010 ballot measure by just 194 votes out of more than 1.5 million cast?
... that Arizona State athletic director Graham Rossini got his start as a student assistant, with duties including washing baseball uniforms?
... that the musical duo Braxe + Falcon formed a supergroup with the band Phoenix to make music about UFOs?
... that a 19th-century Chinese poem exploring gay and lesbian relationships is 1.8 million words long?
... that an Arizona TV station running a marathon of Star Trek caused a buying frenzy of blank videotapes in the local area?
... that the first art exhibition in the Trade Fair Palace after it was rebuilt from a fire was named Like a Phoenix?
... that Abraham Hamadeh lost one of the closest elections in Arizona history by 280 votes, and has filed multiple lawsuits challenging the results?

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Credit: Moondigger

A petrified log in Petrified Forest National Park, located in northeastern Arizona, US. The pieces of wood found in the park are mostly of the extinct species Araucarioxylon arizonicum. The logs were buried under volcanic ash, which was the source of the silica that helped to permineralize the buried logs, replacing wood with silica, colored with oxides of iron and manganese.

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...that Arizona SB1070, the state's new immigration enforcement law, has attracted national attention as the broadest and strictest anti-illegal immigration measure in decades within the United States?

...that Georgia O'Keeffe's first skull painting which is held by the Arizona State University Art Museum references the memento mori concept?

...that although the epicenter of the 1887 Sonora earthquake was in Mexico, it was the only historical earthquake to cause considerable damage in Arizona?

...that Monument Valley was once mined for uranium ore?

... that Arizona Territorial Chief Justice Edmund Francis Dunne was made a count by Pope Leo XIII?

... that members of the 15th Arizona Territorial Legislature used a glass eye and the services of a prostitute to ensure passage of the session's first act?

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WikiProjects

You are invited to participate in WikiProject Arizona, a WikiProject dedicated to developing and improving articles about Arizona.

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Kinsler with the Detroit Tigers in 2016

Ian Michael Kinsler (Hebrew: איאן קינסלר; born June 22, 1982) is an American-Israeli former professional baseball player. He was a second baseman in Major League Baseball (MLB) for 14 seasons for the Texas Rangers, Detroit Tigers, Los Angeles Angels, Boston Red Sox, and San Diego Padres. Kinsler was a four-time All Star, two-time Gold Glove winner, and a member of the 2018 World Series champion Boston Red Sox.

Despite having been drafted in the 17th round of the 2000 MLB draft out of college, Kinsler rose to become a four-time All-Star and a member of the Sporting News 2009 list of the 50 greatest current players in baseball. He was known as a five-tool player. ('Full article...)

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The following are images from various Arizona-related articles on Wikipedia.

