Apache Wells is the name of both fictional and real locations in southern Arizona.
Apache Wells, Arizona | |
|---|---|
Populated place | |
  Apache Wells Location of Apache Wells in Arizona | |
| Coordinates: 33°27′34″N 111°42′39″W / 33.45944°N 111.71083°W | |
| Country | United States |
| State | Arizona |
| County | Maricopa |
| Area | |
• Total | 1 sq mi (3 km2) |
| Elevation | 1,427 ft (435 m) |
| Time zone | UTC-7 (Mountain (MST)) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC-7 (MST) |
| ZIP codes | 85205 |
| Area code | 480 |
| FIPS code | 04-02900 |
| GNIS feature ID | 36924 |
Fictional Apache Wells
editIn fiction, particularly in Western movies, "Apache Wells" is a common name for a fictional location in the Old West, generally a remote stagecoach way station, typically in southern Arizona. It first came into conspicuous public use in John Ford's classic 1939 western movie Stagecoach,[2] the film that elevated John Wayne to stardom. (The film also had remakes in 1966 and 1986).
Subsequent westerns set partly, or chiefly, in or around the fictional "Apache Wells" have included:
- Duel at Apache Wells (1957)[3]
- Apache Territory (1958),[4]
- Convict Stage (1965),[5]
- Rampage at Apache Wells (1966),[6]
- 40 Guns to Apache Pass (1967),[7][8]
At the time that the fictional "Apache Wells" first came into use, there was not any actual town of Apache Wells in Arizona, but there were two small, remote settlements in southern Arizona with closely related names: Apache Junction, and Desert Wells — both of which had existed since the 1800s, when they had been sites of stagecoach way stations.
Real Apache Wells
editToday, Apache Wells is a populated place and retirement community situated within the boundaries of the city of Mesa (a major suburb of Phoenix, part of the Phoenix Metropolitan Area) in Maricopa County, in the state of Arizona, in the United States.[9] Apache Wells was established in 1962 and developed by the Hughes family.[10] It has an estimated elevation of 1,427 feet (435 m) above sea level, and is approximately one square mile in size.
References
edit- ^ "Feature Detail Report for: Apache Wells". Geographic Names Information System. United States Geological Survey, United States Department of the Interior.
- ^ Bandy, Mary Lea; and Kevin Stoehr: "The Big Trail and Stagecoach," Oct 1, 2012, in Ride, Boldly Ride: The Evolution of the American Western, p.95, University of California Press, retrieved February 16, 2022
- ^ "Duel at Apache Wells: 1957", Internet Movie Database, retrieved February 16, 2022
- ^ Chennault, Nicholas: "Apache Territory," February 9, 2015, in "Great Western Movies," retrieved February 16, 2022
- ^ "Convict Stage (1965) - Overview - TCM.com". tcm.com. Retrieved 2024-08-30.
- ^ "Rampage at Apache Wells: 1966," Turner Classic Movies, retrieved February 16, 2022
- ^ "40 Guns to Apache Pass: 1967," Internet Movie Database, retrieved February 16, 2022
- ^ "40 Guns to Apache Pass (1967); Plot," Internet Movie Database, retrieved February 16, 2022
- ^ "Apache Wells (in Maricopa County, AZ) Populated Place Profile". AZ Hometown Locator. Retrieved January 8, 2016.
- ^ "Apache Wells HOA - History of Apache Wells". Retrieved 2021-11-12.