Photos: Rancho Romero and the establishment of Catalina State Park
The Tucson-area's urban outdoor gem, Catalina State Park, had its genesis in the 4,200-acre Rancho Romero along what was then the Tucson-Florence Highway, 14 miles north of downtown Tucson.
In 1935, Joseph E. McAdams, founder of Steel Products Engineering Co. in Springfield, Ohio, purchased the land known as the George Pusch property to establish Rancho Romero. McAdams raised registered Hereford cattle at the ranch and on his farm in Ohio. The couple commissioned architect Joseph T. Joesler to design a ranch home, which was built in 1941. Mr. McAdams died in 1965 at age 84.
The property passed to McAdams' daughter, Pauline, and her husband, W. C. Jordan. He was vice president and general manager at Steel Products Engineering Co. in Ohio from 1924-47. He was president of Curtiss-Wright Corp and Wright Aeronautical Co. from 1947-48. Finally, he was executive vice president and general manager of Hughes Aircraft Co. Jordan died in 1968 at age 70.
Jordan's son, Joseph, sold the ranch property to John Ratliff of Ratliff-Miller Investment Co. in 1970. Ratliff was former professor of English at Arizona State University. He went to Pima County seeking to rezone the land to build a "satellite city," with 6,500 homes, two 18-hole golf courses and business and shopping centers in five phases over five years. Jordan sold the property on condition the "buyer would develop the property in a manner to leave the natural environment almost totally intact," according to the Tucson Citizen. Nonetheless, Jordan, who was also an investor in the project, backed the Ratliff development plan.
A group called the Coalition Opposed to the Rancho Romero Development quickly formed in opposition to the project. The Arizona Game and Fish Department publicly warned that part of the ranch was a grazing area for a sizable heard of Bighorn sheep. The Arizona State Museum said the site includes a Hohokam Indian village dating back to 700 A.D. Eight University of Arizona professors publicly outlined the damage to the environment.
The Pima County Board of Supervisors voted unanimously to deny the zoning for the massive development.
The State Parks Board was very slow to embrace establishment of Catalina State Park. So, Tucson Rep. Charles King introduced a bill in the state legislature for the establishment of Catalina State Park. Gov. Jack Williams signed the legislation authorizing acquisition of more than 13,000 acres of lands in both Pima and Pinal Counties through land exchanges.
In 1975, Pima County purchased 2,000 acres of Rancho Romero from Mr. Ratliff and Ratliff-Miller Investments. In 1979, they agreed to a swap of the remaining 1,889 acres for state land in Rancho Vistoso on the West side of the Florence-Oracle Highway.
Long story short, a series of lease agreements, land exchanges and purchases ensued over several years which enabled establishment of the park boundaries. Construction on park buildings began in 1981. The park officially opened on May 25, 1983.
Sources: Arizona Daily Star, Tucson Citizen and Arizona State Parks
Rancho Romero (now Catalina State Park) in November, 1973. Gov. Jack Williams signed legislation in May, 1974, authorizing the state to acquire more than 13,000 acres in Pima and Pinal counties to help establish a new state park.
The site of the home on Rancho Romero. Original photo ran in the Tucson Citizen Around Your Home section July 4, 1964.
Rancho Romero, home of Mr. and Mrs. J.E. McAdams. Photo originally ran in the Tucson Citizen Around Your Home section April 19, 1958.
Views from Rancho Romero are spectacular in every direction. Photo originally ran in the Tucson Citizen Around Your Home section April 19, 1958.
An overhang of redwood slats shades the inner entry court to the home of the William C. Jordans on Rancho Romero. Thus interesting sun patterns are cast through the partly open overhang. Outside construction of the home is of burnt adobe. Original photo ran in the Tucson Citizen Around Your Home section July 4, 1964.
The Tucson-Florence Highway (Oracle Road) lower right, and Rancho Romero, center of the photo, alongside the Cañada del Oro Wash in 1973. Further on, the CDO intersects with the Sutherland Wash in what is now Catalina State Park.
Rancho Romero (now Catalina State Park) in November, 1973. Gov. Jack Williams signed legislation in May, 1974, authorizing the state to acquire more than 13,000 acres in Pima and Pinal counties to help establish a new state park.
Rancho Romero (now Catalina State Park) in November, 1973. Gov. Jack Williams signed legislation in May, 1974, authorizing the state to acquire more than 13,000 acres in Pima and Pinal counties to help establish a new state park.
