Continental, Arizona
Continental, Arizona | |
|---|---|
Populated place | |
 The Continental Community Center in 2014. | |
  Continental, Arizona | |
| Coordinates: 31°51′03″N 110°58′29″W / 31.85083°N 110.97472°W | |
| Country | United States |
| State | Arizona |
| County | Pima |
| Elevation | 2,864 ft (873 m) |
| Time zone | Mountain (MST) |
| Area code | 520 |
| Post Office opened | May 26, 1917 |
| Post Office closed | February 28, 1929 |
Continental is a
History
Continental was founded during
In 1916, Intercontinental established the Continental Farm seven miles south of Sahuarita and immediately east of the present-day Green Valley, along the eastern banks of the
In 1926, an
In 1948, R. Keith Walden relocated his Farmers Investment Company (FICO) from California to Arizona and purchased the Continental Farm to use as his headquarters. In the 1950s, Keith grew concerned that competition from synthetic fibers would threaten the cotton market and in 1965 he transitioned his farming operation to pecans as an alternative crop. Keith chose pecans because of their compatibility with the climate of the Sonoran Desert. FICO is still owned by the Walden family and their orchards combine to form the largest pecan grove in the world.[1][4][6]
Today, several of the old adobe homes in Continental are still in use. The old Continental School was replaced in the 1990s by a new facility located about one mile to the east. The old school was refurbished and now serves as the Continental Community Center. The Continental Cemetery is located northeast of the old school, and is now completely surrounded by the Madera Reserve subdivision. Considered to be a holy site by local Indians, the cemetery has been in use since 1903, and the oldest marked grave is from 1918.[1]
Gallery
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Signs in front of the Continental Community Center -
Graves at the Continental Cemetery with the Santa Rita Mountains in the background -
The remains of a farm wagon in an abandoned field near Quail Creek -
Abandoned reel and chute of harvesting equipment -
The ruins of a canal and a small bridge in the field
See also
- Santa Rita Experimental Range and Wildlife Area
- United States home front during World War I
- United States involvement in the Mexican Revolution
- Arizona during World War II
References
- ^ ISBN 0738520721.
- ^ "Topoquest: Continental, AZ". Retrieved March 14, 2014.
- ^ "Welcome to Friends of Madera Canyon - Home". Archived from the original on March 9, 2014. Retrieved March 14, 2014.
- ^ a b c d "Arizona Daily Star: Pecan harvest time in Sahuarita". Retrieved March 14, 2014.
- ^ "Arizona Daily Star: Sahuarita once had POW camp". Archived from the original on August 21, 2007. Retrieved March 14, 2014.
- ^ "Green Valley Pecan Store: History of FICO". Archived from the original on April 10, 2014. Retrieved March 14, 2014.
External links
Media related to Continental, Arizona at Wikimedia Commons
