Tucson through the years

The Old Pueblo was founded in 1775, a year before the Declaration of Independence was signed two-thirds of a continent away, by Irishman Hugh O’Conor working in service to Spain. The presidio he established survived repeated Apache attacks, isolation, and Mexico’s takeover after it broke away from the Spanish Empire. If not for the Gadsden Purchase in 1854, Tucson would have remained in Mexico.

As of 2022, Tucson was Arizona’s second most populous city — for now, at least, it’s 546,674 vs. Mesa’s 512,498. But it has some of Arizona’s richest history. Let’s take a photographic tour (click for a larger image):

Mission San Xavier del Bac in 1915. It was founded just south of the future Tucson by Father Kino in 1700.

Barrio Libre, 17th and Kennedy streets in Tucson, circa 1890 (Library of Congress).

Another view of Barrio Libre (Library of Congress).

Many of Tucson’s historic barrios have been spruced up in recent years.

 

A street scene from the 1880s (Library of Congress).

The Cathedral of St. Augustine in horse-and-buggy days. The origin of the “hotel” lettering in unknown (Library of Congress).

The cathedral today after an extensive makeover beginning in 1968. It’s the “mother church” of the Roman Catholic diocese.

A commercial block at 400 W. Simpson St. circa 1890 (Library of Congress).

The abandoned officers quarters at Fort Lowell in 1940. The Army operated the post just north of Tucson from 1873 to 1891. Now it’s a museum (Library of Congress).

The police station on south Main Street in 1937. Tucson always was comfortable with its Hispanic heritage (Library of Congress).

The Central Fire Station a few years earlier (Library of Congress).

A postcard shows Congress Street looking east in the 1920s.

Another view from the 1950s.

Stone Avenue and Pennington downtown, with a dense, walkable streetscape.

This is a circa 1940 view of downtown.

The Hotel Congress, built in 1919 and still in business. The nearby Pioneer Hotel was the site of a lethal fire just before Christmas 1970, killing 29. The cause was arson and the 1929 Pioneer never recovered.

Throughout the Cold War, Tucson was ringed by Titan II intercontinental ballistic missiles, carrying America’s largest warheads. This made the Old Pueblo a “first strike target” for the Soviet Union. Now a silo is a museum south of the city.

The Tucson Rodeo Parade in 1961 (Library of Congress).

An overhead shot from the 1960s.

The Fox Theater has been restored.

The historic Pima County Courthouse downtown.

Tucson was an important division point on the Southern Pacific Railroad. Here’s the passenger depot in the 1920s.

The station has been expanded in this later postcard view.

In 1955, Tucsonans turned out to mark the 75th anniversary of the SP’s arrival from the east.

An SP passenger train stops at Tucson in the 1940s (Library of Congress).

A rare General Electric B-23 locomotive. SP bought only 15. At it’s height, Tucson boasted two SP rail yards, including one for the Pacific Fruit Express which hauled perishable cargo in refrigerated boxcars. PFE’s icing platform could handle 140 cars at a time. Tucson also had a major SP repair facility and roundhouse.

It’s 1970, one year before Amtrak, as Southern Pacific’s Sunset Limited stops in Tucson (Leo Caloia photo).

The El Paso & Southwestern depot, preserved in downtown Tucson. The EP&SW was built by Phelps Dodge to serve Douglas and Bisbee but sold to the SP, which operated passenger and freight service on the southern route for decades.

A street view of the Tucson depot today after another restoration. Into the 1960s, Tucson was served by 12 SP passenger trains a day. Today only Amtrak’s Sunset calls here.

The University of Arizona Old Main in 1938 (Frederick Nichols/Library of Congress).

The Tucson Festival of Books takes place on the UA campus every March.

Tucked away east of campus is the El Encanto neighborhood, including this 1938 house.

Davis-Monthan Air Force Base is the site of the “boneyard,” where airplanes are stored for reuse or spare parts. Bombers are cut in pieces so Russian satellites can see the United States is in compliance with arms-control treaties.

Although Tucson voted down light rail, it did restore the Fourth Avenue streetcar to a modern operation linking the UA campus with downtown.

Tucson looking toward the Santa Catalina Mountains to the north.

Tucson’s most famous star, Linda Ronstadt outside the family’s hardware store. Her brother served as police chief. 

And in 1976.

RELATED: A Phoenician’s take on Tucson.

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My book, A Brief History of Phoenix, is available to buy or order at your local independent bookstore, or from Amazon.

Read more Phoenix history in Rogue’s Phoenix 101 archive.