Rancho Romero (now Catalina State Park) in November, 1973. Gov. Jack Williams signed legislation in May, 1974, authorizing the state to acquire more than 13,000 acres in Pima and Pinal counties to help establish a new state park.
Rancho Romero (now Catalina State Park) in November, 1973. Gov. Jack Williams signed legislation in May, 1974, authorizing the state to acquire more than 13,000 acres in Pima and Pinal counties to help establish a new state park.
Rancho Romero (now Catalina State Park) in November, 1973. Gov. Jack Williams signed legislation in May, 1974, authorizing the state to acquire more than 13,000 acres in Pima and Pinal counties to help establish a new state park.
Rancho Romero (now Catalina State Park) in November, 1973. Gov. Jack Williams signed legislation in May, 1974, authorizing the state to acquire more than 13,000 acres in Pima and Pinal counties to help establish a new state park.
Rancho Romero (now Catalina State Park) in November, 1973. Gov. Jack Williams signed legislation in May, 1974, authorizing the state to acquire more than 13,000 acres in Pima and Pinal counties to help establish a new state park.
Rancho Romero (now Catalina State Park) in May, 1973. Gov. Jack Williams signed legislation in May, 1974, authorizing the state to acquire more than 13,000 acres in Pima and Pinal counties to help establish a new state park.
Rancho Romero (now Catalina State Park) in May, 1973. Gov. Jack Williams signed legislation in May, 1974, authorizing the state to acquire more than 13,000 acres in Pima and Pinal counties to help establish a new state park.
Rancho Romero (now Catalina State Park) in May, 1973. Gov. Jack Williams signed legislation in May, 1974, authorizing the state to acquire more than 13,000 acres in Pima and Pinal counties to help establish a new state park.
Rancho Romero (now Catalina State Park) in May, 1973. Gov. Jack Williams signed legislation in May, 1974, authorizing the state to acquire more than 13,000 acres in Pima and Pinal counties to help establish a new state park.
Rancho Romero (now Catalina State Park) in May, 1973. Gov. Jack Williams signed legislation in May, 1974, authorizing the state to acquire more than 13,000 acres in Pima and Pinal counties to help establish a new state park.
Rancho Romero (now Catalina State Park) in August, 1973. Gov. Jack Williams signed legislation in May, 1974, authorizing the state to acquire more than 13,000 acres in Pima and Pinal counties to help establish a new state park.
Rancho Romero (now Catalina State Park) in August, 1973. Gov. Jack Williams signed legislation in May, 1974, authorizing the state to acquire more than 13,000 acres in Pima and Pinal counties to help establish a new state park.
Rancho Romero (now Catalina State Park) in August, 1973. Gov. Jack Williams signed legislation in May, 1974, authorizing the state to acquire more than 13,000 acres in Pima and Pinal counties to help establish a new state park.
Rancho Romero (now Catalina State Park) in August, 1973. Gov. Jack Williams signed legislation in May, 1974, authorizing the state to acquire more than 13,000 acres in Pima and Pinal counties to help establish a new state park.
Wayne and Dianne Allen of Austin, Texas, retired for six months, sit under a tree in their camping spot at Catalina State Park on Tuesday, April 30, 2013 in Tucson, AZ. The couple are on an extended vacation heading to Utah and Denver to see their kids. They were preparing a vegetable dish in a gas oven, foreground, they just bought and put on the grill outside.
Late afternoon sun peaks through the leaves of a tree as a catus stands in the background at Catalina State Park on Tuesday, April 30, 2013.
A view of the Catalina Mountains looking east just after sunrise at Catalina State Park on Wednesday, May 1, 2013.
John and Kathy Mulligan from Tucson sit with their dogs Max, left, and Wiley in the Canyon del Oro Wash at Catalina State Park on Wednesday, May 1, 2013 in Tucson, AZ. They were having lunch prior to taking a hike on the Canyon Loop Trail.
Poppies along the Sutherland Trail at Catalina State Park on Feb. 23, 2012.
Horseback riders on the Canyon Loop Trail at Catalina State Park in Tucson, Ariz., on Feb. 15, 2103.
Tucson hikers Kevin Duckett and his wife Melanie Duckett look at stone ruins along the Romero Ruin Interpretive Trail at Catalina State Park.
The Santa Catalina Mountains from the Romero Ruin Interpretive Trail at Catalina State Park in Tucson, Ariz., on Feb. 15, 2103.
Saddlebrooke resident Seth Basker and his son Jonathan walk past a Desert Willow that has been dedicated to Steve Schulman inside Catalina State Park on Friday, November 25, 2011, in Oro Valley, Ariz. The park is starting a Tree Dedication Program where a native tree is planted there in celebration of a loved one, a newborn, an anniversary or for any occasion.
