State 48 (That's us)

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State 48 (That's us)

Overview

• The road to statehood for Arizona may have been long and arduous, but it almost didn’t happen at all.
• Each stage in history—from the Mexican-American War to the Gadsden Purchase—brought Arizona closer to its destiny of becoming the 48th state of the Union.

latitude 33 degrees 45 minutes. It would include everything between the Texas border through southern New Mexico. The western boundary would be defined by the Colorado River. Unfortunately, Congress never passed the bill, and the borders would remain the same. The same situation occurred in 1859, when another border proposal was offered but ultimately rejected.

The US Army’s siege of Mexico City in 1847 marked the final major battle of the Mexican-American War. With the Mexican army unable to overpower the superior weaponry and maneuvers of the American troops, Mexico City fell. After much negotiating, the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo was signed in 1848. As a result of the treaty, the United States gained more than 1.2 million square miles of territory. This included parts of New Mexico and Arizona. It was not until the Gadsden Purchase of 1853 that the rest of Arizona was acquired. In 1857, the people of what is present-day Arizona submitted a proposal to Congress. They requested that lines be drawn so that the New Mexico Territory could be divided into two territories. The new border would run north to

Arizona as a Territory

Mexico Territory into two sections. This act, known as the Arizona Organic Act of 1863, established a temporary government for the territory. Through the act, the United States officially recognized Arizona’s existence as a territory.

In 1860, a provisional government that started in Tucson established Arizona as a territory. It also committed Arizona to the Confederate cause. By the end of 1861, the Confederate Army took control of the territory all the way up to the 34th parallel. In 1862, the Arizona Territory seceded from the Union. It officially became the Confederate Territory of Arizona. This was by decree of President Jefferson Davis . Realizing the Union had made a terrible mistake by allowing the Confederacy easy access to California and its gold, President Abraham Lincoln took quick action. He wrote a bill defining the eastern border of Arizona. He set it along the 107th meridian. This divided the New

Arizona as a Territory (continued)

By the early 1900s, citizens living in Arizona had begun to make efforts toward encouraging the US Congress to adopt Arizona as a state. To their chagrin, Congress repeatedly turned down the territory’s requests. It was not until 1910 that Arizona’s citizens were allowed to design a state constitution.

Arizona's progressive constitution

On May 20, 1862, President Lincoln signed the Homestead Act. This act was designed to encourage western migration. Settlers could receive 160 acres of public land, if they agreed to move into Union-controlled regions of the West. One of the regions was the Arizona Territory. The Homestead Act ended up distributing 80 million acres of land by 1900. Due to an abundance of copper found in its rock, the Arizona Territory became known for its mining industry. The Morenci Mine in Arizona represents one of the biggest copper reserves in the world and the Phoenix-based Freeport-McMoRan is the largest publicly traded copper mining company in the world.

Arizona's early economy

Thanks to irrigation and access to water canals, farming and cattle ranching became regular practice in the territory, but it was not until the arrival of the railroad through the area that many people came to live in the area.

• Initiative – Voters can propose laws, which are then included on the general election ballot. If a majority vote yes on the proposition, it becomes law.
• Referendum – Voters can vote directly on current legislation from the state legislature.
• Recall – Voters can recall, or oust , elected officials, including judges.

Arizona's progressive constitution (continued)

When President Taft read the clause allowing the recall of judges and other elected officials, he issued a veto of the proposal. As a man who aspired to be a member of the Supreme Court, Taft despised the idea of voters being able to recall judges. Arizonans removed the controversial clause. Upon resubmission of the proposed constitution, Taft signed the bill. On February 14, 1912, Arizona officially became the 48th star of the flag of the United States of America. The Arizona legislature promptly added recall of judges to its constitution.

The first draft of the constitution of Arizona was similar in structure to those of other states. However, it was much more detailed than the US Constitution. The Arizona constitution was greatly influenced by the Progressive movement. It included many aspects that extended direct democracy to voters . This means that Arizona voters are more directly involved in making government decisions. The constitution of Arizona includes these elements: