An early Chuck wagon somewhere in Arizona

In the early part of the 21st century, some believe life in Arizona is too regulated. In the early days of Arizona, a bit more regulation would have been welcomed by many.
A J. Henshaw came to Arizona in 1877 from California for health reasons. Within a week of arriving in Phoenix, he had the chance to buy the land where the Southern Pacific Railroad Depot was eventually built. Since Henshaw had no money, he traded his $40 horse ($770 when adjusted for inflation) that he rode from California to Phoenix for the land. A few days later, Henshaw sold the land for $250 ($4,810 when adjusted for inflation).
One day, Henshaw stopped at a mining camp to spend the night. The next morning, he was looking for a hot breakfast when he saw a tent with a sign that read “CHUCK.” Henshaw went in and discovered a cook with a very greasy pair of jeans. Henshaw watched the cook for a few minutes and realized most of the grease was only on the right side of the jeans.
To his horror, Henshaw saw the cook make a breakfast, serve it, and clean the skittle by wiping it clean on the right leg of his jeans. Henshaw left without eating.
Henshaw later visited another breakfast establishment where he observed the cook washing his pans and dishes by letting the local dogs happily lick them clean. Henshaw elected not to partake of this “breakfast special.”
One morning after camping under the stars, Henshaw saw a fire nearby. He went over to investigate. He saw a camp stove, looked inside, and saw a beautiful loaf of newly baked, warm bread.
Henshaw grabbed it quickly, broke it into two pieces, and put the pieces into his overcoat pockets. Just then, Henshaw saw a man approaching who “was the dirtiest specimen of humanity I ever saw and he had flour all over the front of his clothes showing that he was the bread maker.” Henshaw lost his appetite for the warm bread and returned it to the camp owner.
Henshaw later estimated the bread cost him at least $50 ($960 when adjusted for inflation) over the ensuing years. Every time he ran into the camp owner, the hilarious bread story would be related. Henshaw would end up buying drinks for everyone who had listened to the sad tale.
Mrs. Columbus Gray has been credited as being the first white woman to live in the Salt River Valley. She arrived in Phoenix with her husband by wagon train in 1868 from Arkansas. They decided to wait in Phoenix until the railroad was completed to California in order to finish their trip to the West Coast.
Instead, they stayed in Phoenix. Mrs. Gray credited the Maricopa and Pima Indians with their early survival. “Cotton of good grade was raised abundantly by the Indians on their lands, as were luscious melons, and grains of several kinds, and the Red Man indeed lived on the fat of the land,” she said. During the 1860s and 1870s, these supplies helped sustain the early residents of what became Phoenix.
With the completion of Jack Swilling’s ditch, agriculture became practical for early settlers. Early crops included grains and fruit trees such as apples and peaches. Citrus did not come to the Valley until later.
With settlement, the water rights of the Native Americans were taken by the new residents of Arizona. The Indian land became less productive as the land of the white settlers became “eminently successful” for growing crops to sustain Arizona’s growing population.
— Mike Miller. Photo courtesy of the Library of Congress, LC-USZC4-7971.