<DIV><p>Phoenix is known as the &ldquo;Valley of the Sun,&rdquo; while Tucson is referred to as &ldquo;The Old Pueblo.&rdquo; These nicknames epitomize the difference in the public&rsquo;s perception of each city. Phoenix continues to sprawl as one of America&rsquo;s largest and fastest-growing cities. Tucson has witnessed a slower rate of growth, and has only one quarter of Phoenix&rsquo;s population. This was not always the case. Prior to 1920, Tucson had a larger population. How did two cities, with such close physical proximity and similar natural environments develop so differently?</p><p><I>Desert Cities</I> examines the environmental circumstances that led to the starkly divergent growth of these two cities. Michael Logan traces this significant imbalance to two main factors: water resources and cultural differences. Both cities began as agricultural communities. Phoenix had the advantage of a larger water supply, the Salt River, which has four and one half times the volume of Tucson&rsquo;s Santa Cruz River. Because Phoenix had a larger river, it received federal assistance in the early twentieth century for the Salt River project, which provided water storage facilities. Tucson received no federal aid. Moreover, a significant cultural difference existed. Tucson, though it became a U.S. possession in 1853, always had a sizable Hispanic population. Phoenix was settled in the 1870s by Anglo pioneers who brought their visions of landscape development and commerce with them.</p><p>By examining the factors of watershed, culture, ethnicity, terrain, political favoritism, economic development, and history, <I>Desert Cities</I> offers a comprehensive evaluation that illuminates the causes of growth disparity in two major southwestern cities and provides a model for the study of bi-city resource competition.</p></DIV>