The Florence tribune., 1900-02-03
THE CASA eRAN0E VALLEY.
Information for Those Seeking Homes In the Garden Spot Of the West.


 Pinal county was organized in 1875 from portions of Pima, Marieopa and Yayapai counties, and contains an area of ], ,S68 8Square miles, or 3, ,4S5, ,526 acres, oue-third ot which could be made productive by a systematic storage Cf the surplus water now running to waste. Next to Maricopa it is the most im- portant agricultural county in the Territory 1t 1t traversed from east to west by the Southern Pacific railroad and branch ot the great santa Fe system Is now approach Ing from the north. The objective point Of this road Is a connection with the sonora road, of the same system. The Southern Pacific Is also building in this direction from Tempe, and it is confidently believed that work will not cease until the Deer Creek coal fields are reached and connection is made with another branch of that road run ming from Bowie to Globe and now complet- ed to Fort Thomas. Thus it will be seen that Pinal county is the theater of railroad building at the pres ent time, and inside of a year Florence the county seat, will be
 RAILROAD CENTER.
 At present it contains a population of about 1900, but with the completion of these two railroads and the Butte reservoir no city in Arizona can approach it for natural advantages, and a large increase in popula- tion will follow. Florence is at an elevation of 1858 feet above sea level, situated near the Gila river, twenty six miles northwest of the railroad station of Casa Grande, with which
 
 daily stage line. Going and coming stages run by the old Casa Grande ruins, and passengers are allowed short time to in spect them. There are many handsome pri- vate residences in Florence, several brick stores, good hotel, an excellent graded school employing four teachers, churches, secret societies, Commercial Cup a news. vh paper (the only one in the countyl. and the handsomest court house in the Territory. Here is held the United States Court for the district composed of Gila, Graham and Plraal lafan nffn ha str asn shade trees, which impart an air of comfort on the warmest days.
 PRODUCTS OF THE VALLEY.
 Unlike the Salt river, the waters of the 3Ila are fresh and pure; the soil contains no Alkali, Is deep, rich gray ash, especially adapted to the growth of the prune; oige, almond, peach, fig, pear, apricot and Irults of all kinds, which pay largely on the invest ment. It is also the natural home Of alfalfa which grows in the most prollnc manner. The grape does exceptionally well Tn this valley, and wine and raisin culture IS destin- cd to become a prominent industry. Citrus fruits have been cultivated to limited extent; there are number of orange trees In the neighborhood of Florence which bear their golden fruit each year without pro tection. and a few date palm trees are also in full bearing: The season Is from SIX weeks to two months earher than Southern Cailtor- nia. which gives fruit growers an appreciat- cd advantage in
 THE EARLY MARKETS.
 The absence of fogs and nightly dews is a formidable obstacle to the destructive and 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 ot the land.
 PRICES OF LAND.
 Improved lands with government title and water right, can be bought for from S20 to $50 per acre, according to location and inn hood and to the south of the Casa Grande ruins there are thousands of acres covered with a heavy growth of mesquite timber yet open to settlement. These are among the choicest in the valley. Water i'll mex xhaustl- ble quantity is found at depth of from twenty to thirty feet; in fact a river seems to be flowing underneath. Here is splen- did opportunity to take up and improve land with a pumping system of irrigation, which is said to be successful on small tracts. However with the completion of the Butte reservoir pumping will be a thing of the past, and 1t 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 UNISHABITABLE 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,
 
 to develop it. There is no water-storage scheme on the Pacific coast that has one-half the natural advantages and so few engineer Ing difficulties the Butte reservoir. Here nature has built the abutments in ever-liv- 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. A country is drained through this narrow canyon 20O miles square, representing 10000 square miles, larger than Maine and Massachusetts combined. The rainfall is suf- ficient to fill the reservoir twice year, and the land to be brought under cultivation is practically limitless. This may read like a fairy tale, but it is every word true, and has been verified time and again.
 CASA GRAEDE RESERVOIR.
 The reservoir of tine Casa Grande Valley Canal company is the largest in the territory. It covers a surface of 1890 acres, with an aver nge depth of F feet, and contains about eight thousand million gallons of water. It is sit uated fifteen miles southwest of Florence. A levee of earth has been thrown up across a depression in the plain Il, 600 feet in length, 125 feet in width at the bottom and g feet in width at top, to l slope on each side, and an average height of 25 feet. The waste is regu- lated by 3 cast iron pipes feet in diameter, set in solid masonry, regulated by gates and tower. This reservoir cost SlJ0,0OO, and sup plies water for 5000 acres.
 Meteorological Statistics.