Editing Rancho Mirage, California (section)

==History==
Native Americans came to the area 2,000 years ago. The local tribe in Rancho Mirage is the [[Agua Caliente Indian Reservation|Agua Caliente Indian]] tribe of [[Cahuilla people|Cahuilla]] Indians. The tribe was almost annihilated by [[smallpox]] in 1862–63 but survived, today establishing a resort and casino within the modern city limits. An ancient Native-American trade route, the [[Halchidhoma]] trade route, follows the water holes and water springs along the foothills of the [[Santa Rosa Mountains (California)|Santa Rosa Mountains]]. A segment of this trail is now part of [[California State Route 111]] in Rancho Mirage. The trade route originally reached from the Pacific Ocean in the west to central Arizona, and was used for centuries for trading, food, and for religious purposes. About 1,000 years ago, the local Cahuilla tribes were introduced to pottery from Native American tribes by the Colorado River. The Spaniards also knew of the Coco-Mariposa Trail in the 1820s when they would send letters by Cahuilla runners along the trail to the mission in [[Tucson, Arizona]].{{sfn|Mallette|2011|p=8}} The natural environment in Rancho Mirage has supplied the Cahuilla people with various water sources. Although rare in such [[arid]] desert environments, the Cahuilla had access to Magnesia Spring in Magnesia Spring Canyon, which is 1.5 miles from [[Whitewater River (California)|Whitewater River]]. In addition, a variety of natural [[Spring (hydrology)|springs]] are situated along the [[San Andreas Fault]] line near [[Indio Hills]].{{sfn|Clevenger|1980|p=4}}

Throughout the 1920s, the area was open desert dotted with [[Date (fruit)|date]] and [[grape]] ranches. In 1928, {{convert|160|acre|ha|abbr=on}} here were purchased by the Southland Land and Realty Company. Access was planned by camel on roads given North-African names, including Tunis Road, Tangier Road, and Sahara Road. The [[1929 Depression]] put an end to the plans. A few years later, a Los Angeles realtor, Lawrence Macomber, purchased hundreds of acres here. Along with Don Cameron, the two began offering property here advertised as "fifteen minutes from Palm Springs, CA." They were able to attract actor [[Frank Morgan]], among others, until the onset of World War II brought development to an end once again. In 1944, hundreds of acres were bought by Major [[A. Ronald Button]]. He described it as "the most wind free area I could find in the desert." Two years later, in 1946, [[Henry L. Gogerty]] established an airstrip here and later launched the Desert Air Hotel and Airpark.{{sfn|Riche|Riche|2018|p=15}}

The Annenberg Estate or '[[Sunnylands]]', owned by philanthropists [[Walter Annenberg|Walter]] and [[Leonore Annenberg]], was popular with the wealthy and powerful, including [[Frank Sinatra]], [[Bob Hope]], [[Fred Astaire]], [[Ginger Rogers]], [[Patrick Macnee]], [[Zeppo Marx]] and [[Mary Martin]]. Several [[U.S. President]]s vacationed at the Annenberg estate, including [[Richard Nixon]], [[Ronald Reagan]], [[Gerald Ford]], and [[Barack Obama]]. President Ford later purchased a house in Rancho Mirage and was living there at the time of his death in 2006. The [[Betty Ford Center]], an addiction rehabilitation center, is located in Rancho Mirage at the [[Eisenhower Medical Center]]. President Obama also used Sunnylands for summit meetings with world leaders during his administration.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2016/02/08/us/politics/obama-revives-the-republican-glory-years-of-sunnylands-estate.html |title=Obama Revives the Republican Glory Years of Sunnylands Estate |first=Mark |last=Landler |date=February 7, 2016 |newspaper=[[The New York Times]]}}</ref>

