Fort Valley is a

census-designated place A census-designated place (CDP) is a Place (United States Census Bureau), concentration of population defined by the United States Census Bureau for statistical purposes only. CDPs have been used in each decennial census since 1980 as the count ...

in the southern portion of

Coconino County Coconino County is a county in the north-central part of the U.S. state of Arizona. Its population was 145,101 at the 2020 census. The county seat is Flagstaff. The county takes its name from ''Cohonino'', a name applied to the Havasupai p ...

in the state of

Arizona Arizona ( ; nv, Hoozdo Hahoodzo ; ood, Alĭ ṣonak ) is a state in the Southwestern United States. It is the 6th largest and the 14th most populous of the 50 states. Its capital and largest city is Phoenix. Arizona is part of the Fou ...

, United States. Fort Valley is located very close to the city of Flagstaff. The population as of 2010, was 779.

Demographics

History

Fort Valley is a historical settlement at the base of Mt. Agassiz in Flagstaff, Arizona. It gained its name as a fort that was established to defend against Apache tribes although it was never actually used. Wagon trains migrating from the east came upon Flagstaff and settled here. Many of the old settlements can still be seen today. The primary motivation for this settlement was logging as was true for the rest of Flagstaff. The ponderosa pine forest supplied abundant amounts of timber which were then transported via railroad. The first Fort Valley settlers were Laura and William Murphy in 1881, they belonged to the church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. After these first settlers many more followed. Eventually a small community was developed and Fort Valley became a ranching hub in northern Arizona. As ranching took hold in Fort Valley the effect on the environment was devastating. Water sources such as Leroux spring ran dark with silt and the land was becoming a victim of

overgrazing Overgrazing occurs when plants are exposed to intensive grazing for extended periods of time, or without sufficient recovery periods. It can be caused by either livestock in poorly managed agricultural applications, game reserves, or nature res ...

. In 1908 Gustaf Adolf Pearson arrived in Fort Valley as a member of the forest service and began to revive the area. Fort Valley was also a popular hub for the scientific community to collect data on recently obtained land in the Southwest. Because of the unique combination of a desert and a mountain environment the area was particularly interesting for geologists, paleontologists, and scientists alike.

Present

Fort Valley remains a settlement today. The suburb of Flagstaff Arizona still holds a number of small farms and ranches. The Leroux spring has been taken over by the city of Flagstaff and the city is considering it as a potential water source. Fort Valley remains a wide open meadow at the base of what is now Snowbowl Road. Much of the past wildlife such as deer, herons, and elk remain in the area.

Climate

According to the

Köppen Climate Classification The Köppen climate classification is one of the most widely used climate classification systems. It was first published by German-Russian climatologist Wladimir Köppen (1846–1940) in 1884, with several later modifications by Köppen, notabl ...

system, Fort Valley has a dry-summer

humid continental climate A humid continental climate is a climatic region defined by Russo-German climatologist Wladimir Köppen in 1900, typified by four distinct seasons and large seasonal temperature differences, with warm to hot (and often humid) summers and freezing ...

, abbreviated "Dsb" on climate maps.

References

External links

{{authority control Census-designated places in Coconino County, Arizona Census-designated places in Arizona