My name is Karen Krause and I am writing a history of Waddell, Arizona and the White Tank Mountains. I would love to see any information or old photos you have to share. Please enjoy the information I have found so far. I always need imput on where I should look next or who to talk to. Thanks
History of Waddell, Arizona 
Thanks Karen for researching .I like your research and stories. Hope you can keep it going.
Question 1 The land on the south side of Northern water project. Google Earth shows a race track and some other weird things. I heard that some of this was owned by Caterpillar… What can you tell us about that.
Question 2. Was their any mining done in the White tanks that amounted to anything?
I have started a facebook page of our White Tank Foothills community – Pulte homes Olive and Citrus area
The link is http://www.facebook.com/wtfpulte. I will put your link on our facebook page for any history buffs.
Hi Roy.
Caterpillar leased (and later purchased) 8,600 acres from the State of Arizona starting in 1945 and used the rugged mountains as a proving grounds. The large earth movers are responsible for the cuts in the mountains that can be seen for miles.
There was a lot of mining in the White Tank Mountains, but there was never a vein rich enough to bring in large scale mining development. We should be glad. Otherwise, the mining scars on the mountain would rival the scars left by the Caterpillar earth movers.
I hope to address both topics in a lot of detail at some point. Check back here. I will be adding stories and asking for feedback every few weeks.
Karen.
(P.S. I hope to see you on the 3rd. Hope you and your Dad are well!)
Karen, I was googling my father, Martin Warren Krause, publisher of the Arizona Guide, when I found your name and the name Fennemore Camp, my mother’s maiden name. Can you tell me which Fennemore? If you send me your email I’ll be happy to pass along people who can certainly help you with that area of history. Betsy Krause
Hello Betsy.
The place name for the Fennemore camp came from the railroad siding at that site which was built in 1928. There was no Fennemore living in the area. The rail line place names were all from people associated with the Beardsley project which built the dam that creates Lake Pleasant. Fennemore is somewhat of a problem, since the only connection to the Beardsley project is from the law firm in Phoenix that bears the Fennemore name. They were also the law firm that worked for the Santa Fe railroad company at the time.
Karen,
My brothers and I have had a wonderful time with this! The Fennemore, as I suspected, is my grandfather Harry Melton Fennemore, the founder of Fennemore Craig. He came to Phoenix from Utah shortly after it became a state (safer then!?!) and had some affiliation with the railroad, probably through the law firm. His house still stands at 501 East Moreland. His son, Richard, also a member of the firm, eventually represented Santa Fe. My brothers used to hunt dove in your neighborhood and fish at Lake Pleasant. I remember Lake Pleasant because of its mosquitos..
You might enjoy a book called “Doing What the Day Brought” which talks about life in the early days of the Valley. It was a small printing but I think that the Phoenix library could get a copy for you.
I’m enjoying your research. It deals with so much of the Arizona I remember. Wasn’t the Republic’s 100th anniversary issue a disappointment? It could have been so much better.
Betsy
“Doing What the Day Brought” is in my collection! It is a wonderful oral history about the everyday lives of Arizona women.
I would love to hear more about your family and I am especially interested in any stories or photos of the Waddell area and the White Tank Mountains.
I can be reached at karenkrause7@msn.com
Hi Karen,
Just found your site. Our family has a long history with Waddell, although many of the first hand stories passed with my parents. My dad, as a young man grew up on Waddell ranch with his mom and dad (My Grandparents). Grandpa was a ranch foreman (according to direct stories from my dad) and was loved by “old man Waddell” as dad would call him. I think my dad would have been a young teen at the time and dad worked as a ranch hand. Dad would always say… that the truth of a real ranch hand was not by how fast his horse was (albeit important), but by how well he can mend a fence.
I loved listening to dad’s stories about the area and his adventures as a young man. From the fields of Waddell Ranch to the arms of my mother. Stories of long walks and hitchhiking down Litchfield Road to sneak into the dance halls in Litchfield. My mom kinds grew up on the other side of the tracks….literally! So many stories.
The reason I write, do you have any “mention” in your history and research of my Grandma and Grandpa? Grandpa was Clarence Columbus Scott and was a mammoth Scotsman. Granma Scott: Abilene “Ali” Mae Scott or Ms. Scott as she was known by the ranch hands and farm workers. MoMo as I called her, ran one of the “Chuck Wagons” that served as the lifeline to the ranch.
Any info you may have come across with our family would be awesome to know.
David Clarence Scott
Arizona
Hello David.
Thanks for writing me. I actually have almost no information about the Waddell Ranch and the people there. I have only one or two photos. I would love to sit down with you and talk about your parents and grandparents. I am trying to get a grant to video record oral histories about the area and I think you would be perfect for this. It may take a year to get the grant, so I do not want to wait that long to interview you.
I would be more than happy to come to you and talk about your family history and look at old photos (I am always looking for photos), and learn more about your grandparents.
Karen Krause
Karen,
I just stumbled across your site and really have enjoyed reading through your stories and research. I live in Surprise and often hike in the White Tanks. I find their history to be fascinating and I appreciate the work you’re doing. Take care.
Ben
Hello Karen,
Thanks for sharing all of your knowledge and research. I spent my childhood & adolescence in the West Valley and fondly remember my visits to the White Tank Mountains and the trips through the majestic tree lined roads of Waddell. I wish I could have heard your presentation however was unable to because I now live in the Dallas area where I am earning my master in urban planning & economic development. I’d be fascinated to know more about the visit from middle eastern royalty to Waddell as well as the unique road names such as “Sarival.”
Please Advise,
Thanks & Best,
Wow, awesome history – thanks for putting this together for everyone.
Hi Karen,
My late husband and I and our kids bought property in Waddell in 1973 and immediately started to build our home there. As I read in one of your notes, we too had a RR mailbox with an address of Peoria, AZ. Several times when a relative decided to come to Arizona on vacation and surprise us with a visit; they were even more surprised to not be able to find our actual house address on W. Peoria Ave since Peoria’s numbers didn’t go that high!!! I worked for the Dysart School District (when it was one H.S., one Jr. High, and three elementary schools! My kids attended there of course. I moved from there after my late husband passed away in the 90’s. I doubt that I would have any more information than you already have about the area; but back in the days when I lived there, I loved it. It was like living in a small community with farmers that shared crops by dropping off a box or gunny sack of fruit/vegetables when harvesting.
My present husband just found this website and shared it with me so now I need to go and read what all you have written about the “community” of Waddell as if I understand it correctly; it’s not considered a “town” yet. It’s still country as is my property that we still own there. Oh yes, Kay Rosson was our post mistress all those years and I was one of those who frequently did wait outside while others were inside. Half that building was the office for the cotton company and half was our wonderful post office!!!
Hi Karen,
I left you a photo of Waddell Ranch at the Litchfield museum. My grandfather (Martin Garcia) was a foreman at Waddell Ranch. Lots of memories going to Pugh Store for soda and candy. Plus we had Christmas parties in the big dorm building for the kids of Waddell and surrounding areas. I would love to see your research and share my memories with you.