The Florence tribune., 1899-11-04
THE CASA eRANDE VALLEY.
Information for Those Seeking Homes
 In the Garden spct of the West.

Piual county was organized in 1875 from | portions of Pima, MRricopa and 1aVapal counties, and contains an area of ,'sos squia;rS miles. or 8, ,520 acres, one-third CT whlcn could be made productive by systeha.ic storage Of the surplus water nov running 10 waste. Next to Maricopa 1t IS the mo nosH @ lall- portant agricultural county lnthe lerrltor,s. It it traVersed from east to west by the Southern Pacific railroad, and DrRncn or | 1he great Santa Fe system IS now approaehss ing from the north. The objective point of this road is connection with the sonora road, of the same system: the Southefh Pacific is also building in this dlrsetlon ron rom work will not cease until the Deer Sreeh 1 coal fields are reached and eonnectlon Is made with another branch of that roao run ming from Bowie to Globe and now compiet- ed to Fort Thomas. Thus it will be seen that plnal county IS the theater of railroad building at the pres sent time, and inside Of a year fioIehee' pno county seat will be
 RAILROAD CENTER.
 At present it contains population oI about 1900, but with the completion oi these two railroads and the Butte reservoir no city in Arizona can approach it Tor naeurai advantages, and a large increase in popuia- tion will follow. Florence is at an elevation of 1858 feet above sea level, situated near the Gila river, twenty-s miles northwest or tne railroad station of Casa Grande, with when 1t is connected by an elegantly equlppeo duily stage line. Going and coming stages run by the old Casa Grnnde ruins, ana passengers are allowed short time to ln- spect them. There are many handsome pri- vate residences in Florence, several Drick stores, good hotel an excellent graded school employing four teachers, churches, secret societies. a Commercial Club, news paper (the only one in the countyG and the handsomest court house in the Territory. Hero is held the United States Court for the district composed of Gila, Graham and Piaai counties. The streets are lined with shade trees, which impart an air of comfort on the warmest days
 PRODUCTS OF THE VALLEY.
 Unlike the Salt river, the waters of the sjlla are fresh and pure; the soil contains no adapted to the growth of the. prune, ohye, almond, peach, fig, peer, apricot and fruits of all kinds, which pay largely on the invest ment. It is also the natural home of alfalfa, which grows in the most prolific manner. Tke grape does exceptionally well ln this valley, and wine and raisin eulturesis destin- cd to become a prominent industry. Citrus fruits have been cultivated to Hmred extent; there are number of orange trees in the neighborhood of Florence which bear sheir golden fruit each year without pro lection, and few date palm trees are also In full bearing. The season is from six weeks to two months earller than Southern Cailtor- nie, which gives fruit growers an appreciat- ed ndyantage in
 THE EARLY MARKETS.
 Tl1e absence of fogs and nightly dews is a
  unsightly scale-bug. and the fruits of the valley are all bright and clean. All the agri- cultural products of temperate and semi tropic zones are easily grown here, the long seasons giving a succession of crops that double or treble the productive value of the land.
 Improved lands with government title and water right, can be bought for from SzO to $50 per acre, according to location and im- proyements. In the immediate neighbor- hood aud to the south of the Casa Grande ruins there are thousands Of acres covered with heavy growth of mesquite timber yet open to settlement. These are among the choicest in the valley. Water in mex hansti- ble quantity is found at depth of from twenty to thirty feet; in fact, river seems to be flowing underneath. Here is a spleH- did opportunity to take up and improve land with 6 pumping system of irrigation which is said to be successful on small tracts However. with the completion of the Butte reservoir, pumping will be thing of the past, and it is only mentioned here for the purpose of showing what can be done. and to magnify the further fact that what was once considered
 AN UNINHABITABLE DESERT
 is in truth the most productive land on the globe, and that there is water in abundance to bring every foot of it under cultivation, only waiting for the magic wand Of capital to develop it. There is no water-storage scheme on the Pacific coast that has one-hah the natural advantages and so few engineer
 
 nature has built the abutments in ever-liy- ing rock, and all that is left for man to do is to put in the headgate, the bluffs which form the gorge being only separated by paltry -220 feet. country is drained through this narrow canyon 20 miles square, representing 40,0c0 square miles, or larger than Maine and Massachusetts combined. The rainfall is suf- fcient to fill the reservoir twice year, and the land to be brought under cultivation is practically liTn;tless. This may read like fairy tale, but it is every word true, and has been verified time and again.
 CASA GRAEDE RESERVOIR.
 The reservoir of the Casa Grande Valley Canal company is the largest in the territory. It covers a surface of 1900 acres, with an aver age depth of I2 feet, and contains about eight thousand million gallons of water. It is sit- hated fifteen miles southwest of Florence. levee of earth has been thrown up across depression in the plain 14, 900 feet in length. 125 feet in width at the bottom and 9 feet in width at top, 2 to slope each side, and an average height of g feet. The waste is regu- lated by cast iron pipes feet in diameter, set in solid masonry, regulated by gates and tower. This reservoir cost Sl500OO. and sup plies water for 6.00O acres.
 Meteorological Statistics.
 The signal service of the general govern ment maintained a station at Florence from 1874 to 1882. The reports covering the period from July, 1880. to April 1882, gives the follow Ing statistics, which may be taken as a safe guide to the prevailing temperature given during the series of six yeas:
 1880. Mean. Max. Min.