Jill Wheatley enjoys the view from a hill along the Romero Ruins Trail in Catalina State Park with the Santa Catalina Mountains in the background and their dusting of snow from a morning storm, Thursday, Dec. 30, 2010.
Park ranger Courtney Nault, right, leads the way up a stair climb as about 20 hikers take part in the Romero Ruins Adventure Hike at Catalina State Park, 11570 N. Oracle Road, on Wednesday, Jan. 1, 2014, in Oro Valley, Ariz. The hike was one of several featured as part of Jan.1 First Day Hikes in state parks across the country.
From right, Levi Milton, 13, Beth Busse, Pierce Burns and Simon Burns, 8, enjoy a New Year’s Day trek on the Romero Trail in Catalina State Park. A winter storm brought snow to the upper elevations as well as the metro area on New Year’s Eve into New Year’s Day in Tucson on Jan. 1, 2015, in Tucson, Ariz.
Grasses bring a cloak of green to a woodland at Catalina State Park north of Tucson.
Sutherland Wash in Catalina State Park is flowing fast with snowmelt from the Catalina Mountains.
From left to right, Gabriella Porreca, Edita Navratilova and Frank Porreca hike past a bed of Mexican and California Gold Poppies on the Sutherland Trail in Catalina State Park, 11570 N. Oracle Rd., in Oro Valley, Ariz., on March 10, 2020.
Edita Navratilova, right, takes pictures of a group of Mexican and California Gold Poppies on the Sutherland Trail in Catalina State Park, 11570 N. Oracle Rd., in Oro Valley, Ariz., on March 10, 2020.
A group of Purple Owl's Clover stand out in front of a bed Gold Poppies on the Sutherland Trail in Catalina State Park, 11570 N. Oracle Rd., in Oro Valley, Ariz., on March 10, 2020.
The historic ruins of Francisco Romero's mid-1800s ranch at Catalina State Park.
Jose Lazarini, right, shows wife Maria the proper drawback technique on an archery bow during an Arizona State Parks' Family Campout Program on Saturday, April 18, 2015, at Catalina State Park, 11570 N. Oracle Road, in Oro Valley, Ariz. The Lazarinis, who came with their two children from Cave Creek, are on their first campout ever. During the overnight campout, families are helped with proper tent set-up, propane stove cooking and some outdoor fun with nature hikes, archery and slingshots.
Jose Lazarini, center left, poses questions as he leads a fun game of Family Feud with (from left) Jet McMurrary, 10, children Gilma, 6, and Jose Jr., 7, and Leah Sweatman, 9, during an Arizona State Parks' Family Campout Program on Saturday, April 18, 2015, at Catalina State Park, 11570 N. Oracle Road, in Oro Valley, Ariz. During the overnight campout, families are helped with proper tent set-up, propane stove cooking and some outdoor fun with nature hikes, archery and slingshots.
Pulitzer Prize winning photographer and Oro Valley resident Jack Dykinga photographs a flower grouping at Catalina State Park north of Tucson, AZ. Dykinga, who shoots for National Geographic and Arizona Highways, among others, has had an artistic re-birth he says, since a life saving lung transplant.
From left, Suzanna Schleck hikes with son Drew, right, and his girlfriend Amy Fritz along the 50-Year Trail in Catalina State Park, 11570 N. Oracle Road, northwest of Tucson, Ariz. Their family, scattered throughout the country, all met up for a sightseeing Christmas holiday in Tucson. Arizona State Parks is offering a series of guided "First Day Hikes" on New Year's Day. Photo taken at her home on Thursday, Dec. 24, 2015.
Rick Wiley
Photo editor
In what appears to be the first-of-a-kind auction, the state Land Department will be taking bids only from those with very deep pockets, development experience and other requirements.
Teenage shutterbugs from around the state are invited to submit their finest nature photographs for a chance at up to $5,000 in prize money, courtesy of Arizona Highways magazine, The Nature Conservancy and Cox Communications.
The Santa Catalina Trail Plan envisions the expansion over the next 15 years.
The company that owns the Rancho Vistoso golf course in Oro Valley has opted to pull plans to develop the space at least until next year amid pushback from residents who want the area to be preserved as open space.
Take a peek inside and learn the history behind some of these spots in and around Tucson.
Green Valley started in earnest in 1961, when Chicago investors purchased 2,900 acres of grazing land in the Canoa Land Grant from Farmers Inv…