The history of the City of Peoria’s goes back to the 1880’s. As far back as humans have roamed this area, agriculture has been the reason for settlement.
Early settlers built adobe homes or lived in large tents. Agriculture and mining were the main industries through the 1800s. With a sudden growth in production at Vulture Mine came an increase in traffic along the main route through Peoria, and so it was named Grand Avenue in 1887. By 1888, Peoria was officially on the map with the establishment of a U.S. Post Office for its population of 27 residents.
To accommodate an expanding community, Central School was built in 1906 and used continuously for the next 70 years. Today it is home to the Peoria Museum where a range of artifacts and displays about the past are a record of this history of this city. The city was formally incorporated in 1954 and by 1970 the town still only had about 2,500 people living there. Today, Peoria continues to grow and prosper with a population of more than 170,000.
