A Little History for Sedona.... by deecat
The first settler in this area was J.J. Thompson who, under the 1862 Homestead Act, took "squatters" rights to land across from what today is the Indian Gardens store. He found the Indians's deserted gardens and a great natural spring so he built a cabin and called it Indian Gardens.Others followed Thompson, building their own cabins and raising horses and cattle. One of these men was a farmer named Frank Pendley who is credited with engineering an innovative irrigation system, and it's still used at Slide Rock State Park (site of his early homestead!)Then, in about 1876, Beaver Head Stage Station was built 12 miles south of what we now know as Sedona. Once the stage station was established, the population of this area grew and grew.
Today, Sedona seems larger than it really is because of the vast numbers of tourist who visit each year. But, no matter how crowded it is, the natural beauty of Sedona and the surrounding area rises above all the commotion.
