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Tucson 



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Just an hour away from Mexico, Tucson has a long history of settlement by ancient tribal 

 peoples, Spanish explorers, and Anglo frontiersmen. 



People," visit the Tohono O'odham 

 Nation Cultural Center & Museum, 

 which opened in June of this year 

 in Topawa, the capital of the Tohono 

 O'odham Nation. This $15.2 million 

 state-of-the-art facility houses priceless 

 artifacts, some dating back nearly 

 10,000 years. To showcase the Tohono 

 O'odham s traditional life and history, 

 the exhibits include ancient arrowheads, 



».ools, and pottery as well as many works 

 from the 1700s to the present, including 

 modern paintings, photographs, baskets, 

 and World War I memorabilia. 

 To learn more about Tucson's Spanish 

 history, follow the Juan Bautista de 

 Anza National Historic Trail, which 

 commemorates the route followed in 1775—76 by 

 a Spanish commander who led a party of colonists 

 on an expedition from Mexico to found a presidio 

 and mission near the San Francisco Bay. The trail 

 takes you to Tubac Presidio, now a state park, 

 and to Tumacacori National Historical Park, 

 where you '11 see the abandoned ruins of three 

 Spanish colonial missions, including Tumacacori 

 itself, which dates back to 1691. 



THIS MODERN TOWN WITH AN OLD 

 West flavor is set amid spectacular beauty, 

 surrounded by a forest of giant cacti, a lush, 

 flowering desert, rugged canyons, and ringed by 

 five unique mountain ranges. 



The blending of cultures is evident throughout 

 Tucson. You'll see it at the Mission San Xavier 

 del Bac, an outstanding example of Spanish 

 Mission architecture that is located on the Tohono 

 O'odham Indian Reservation. The Mission was 

 founded by the Jesuit priest Father Kino in 

 1700, but many say the design and construction 

 of the church may have been the work of the 

 Tohono O'odham; fittingly, you can admire the 

 Mission, then step outside to sample some Indian 

 fry bread, dipped in honey The sh ining white 

 church, which combines Moorish, Byzantine, 

 and late Mexican Renaissance elements so 

 seamlessly it's hard to tell where one begins or 

 ends, was built between 1783 and 1797. The 

 Tohono O'odham, whose ancestors welcomed 

 Father Kino to their village, are descendants of 

 the Hohokam Culture, an ancient people of the 

 Southwest. To learn more about the "Desert 



Go to visitTucson.org/culture for more information. 



