Mohave Valley Arizona
Spanish explorers were the first whitemen to visit the area and discovered that it was inhabited by what they called “mo-HAH-vey” Indians. The Spaniards pronounced it as Mojave which was later pronounced Mohave by English speakers. These two spellings are still both in use today. At the time when the Spaniards encountered the Mojave Indians in the 1700’s, the Mojave Indians were prosperous farmers and had already established their own villages. A century later, during the California gold rush, the Mojaves resisted the influx of migrants in their area which led to the establishment of Fort Mojave in 1859.
The first Arizona territorial legislature established Mohave County in 1864. Mohave City was named the county seat. At that time, it was the frontier town that sprung up next to the fort. It became a ghost town after the fort was disbanded in the year 1890. Years later, an Indian school was built at the site of the old fort by the government. It was a military style school where the students were punished for speaking their own language. The school closed in 1930.
Today, the old fort and school was replaced by communities of Mohave Valley and Fort Mohave. It is still a prosperous place where the Fort Mohave tribe is a major contributor to its economy.
