Marinette, Arizona facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Marinette, Arizona
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Marinette General Store in 1920.
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 Marinette, Arizona
Location in Arizona
Marinette, Arizona
Location in the United States
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| Country | United States |
| State | Arizona |
| County | Maricopa |
| Elevation | 1,142 ft (348 m) |
| Time zone | UTC-7 (MST (no DST)) |
Marinette was once a small town in Maricopa County, Arizona. It was located northwest of Peoria, Arizona, right next to the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway tracks. People in the early 1900s thought it would be a great place to grow fruits like citrus, apricots, and olives.
In 1920, the Southwest Cotton Company bought the town. This company was part of Goodyear. Later, in the late 1940s and 1950s, the J. G. Boswell Company owned much of the land for farming. Marinette stopped being a town in 1957. That's when its post office moved to Youngtown. The area where Marinette used to be is now Sun City, Arizona, a community built by the Del Webb Corporation.
Contents
The Story of Marinette
How Marinette Began
In 1892, two friends from Wisconsin, R.P. Davie and his business partner, decided to buy land in Arizona. Each bought 640 acres. A railroad track already ran through a part of their land, which was a big advantage. They worked out a deal to build a water stop for trains on their property. They named this stop "Marinette" after their hometown in Wisconsin. Over the next few years, the town grew. Houses were built, a general store opened, and by 1912, Marinette even had its own post office.
Farming in Marinette
The land in Marinette was perfect for farming. It was located between the Agua Fría River and New River. This made it easy to get water for crops. R.P. Davie created a special system using deep wells to water his fields even better.
In 1918, Davie started planting sugar beets. Sugar beets were very popular in the area at that time. William J. Murphy, who founded Glendale, Arizona, also grew sugar beets. He had even opened a Beet Sugar Factory in 1906. Davie put a lot of money into his sugar beet crops. But he soon found out that the soil in Marinette couldn't grow beets that were sweet enough. This caused him to lose a lot of money.
Changes in Ownership
In 1920, R.P. Davie sold his remaining land. The Southwest Cotton Company bought it. This company was a part of Goodyear. They wanted to grow more cotton, just like they did in Goodyear and Litchfield Park.
Later, in 1936, Southwest Cotton sold their land to J.G. Boswell. His company continued to grow cotton and also started growing lettuce. In 1957, the Marinette post office moved to Youngtown, Arizona. This was the beginning of the end for the small town of Marinette.
Twenty-three years later, in 1959, the Boswell family sold the land again. Del E. Webb bought the Marinette Ranch. He wanted to build a new community for retired people. He renamed the area Sun City.
Marinette's Legacy Today
Even though Marinette is a ghost town now, you can still find reminders of it.
There is a historical marker at Grand Avenue and 105th Avenue. This marker tells a short history of the old town. Also, the Marinette Recreation Center in Sun City is named after the former town.
