Sahuaro Ranch History: The Glendale Ranch, the Canal and the Peacocks

Sahuaro Ranch in Glendale, Arizona, was started in 1886 by William Henry Bartlett, an Illinois businessman who homesteaded land along the newly built Arizona Canal. Today about 17 historic acres survive as a free city park at 9802 N. 59th Avenue, with old farm buildings, a rose garden and a flock of peacocks.

A ranch that came with the canal

Before the 1880s, this part of the Valley was dry desert. That changed with the Arizona Canal, finished in 1885, which carried river water across roughly 44 miles and opened a huge stretch of land to farming. According to the City of Glendale, the ranch story begins right there. In 1886, William Henry Bartlett and his brother Samuel, businessmen from Peoria, Illinois, homesteaded land northwest of Phoenix.

Here is the part I like. Bartlett did not move to the desert full time. The city says he ran the place from afar for decades, by mail and telegram, until his death in 1918. He hired superintendents to live on the land, starting with his brother-in-law, Stephen Campbell, who ran things from 1886 to 1890. By about 1890, roughly half of the 640-acre ranch was planted in figs, orchards, vineyards and alfalfa.

Olives, oranges, hogs and a packing house

The city lists a 100-acre olive orchard and a 20-acre orange orchard set out in 1890. Date palms went in the next year, and the rose garden also dates to 1890. Hogs were raised in the hundreds and shipped out by rail. In 1891 the ranch built a large fruit packing house, designed by territorial architect James M. Creighton, which both the city and Wikipedia describe as the largest in the Salt River Valley at the time.

One more detail that makes you smile: in 1898 the family built a guest house, designed by Chicago architect J.B. Silsbee, in just 72 days, and they arrived on November 8 of that year, according to the city. This was a working farm, but it was also meant to be a showplace.

New owners and a different crop

After Bartlett, the ranch changed hands. P.E. Bradshaw owned it from 1913 to 1927 and planted long-staple cotton in 1915, the same crop that shaped nearby Litchfield Park (I told that story in my Litchfield Park post). Richard W. Smith bought the ranch in 1927. He planted a large date grove along with citrus and pecan orchards, and his family stayed for generations.

How the peacocks got here

The most famous residents are not people at all. A 12News history piece tells the story this way: in 1933, Lottie Smith visited the Chicago World’s Fair and came home with one peacock and two peahens, and those three birds started the ranch flock. The same article quotes a local historical society leader saying there are probably over 100 peafowl at the ranch today, wandering the park and the garden areas. Treat that number as an estimate, and expect to hear them before you see them.

From private ranch to city park

The city began working toward buying the ranch in 1966, and in 1977 it acquired 80 of the original 640 acres. Sahuaro Ranch was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1980, according to the National Register record. A major restoration of the Main House, the Fruit Packing Shed and other buildings began in the mid-1990s. Glendale itself has its own milestone: the Glendale Temperance Colony was officially platted on February 27, 1892, which the city celebrates as its birthday. So the ranch is actually older than the town around it.

Visiting Sahuaro Ranch Park

The park is open daily from 6 a.m. to sunset, and admission is free except during certain special events, per the city. The city page also notes that Main House tours have run on weekends in season, but it carried a 2025 notice that tours were not being scheduled, so please call 623-930-4200 or check the city’s Sahuaro Ranch page before you plan around a tour. Bring a camera. The rose garden is a popular spot for weddings, so you may share it with a wedding party.

If you are curious about the neighborhood, see the Glendale moving guide, browse homes for sale in Glendale, or read how another West Valley landmark got its name in my Luke Air Force Base story.

Questions people ask

Is Sahuaro Ranch Park free? Yes. The city says the park is free to enter except during certain special events, and it is open from 6 a.m. to sunset daily.

Who started Sahuaro Ranch? William Henry Bartlett and his brother Samuel, businessmen from Peoria, Illinois, homesteaded the land in 1886, soon after the Arizona Canal was completed.

Why are there peacocks at Sahuaro Ranch? According to a 12News history article, Lottie Smith bought one peacock and two peahens at the 1933 Chicago World’s Fair, and their descendants still roam the park.