Image 1Hourly re-enactment for tourists of the Gunfight at the O.K. Corral (from History of Arizona)
Image 2San Rafael Valley (from Geography of Arizona)
Image 3Water delivered by the Central Arizona Project's canal. (from History of Arizona)
Image 4Upper Salt River (Arizona) with the Sierra Ancha in the background. (from Geography of Arizona)
Image 5A map showing the extent of the Ancestral Puebloan, Hohokam, and Mogollon cultures within the American Southwest and Northern Mexico, all three of which were based in what is now Arizona and/or New Mexico in around 1350 CE (from History of Arizona)
Image 6The Great House at the Casa Grande Ruins National Monument (from History of Arizona)
Image 7Connor Hotel in Jerome (from History of Arizona)
Image 8The location of Arizona in the United States (from Geography of Arizona)
Image 9Sinagua cliff dwelling (Montezuma Castle), Arizona, built in around 1100 CE (from History of Arizona)
Image 10Humphreys Peak seen on its western side from U.S. Route 180, with Agassiz Peak in the background (from Geography of Arizona)
Image 11Grand Canyon South Rim at Sunset. (from Geography of Arizona)
Image 12Hohokam pottery from Casa Grande (from History of Arizona)
Image 13The Sonoran Desert 35 miles (56 km) west of Maricopa, Arizona (from Geography of Arizona)
Image 14Riparian forest along upper Oak Creek Canyon (from Geography of Arizona)
Image 15Horseshoe Bend (Arizona) (from Geography of Arizona)
Image 161903 editorial cartoon by Bob Satterfield, depicting Arizona and New Mexico as crazed gunfighters intent on gaining access to the "E pluribus unum tavern". (from History of Arizona)
Image 17Petrified Forest National Park (from Geography of Arizona)
Image 18Arizona municipalities (from Geography of Arizona)
Image 19Arizona's average rainfall (from Geography of Arizona)
Image 20Arizona Territory in 1866 (from History of Arizona)
Image 21Köppen climate types of Arizona, using 1991–2020 climate normals. (from Geography of Arizona)
Image 22White Mountains (Arizona) (from Geography of Arizona)
Image 23Verde River (from Geography of Arizona)
Image 24The Gadsden Purchase (shown with present-day state boundaries and cities) (from History of Arizona)
Image 25Big Lake (Arizona) (from Geography of Arizona)
Image 26The luxury Harvey House hotel opened in 1905 overlooking the South Rim of the Grand Canyon; it remains in operation as the El Tovar Hotel. (from History of Arizona)
Image 27Pinyon-juniper woodland near Heber-Overgaard, Arizona. (from Geography of Arizona)
Image 28Inspiration Copper Company smelter at Miami, Arizona, c. 1915 (from History of Arizona)
Image 29Major airfields in Arizona during World War II. (from History of Arizona)
Image 30Keet Seel cliff dwellings (from History of Arizona)
Image 31Signing of Arizona statehood bill in 1912 (from History of Arizona)
Image 32Fort Defiance, painted 1873 by Seth Eastman (from History of Arizona)
Image 331898 map of the Arizona Territory (from History of Arizona)
Image 34Chiricahua National Monument (from Geography of Arizona)
Image 35Mormon Lake (from Geography of Arizona)
Image 36This ornate grain basket by Akimel O'odham dates from the early 20th century, showing the Native American dimension to the state's culture (from History of Arizona)
Image 37San Francisco Peaks (from Geography of Arizona)
Image 38Panorama of Kinishba Ruins, an ancient Mogollon great house. The Kinishba Ruins are one building that has over 600 rooms. (from History of Arizona)

Arizona news

August 31, 2026 – 2026 Grand Canyon flood: The death toll from the flash flood in Grand Canyon National Park, Arizona, United States, last Saturday rises to two, while the number of people missing falls from more than 20 to one after park rangers locate most of those previously unaccounted for. (AFP via France 24)
August 30, 2026 – 2026 Grand Canyon flood: The body of one man is found near the Colorado River while 15 other people remain missing after a flash flood at Bright Angel Creek in the Grand Canyon in Arizona, United States. (Euronews)
August 29, 2026 – 2026 Grand Canyon flood: A flash flood in the Grand Canyon National Park in Arizona, United States, leaves about 15 people missing and prompts the evacuation of at least 62 others. (AFP via France 24)

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State facts

Nickname: The Grand Canyon State
Capital and largest city: Phoenix
Governor: Katie Hobbs (D)
Total area: 295,254 km² (113,998 sq mi)
Population (2020): 7,151,502
Date admitted to the Union: February 14, 1912
Senators: Kyrsten Sinema (I), Mark Kelly (D)
Representatives: Tom O'Halleran (D), Ann Kirkpatrick (D), Raúl Grijalva (D), Paul Gosar (R), Andy Biggs (R), David Schweikert (R), Ruben Gallego (D), Debbie Lesko (R), Greg Stanton (D)

State symbols:

Animal: Ring-tailed Cat
Bird: Cactus wren
Butterfly: Two-tailed Swallowtail
Colors: Federal Blue and old gold
Firearm: The Colt Single-Action Army Revolver
Fish: Apache trout
Flower: Saguaro blossom
Fossil: Araucarioxylon arizonicum
Gem: Turquoise
Neckwear: Bolo tie
Reptile: Arizona ridge-nosed rattlesnake
Songs: "Arizona March Song", "Arizona"
Tree: Blue Palo Verde

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This is a list of recognized content, updated weekly by JL-Bot (talk · contribs) (typically on Saturdays). There is no need to edit the list yourself. If an article is missing from the list, make sure it is tagged or categorized (e.g. Category:WikiProject Arizona articles) correctly and wait for the next update. See WP:RECOG for configuration options.