Fiesta Neighborhood Group

Brief History of the Fiesta Area

Brief History of the Fiesta Area

The Fiesta Area was farming country. Two farming families come to mind, the Hadlocks and the Johnson farms. There were many more. The Hadlocks farm was located on 8th Avenue, almost opposite the Adams School. Pueblo Street did not exist. The Johnson farm was located where Berge Volkswagen dealership is now located on Broadway. Longmore street stopped at 8th Avenue and was mostly a one lane street.

In 1959, the first subdivision was started, called Alma Estates. We moved in our house on August 1959 and were promptly invaded by wolly caterpillars from the cotton fields growing nearby. There was a farm where the ABCO market is located, the occupants unknown, most of the caterpillars came from there and across Alma School Road.

Alma School Road was a narrow two lane concrete road, with open irrigation ditches on each side. The children had to walk down Alma School across the railroad tracks to attend school. The old Alma School was located where the Mesa School distribution center is now located. The school was very old, Mildred went to school there as did her Dad.

Adams School was built in 1962, and it was such a nice school, with plenty of playground space and many windows in each classroom.

Builders continued to subdivide and build homes, sometimes fast and sometimes at a snails pace. Then came the apartment complexes and the townhouses. The school had to keep bringing in portable classrooms and finally build a new 2 story stucture.

This is a very convenient area in which to reside being close to Mesa Community College, the mall, Motorola and many other businesses and also the freeway. We like living here.

Don and Mildred