For those interested in the early development of Tucson’s Catalina Foothills Estates area, I recently received the following brief history from the Catalina Foothills Estates No. 7 Homeowners Association, where I’m in the process of buying a home.
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A Brief History of Catalina Foothills Estates No. 7
Following the stock market crash of 1929, John Murphey needed to raise some much needed cash. The Tucson developer turned to an Arizona banker for help. Murphey owned several large tracts of land in the foothills of the Santa Catalina Mountains and he offered to sell some of this land for ten dollars per acre. The banker refused the offer and flatly stated that the land was worthless. Even Murphey, who knew land values and understood growth, would be astonished to know that some of the acres he could not market for $10 in 1930 now command over $100,000 per acre.
(Note-this piece was written in 1997. Acre lots that have sold recently in the Catalina Foothills Estates ranged in price from $265,000 to $349,000, with lots currently for sale priced from $235,000 to $1,100,000)
Although Murphey began buying much of his foothills property during the 1920’s, his first development was not begun until 1935. Murphey formed a partnership with Josias Joesler, as architect, and together they began constructing homes north of the Rillito near Campbell Avenue. Catalina Foothills Estates was one of the first planned developments in the Tucson suburbs.
Catalina Foothills Estates No. 7 was started during the summer of 1965. Lots were offered for $5,000 each near River Road and Via Entrada. By that December, six homes had been built and protective covenants established. In 1966, choice lots were being marketed for $6,500 and as new homes were built, Via Entrada was lengthened. Some of the first homes in Catalina Foothills Estates No. 7 were constructed for less than $20,000 plus the cost of the lot.
Much care was taken when the lots were drawn and sold. Utilities were buried and houses were placed in such a way to insure quality of life. Desert vegetation was protected to make certain the terrain was unspoiled. The protective covenants and the commitment of the people who have moved here make Catalina Foothills Estates No. 7 one of Tucson’s best places to live.
John Murphey would be pleased.
Larry Cox
1997
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There are 10 different Catalina Foothills Estates Associations in the Tucson Foothills, starting with Catalina Foothills Estates, and then they are numbered from No. 2 through to Catalina Foothills Estates No. 10.
For more information on Tucson's Catalina Foothills Estates, on John Murphey and Josias Joesler, check out these links.
Joeslers' in Tucson and More on, Joeslers' in Tucson and Josias Joesler:An Architectural Eclectic
