Papago Park

Introduction

Papago Park is a publicly funded park located in the greater Phoenix area. The official address is at 625 North Gavin Parkway, Phoenix, AZ. It is a park well known for its hiking, mountain biking, and fishing.

History

Papago Park was once designated as a reservation for local tribes before it was named as a national monument in 1914, but 16 years later in 1930 it lost that status due to the area not being suitable for a national monument. In 1932, Governor Hunt commissioned the park to be a bass fish hatchery as a part of the Works Progress Administration.

During World War 2 Papago Park was used as a POW camp and was the site of the largest prison camp escape in U.S History when 25 prisoners escaped from the camp. After the war, the park served as a VA hospital and later an army reserve facility.

The park was then sold to the City of Phoenix by the State of Arizona in February of 1959 where parts of the park were sold to the Arizona Zoological Society to establish the Phoenix Zoo

Points of Interest

• Hole in the Rock

• Governor Hunt's Tomb

• Papago Golf Course
• Phoenix Zoo
• Desert Botanical Gardens