Scottsdale's first residents were the Hohokam people believed to be ancestors to the present Pima Indians, who disappeared between 1100 and 1400 AD.

In 1888 US Army Chaplain Winfield Scott came to the Valley of the Sun and purchased 640 acres of land at $2.50/acre.  He and his brother farmed the area, planting citrus orchards among other crops and named the area Orangedale. Later the name was changed (1894) to Scottsdale after the Scott Brothers.

In 1951 one square mile of City of Scottsdale  incorporated, with a population of 2000.  Malcolm White, Scottsdale's first mayor,  tabbed Scottsdale as "The West's Most Western Town" and just a few years later Life Magazine called it "one of the most desirable communities in the west"...and the growth really began!!!.  By 1970 the population had grown to 67,823 and 68 square miles. By 1988, 126,000 people called Scottsdale home and it was soon to be dubbed "Most Livable City" by the US Council of Mayors and "America's Best Place to Live" by the Robb Report.  Scottsdale's current population is approximately 224,000 today and encompasses 184.5 square miles.

Scottsdale is bordered on the east by the Salt River Pima-Maricopa Indian Community, the south by Tempe and home of ASU, the west by Phoenix and the north by the Tonto National Forest.

Greeting all who come to Scottsdale is the "Welcome Cowboy" on Main and Scottsdale Rd, where many of the existing shops and boutiques are in the original town buildings that held the first general store, post office, pool hall and still operating as a decorative wrought iron business is the original Cavillere's Blacksmith Shop.

Cattle ranching was a major part of the Scottsdale lifestyle in the early years and quite often major horse and cattle ranchers called their Scottsdale location the "winter headquarters" where they sold and purchased stock during the winter months followed by cattle drives to the main or larger ranches in the surrounding states.

Many of our early newcomers, primarily wealthy midwesterners, amassed huge landholdings for cattle ranching and horse breeding, primarily Arabian horses.  One of these families was the McCormick family who purchased the area now known as McCormick Ranch  (a Master Planned Community developed by Kaiser-Aetna in the early 1970's)  for the purpose of breeding Arabian Horses.  Anne McCormick was instrumental in founding the Scottsdale All Arabian Horse Show...only one of the  atttactions and events of the year in Scottsdale.  Right next to the McCormick Ranch was the Gainey Ranch with Daniel C Gainey's collection of prize winning Arabian horses.