Monday, May 18, 2009

Living among the palm trees

There is a neighborhood in east Phoenix that was once a date palm grove. In fact this whole area was dedicated to citrus and dates and much of it was part of Phoenix Date and Citrus. The property was sold to Charles Gilliland in 1923 and it became known as the Gilliland Groves. It was 108 acres producing citrus and dates and at one time was the largest date grove in the United States.

I took this photo from 44th Street so that you could see the expanse of trees that dominate the area. You can see the roof tops of modest single family homes that were built in the area during the 1970’s. In the distance you can see a dense grove of trees. In that area, the buildings that belonged to the original date farm are still standing and have been lovingly converted into condominiums.

Over the next few days, I’ll take you on a tour of that historic area so you can see what it is like living among the tall date palms and the old eucalyptus trees.

6 comments:

  1. All that concrete makes me feel sad about the demise of the grove.

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  2. It must have been magnificent when it was all fruit trees

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  3. i love the number of palm trees in the area. i also really like the historic houses so I hope you share a few of those gems.

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  4. I wonder what it would be like to live under all those magnificent palms.

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  5. "I’ll take you on a tour of that historic area so you can see what it is like living among the tall date palms and the old eucalyptus trees."

    Yum, looking forward to it.

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  6. I just wanted to thank you for this wonderful older post Sharon ~ I have lived in Palma Viva for five years ~ it's one of the most special & peaceful places to live in Phoenix! Due to the prime location, most of the units go fast ~ if anyone is interested in renting or purchasing, feel free to contact me at sothebys4arizona@hotmail.com

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