100 years ago, Arizona was a 'baby state.' How it's changed — and remained the same
It’s hard to crowd Valentine’s Day off the stage. But Feb. 14 is also the date Arizona became a state in 1912. Thus, the nickname: “the Valentine State.”
With the state turning 112 today, here’s a look back at what was going on 100 years ago.
A century ago, readers of The Arizona Republican woke up to a headline reading: “Baby State Healthy Youngster.”
After recapping the path to statehood, which included the Arizona territory’s rejection of a plan to combine it with New Mexico in one state, the editorial graded Arizona at age 12 as an A+.
“During its 12 years of statehood, Arizona has amply justified those who declined to share with another area a star in the flag’s constellation,” the editorial stated, referring to the U.S. flag. “Arizona became and stands out as the child prodigy of the states.”
Among the "baby state's" accomplishments, the editorial touted Arizona’s copper and agricultural production, bank deposits that neared $70 million, and a strong road network.
“Good roads have caused the state to be a scenic paradise of the nation, visited last year by more tourists than the state has population,” it touted.
Yuma is today considered the “salad bowl” of the country for its winter crops, Arizona ranks as the top copper-producing state, and bank deposits are just shy of $209 billion.
The roads? Well, that's a mixed bag.
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100 years on, aspects of Arizona's past mirror its present
Some things have not changed. The Republican’s front page on Statehood Day 1924 carried stories about a narcotics conviction and the death of a man living in “Tent City on the Tempe road.”
A man named Martin Urena was sentenced to four years in federal prison for possession of morphine and cocaine. He was identified as a non-U.S. citizen, although no country was named.
"There is no sympathy in this court for the person who profits through that traffic," Judge Fred C. Jacobs said in handing down the sentence. "There is still less sympathy for the alien who would undermine the fibre of American character which has made this nation a sanctuary for the immigrant."
The Tent City was the scene of a suicide. The victim was taken to St. Joseph's Hospital, where he died on the operating table. The level of detail of his fatal wound —"the bullet which ended (his) life entered the left eye" — is rarely seen these days.
In 1924, a proposed amendment to the U.S. Constitution to ban child labor was circulating in the states. Its outcome in Arizona was “hardly doubtful,” The Republican reported, looking ahead to the 1925 meeting of the Legislature. “Arizona legislatures in the past have been very liberal in their passages of measures designed for the complete protection and regulation of child labor in the state.”
This year, lawmakers are considering a bill that would ban governments from contracting with any company or person that uses forced labor or “oppressive child labor.” House Bill 2591 passed its first committee on a 6-1 vote and soon will go before the full state House of Representatives.
Out with the old, in with the new
Many other things have changed.
Arizona is no longer the "baby state," a nickname it gained because in 1912 it was the latest addition to the union. As the banner headline in the Feb. 14, 1924, Republican reminded readers: "Twelve Years Ago Today, Arizona's Star Was Added To Old Glory's Blue Field."
It took nearly a half-century to shake the baby moniker. Alaska joined as the 49th state in 1959, 47 years after the "child prodigy" arrived.
Prices have certainly jumped from when Arizona was 12 years old.
Newspaper accounts reported on a building boom in the coming winter months, with homes, apartments and duplexes in the mix. Prices would generally start at $5,000. At the corner of Central Avenue and Bethany Home Road, a New York transplant was planning a $10,000 home — an amount impressive enough to merit a story of its own.
Household goods to equip these fast-growing neighborhoods made for lots of advertising. One ad touted a "flapper electric curler for 90 cents; 75 cents if the buyer brought in the newspaper ad.
Classified ads in Tucson's Arizona Daily Star featured a 1923 Chevrolet touring car for $450; a late model Dodge touring car "fully equipped," was on offer for $375.
Politics were front-page news, with races for judgeships and governor featured in both stories and ads.
But missing were any accounts of legislative action, a staple of today's daily news diet.
That's because 100 years ago, the Legislature only met in odd-numbered years. There is no legislative journal for 1924 because there was no legislative session. The change is striking compared to today, where sessions can run a half year, sometimes more.
Perhaps the "child prodigy" had it right, back in the day.
Reach the reporter at maryjo.pitzl@arizonarepublic.com or at 602-228-7566 and follow her on Threads as well as on X, the platform formerly known as Twitter @maryjpitzl.
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Capitol event to honor Arizona's 112th birthday
What: To honor Statehood Day, Secretary of State Adrian Fontes and state Treasurer Kimberly Yee are hosting an event at the state Capitol open to the public.
Fontes will read the proclamation, stored in state archives, declaring Arizona a state. And Yee will read a proclamation honoring Arizona's entrance into the union and reflect on its past and future. Cake and coffee will be served.
When: 9 a.m. Wednesday, Feb. 14
Where: 1700 W. Washington St., Phoenix. At the Capitol rose garden, north of the Executive Tower and west of the House of Representatives.
This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Arizona became a state 112 years ago. How our present day mirrors the past
