Fountain Honoring
Jack and Trinidad Swilling
Marker:
Jack and Trinidad Swilling Fountain
Location:
County-City Administration Building
125 W. Washington Street
Phoenix, Maricopa County, Arizona
33.447702, -112.075799
Historical Significance:
John W. “Jack” Swilling was a Confederate lieutenant and miner who founded a settlement in the Salt River Valley. He was inspired by the canal system used by the Ancestral Sonoran Desert People, also known as the Hohokam, and founded the Swilling Irrigating & Canal Co. in 1867. He was in Yuma when he died, and he is buried in Yuma cemetery, Catholic section. His wife, Trinidad Escalante (1850-1925), born in Hermosillo, Mexico, went on to run the Swilling Company long after Jack Swilling died on August 12, 1878.
The plaque reads, “In memory of Lieut. Jack W. Swilling 1831 – 1878 who built the first modern irrigation ditch and Trinidad, his wife 1850 – 1925 / who established in 1868 the first pioneer home in the Salt River Valley / Erected by Maricopa Chapter Daughters of the American Revolution 1931.”
Dedicated:
December 1931
Sponsor:
Maricopa Chapter, NSDAR
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