Phoenix Relocation Guide

SANTA CRUZ COUNTY

Sonoita & Elgin, were founded in 1882 as the result of the emergence of the Santa Fe Railroad between Benson and Nogales. The area is sometimes called “Arizona’s Wine country,” with a reputation of having the best wines outside of France. Nogales City of Nogales: 520-287-6571 www.cityofnogales.net Nogales Chamber of Commerce: 520-287-3685 www.thenogaleschamber.org

Indians, Spanish missionaries, prospectors, ranchers and soldiers. Today, Nogales and its sister city in Mexico join together in an effort to boost the dual economies of both cities. Rio Rico is a 39,830-acre luxury resort community founded in 1969 on land that was originally a land grant from Spain. Surrounded by mountains, Sonoran land- scapes and pleasant year round weather, this community has become a haven for both residents and visitors. Tubac, like Nogales, was first inhabited by Indian nations, the Hohokam in 300 AD and the Tohono O’odham in the 1500’s. When the mining industry faded, Tubac diversified its economy by encouraging artistic communities and launching a heri- tage preservation effort, earning the motto, “Where Art and History Meet.” Patagonia, with its higher elevation and abundance of rainfall, has become one of the most profitable cattle ranching areas in the southwest. The area is very popular with bird watchers, with many visitors stopping by to see more than 200 species of rare and exotic birds during their annual migration from Mexico.

Bordering Mexico in South Central Arizona, Santa Cruz County serves as an important North America port of entry from Nogales, Mexico. Although it is the smallest county in Arizona, its cultural diversity makes it one of the most interesting areas of the state in which to live in and visit. The area offers artist colonies, historical monuments and the twin border towns of Nogales, Arizona and Nogales, Mexico. Arizona’s growing wine country is centered around the Sonoita and Elgin area. The abundance of water from the Santa Cruz River, Harshaw Creek and Sonoita Creek has always attracted settlers, begin- ning with the Hohokam, who established their agricultural communities here. In the 1600s the Spanish came to the region with the intention of establishing missions to spread the Catholic faith, while teaching farming techniques and mapping the territory for Spain. In 1853, the Gadsden Purchase made the area a territory of the United States. In 1899, Santa Cruz County was established and named after the Santa Cruz River. Nogales, founded in 1880, is the established business center of Santa Cruz County. Early settlers included the Hohokam and Pima

For several thousand years, Nogales Pass was used by the Hohokam Indians as migra- tion and trade routes on the way to the Gulf of California. The Pima Indians, believed to be descendents of the Hohokam, settled in the Santa Cruz River Valley area after 1500.

“In the summer months many Tucson and Phoenix residents escape to Rio Rico to

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