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Area History
Visiting the Southwest Valley?
For more information, please contact the
Southwest Valley Chamber of Commerce
289 N. Litchfield Rd., Goodyear, AZ 85338
Phone: (623)932-2260 & Fax: (623)932-9057
Email:
Welcome to the City of Litchfield Park
Litchfield Park
You could say that the picturesque city of Litchfield Park grew from a cotton seed.
The story started during World War I when the supply of long staple cotton needed to manufacture Goodyear Tire and Rubber Company's new cord tires was drying up. The war made acquiring cotton from the Nile Valley almost impossible. At the same time, a boll weevil infestation virtually destroyed the crop on the Sea Islands off Georgia’s coast. The company was desperate for a new source of the fiber. Experiments conducted by the U.S. Department of Agriculture indicated that conditions in the Salt River Valley of Arizona could provide a viable option for growing the much-needed plant.
A young company executive named Paul W. Litchfield, for whom the city is named, was sent to Phoenix in 1916 with the objective of turning the desert into a huge cotton farm. Litchfield's project received a less than enthusiastic welcome from local farmers so he, acting in the company’s interest, established the Southwest Cotton Company to handle Goodyear's farming interests.
In the early days Goodyear owned three ranches. In addition to the Litchfield Ranch, they acquired the 8,000 Goodyear Ranch south of Chandler. The 10,000 plus acre Marinette Ranch (where much of Sun City now stands) was acquired in 1921. The Goodyear and Marinette Ranches were sold off in the '40s.
The Litchfield Ranch housed the general offices of the company. With Goodyear officials visiting the operation and housing in short supply, Organization House was built during the winter of 1918-19. It was so popular with visiting officials and sales representatives that it opened to the public on Thanksgiving Day of 1929, evolving into the prestigious Wigwam Golf Resort and Spa through the ensuing years.
Today Litchfield Park is a thriving city of 5,055 residents.
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City of Litchfield Park 214 W. Wigwam Blvd. Litchfield Park, AZ 85340 Ph: (623) 935-5033 Litchfield-Park.org |
© 2008 Southwest Valley Chamber
289 N. Litchfield Rd., Goodyear, AZ 85338 Phone: (623)932-2260 & Fax: (623)932-9057 Email:
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