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The "Muggy-Own" Rim The Rim country is named for Juan Ignacio Flores Mogollon, a Spanish colonial governor and captain of New Mexico which was a portion of New Spain.- hence it is called the Mogollon Rim. The Mogollon Rim was uplifted eons ago. Once it marked the shore of a vast inland sea that covered much of southern Arizona. An east-west cliff, the Rim crosses nearly half the state, roughly Sedona to the New Mexico border. It is the southern margin of the Colorado Plateau, which stretches for more than two thirds of the way across central Arizona. Sweeping from northwest to southeast, into New Mexico, it is more that 200 miles long. From Pine to Young, the Rim's buttressed face is rarely less than a near vertical drop of 1,200 feet. At many overlook points its height is close to 2,000 feet above the mountains which stretch across to Tonto Basin. South of Show Low the steep scarp is again blanketed by comparatively recent volcanism. Forming the White Mountains, the once molten blanket covers much evidence of the Plateau's edge as one travels on into New Mexico. Its average height of 7,000 feet makes the Rim Road the longest continuous "high road" in the state. The Rim Road itself is a twisting, graveled legacy to settlers and cavalry tenacity. The route is more than 100 years old. It was pioneered in 1873 by General George Crook while he was the U.S. Army commander in Arizona. Crook wanted a way to move troops and supplies to various Army posts scattered along Arizona's midriff. Unfortunately, the state's geology has erected some tremendous natural obstacles to east-west travel. The easiest, flattest terrain was in the higher elevations. With only minor changes, much of General Crook's road is still being used today. Central Arizona is dependent upon the storm patterns that come in from the Pacific and up from the Gulf of Mexico. The clouds release their moisture when they attempt to rise over this huge wall. The water from the top of the Rim flows into the Little Colorado, and the runoff below the backbone flows into the Verde, the Salt and the Gila rivers. Prospectors
came to the Payson area in the late 1800s, although little gold was found.
There are still places where you can find evidence of the mining
activities such as abandoned water wheels used to power mining equipment,
and the occasional closed mineshaft. Eventually the area's rich grazing
land attracted cattlemen, and its pine forests led to logging and milling
industries. Payson soon became a supply center. The community, nestled in
the rolling mountains south of the Mogollon Rim, was first known as Green
Valley, but, because of its size and shape, was sometimes called Long
Valley or Big Valley. When the town was platted in 1882, it was called
Union Park, population 40. In
1884, the town's name was changed to Payson in honor of Congressman Louis
Edward Payson of Chicago, who helped the settlement obtain a post office.
(There's also a Payson, Utah, named after the congressman for the same
reason.) Western author Zane Grey came to the area in the early 1920s and
built a cabin just under the Rim. Several of his novels, including
"Under the Tonto Rim," were written there. Unfortunately his
cabin was destroyed by the Dude Forest Fire that burned some of the area
in the summer of 1990. Today,
recreation is the primary industry of the area although ranching and
mining remain important elements of the economic base. Payson sits at the
edge of the world's largest stand of Ponderosa pine. The clean air, mild
climate, proximity to the Phoenix metropolitan area and outdoor recreation
in the Tonto and Coconino National Forests attract visitors year-round.
Retirees, attracted for the same reasons, are an important part of the
community's population. Payson in located in the northern part of Gila county. Globe, the county seat is 80 miles southeast of Payson. The Tonto Apache Tribe, which has a reservation located on the southern edge of Payson, operates the Mazatzal Casino. The name "Mazatzal" comes from the Mazatzal mountain range, located just southwest of Payson. The word means, roughly, "place where deer gather," and is Aztec Indian in origin. It is unclear how the word came to be used as the name of these mountains.
In addition to Payson the rim Country is also comprised
of communities of Pine, Strawberry, Star Valley, Christopher Creek and
other neighboring communities. Pine and Strawberry, located north-west of
Payson, have earned their reputation for unique festivals and are rapidly
growing vacation and weekend destinations as well as picturesque
retirement communities. Pine is 5,448 feet in elevation while Strawberry
sits a little higher up at 6,047 feet. Star Valley is a growing
commercial/residential community with several popular RV parks, while
Christopher Creek is located in the tall pines and has a restful
lifestyle. All of the Rim Country communities experience four mild
seasons, an abundance of native wildlife and a natural diversity of
yearlong beauty and scenic vistas. |