CONQUISTADORS AND SPAINISH COLONIAL PERIOD 1528-1848
The first Europeans to visit the region may have been a crew of shipwrecked Spaniards who wandered across the Southwest during the 1500s. Upon their return, they described cities with amazing riches.

THE CONQUISTADORS
Were Iberian men who came to the "new world" in search of social and economic advancement. They were generally men whom had not inherited any type of money and they saw the new world as their only option for succeeding socially and economically in their society.

SPANISH COLONIAL PERIOD
The Spanish Colonial Period covers the period 1739 (the discovery of the Arizonac mine) through 1856 (the arrival of the American military in Tucson).

TUCSON PRESIDIO AND MEXICAN WAR
In 1821, Mexico won its independence from Spain after a decade of war. The revolution had bankrupted the national treasury, and funds that had supported missions, presidios, and Apache peace camps nearly disappeared.

THE U.S.-MEXICAN WAR - (1846-1848)
The Mexican-American War was the first major conflict driven by the idea of "Manifest Destiny"; the belief that America had a God-given right, or destiny, to expand the country's borders from 'sea to shining sea'.

MORMON BATTALION AND TUCSON PRESIDIO
Mexico broke off relations with the United States in March 1845 after the annexation of Texas.  A Mexican attack on U.S. troops occupying disputed territory preceded a U.S.

EARLY ARIZONA TERRITORY
The Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo formally ended the Mexican-American War in February 1848, but tensions between the Governments of Mexico and the United States continued over the next six years.

CIVIL WAR IN ARIZONA
Both the Union and the Confederacy desperately wanted California because of its rich mineral resources; its vital access to the Pacific Ocean; and the conquest would help the Confederacy gain European recognition.

INDIAN WARS IN ARIZONA TERRITORY
The stage line brought many more whites through the Pima villages, but the Civil War had an even greater effect. Far from the center stage, the major impact of the war in Arizona slowed the pace of white settlement.

1ST ARIZONA VOLUNTEER INFANTY
Carleton's California Volunteers established Camp Lowell in Tucson in 1862 after Captain Sherod Hunter evacuated his Confederates. They also founded Fort Bowie near Apache Pass and Fort Whipple near Prescott.

BUFFALO SOLDIERS IN ARIZONA
Shortly after the Civil War on July 28th, 1866, Negroes were allowed to serve in the regular peacetime army. Six regiments, 2 of Cavalry and 4 of infantry were authorized.

M1895 COLT-BROWNING MACHINE GUN "POTATODIGGER"
The Colt-Browning M1895, nicknamed “potato digger” due to its unusual operating mechanism, is an air cooled, belt fed, gas operated machine gun that fires from a closed bolt with a cyclic rate of 450 rounds per minute.

ROUGH RIDERS
USS Maine, a second-class battleship built between 1888 and 1895, was sent to Havana in January 1898 to protect American interests during revolt of the Cubans against the Spanish government.

ON THE BORDER
Between the fall of 1910 and the summer of 1916, Mexico had been embroiled in a violent revolution, with opposing political and military forces struggling for control of the country.

WORLD WAR I
World War I had sweeping consequences for politics and diplomacy in the rest of the 20th century.

WORLD WAR II - PEARL HARBOR
On Sunday, December 7th, 1941 the Japanese launched a surprise attack against the U.S. Forces stationed at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii By planning his attack on a Sunday,

BUSHMASTERS
The 158th Infantry Regiment was born September 2, 1865, as the First Arizona Volunteer Infantry. The Regiment was drafted into Federal Service for World War I, 5 August 1917 as part of the 40th Division.

NATIVE-AMERICAN CODE TALKERS
Although the Navajo tribe is most remembered for its contributions to the World War II communications code units, the Hopi tribe also helped in the communications coding efforts.

GERMAN SUBMARINE PRISONERS
German submarine prisoners of war were housed in a camp at Papago Park. Several executed an escape, but all were recaptured.

KOREA WAS A UNITED NATIONS WAR
Korea was a United Nations war in which the United States was a major participant

MILITARY COMMUNICATION
This display shows the evolution of military communications throughout history.

OPERATION PEGASUS
On March 30, 1968 at 0800, the operational control of the 26th Marine Regiment at Khe Sanh passed to the 1st Cavalry Division (Airmobile) which initiated Operation PEGASUS.

THE TET OFFENSIVE 1968
Early in 1968 the Communists launched a major offensive to coincide with the traditional Vietnamese
New Year celebrations (29 to 31 January).

PALESTINIAN-ISRAELI CONFLICT
The Israeli–Palestinian conflict is an ongoing dispute between the State of Israel and the Palestinians and is part of the wider Arab–Israeli conflict. At present, major polls show the vast majority of Israelis and Palestinians agree a two-state solution is the best way to end the conflict.

GLOBE WAR ON TERRORISM
Various definitions of terrorism the difficulty in defining “terrorism” is in agreeing on a basis for determining when the use of violence (directed at whom, by whom, for what ends) is legitimate; therefore, the modern definition of terrorism is inherently controversial.

OPERATION ENDURING FREEDOM
The War in Afghanistan (Operation Enduring Freedom) began in October, 2001 in response to the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks on the United States.

OPERATION IRAQI FREEDOM
On March 19, 2003, American and British forces began Coalition bombing of Iraq--"Operation Iraqi Freedom."

FRANK LUKE
Frank, Jr. was born and raised in Arizona Territory. On January 23, 1918, he got his wings and a commission as a second lieutenant at Rockwell Field in San Diego. After a leave, he was off to catch his ship in New York and find his war in Europe.

ARIZONA AIR NATIONAL GUARD
161st ARW provides aerial refueling in support of national security. 162nd FW provide the finest fighter training programs in the world. 214th Recn Grp does intelligence surveillance & armed reconnaissance with UAV. 107th ACS Trains weapons directors.