[[File:Sunnylands_historic_house.jpg|thumb|right|[[Sunnylands]]]]
Some of the first places of accommodation to be established were the White Sun Guest Ranch and Wonder Palms Ranch, and later Desert Air Hotel and Thunderbird Ranch in the 1940s. The 320-acre Desert Air Hotel was purchased by the [[Omni Hotels & Resorts|Rancho Las Palmas Country Club]] in the 1970s.{{sfn|Mallette|2011|p=9}} Rancho Las Palmas has Spanish architecture consisting of wood walls, [[Saltillo tile]]s, and high ceilings. The resort, which is the city's third-largest employer, is located on a 249-acre property in the center of Rancho Mirage, across Bob Hope Drive from The River, an outdoor shopping center. It has a 27-hole golf course.{{sfn|Osbaldeston|2009|p=32}}

Thunderbird Ranch, which opened in 1946, was purchased by [[Johnny Dawson]], who established [[Coachella Valley]]'s first 18-hole golf course. [[Thunderbird Country Club]] was established in 1950, and the [[golf cart]]{{sfn|Mallette|2011|p=9}} or electric golf cart{{sfn|Mahler|2005|p=125}} is rumored to have been invented at Thunderbird. [[Ford Thunderbird]] is also named for the country club.{{sfn|Mallette|2011|p=9}}{{sfn|Riche|Riche|2018|p=12}} [[Tamarisk Country Club]] soon followed in the 1950s, and later an array of country clubs were established in the city: Desert Island Golf and Country Club in 1971, Sunrise Country Club in 1974, [[Mission Hills Country Club]] in 1979, the Club at Morningside (1982), Rancho Mirage Country Club (1985), and [[Westin Hotels|Westin]] [[Host Hotels & Resorts|Mission Hills Resort and Spa]] (1987).{{sfn|Mallette|2011|p=9}} Rancho Mirage was incorporated in 1973 from a merger of five unincorporated areas known as the "Cove communities" (Rancho Mirage, Desert, Palmas, Tamarisk, and Thunderbird), and had 3,000 permanent residents at the time.{{sfn|Copp|2008|p=41}}

[[File:AguaCaliente_Casino.jpg|thumb|right|[[Agua Caliente Casino Resort Spa]] is the only skyscraper in the Coachella Valley.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://ranchomirageca.gov/our-city/about-rancho-mirage/ | title=About Rancho Mirage - City of Rancho Mirage }}</ref>]]

In 2001, the [[Agua Caliente Band of Cahuilla Indians]] established the [[Agua Caliente Casino Resort Spa|Agua Caliente Casino]] on the intersection of Bob Hope Drive and Ramon Road off [[Interstate 10]]. It was the second casino to be built in the Coachella Valley.{{sfn|Garner|2020|p=75}} The casino is a popular destination for locals, tourists, and gambling enthusiasts. In 2008 the tribal board completed the expansion of the Agua Caliente resort, which includes a 16-story hotel and spa, as well as remodeling the casino and expanding the parking structures. A theater for top-name entertainers opened in 2009. Though the Agua Caliente Resort and Casino was just outside the border of Rancho Mirage in an unincorporated area, the City of Rancho Mirage included the property as part of the city in an agreement with the tribe so they would have access to police and firefighting services.

Rancho Mirage has expanded its economy from one based on seasonal, resort-based golfing and rentals, to include light industry and commerce near the I-10 and high-end retail centers like The River shopping complex on Highway 111 and Bob Hope Drive.{{citation needed|date=May 2018}}

A new residential development for [[senior citizens]] by [[PulteGroup|Pulte Homes, Inc.]], known as Del Webb Rancho Mirage, will open in the year 2020.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Murphy |first1=Rosalie |title=1,000-home development for people 55+ breaks ground in Rancho Mirage |url=https://www.desertsun.com/story/money/real-estate/2017/09/07/1000-home-active-adult-development-breaks-ground-rancho-mirage/642672001/ |work=The Desert Sun |date=September 7, 2017 }}</ref> It is the third local development by the company after Sun City Palm Desert and Sun City Shadow Hills in [[Indio, California|Indio]].

In March 2021, it was announced that Rancho Mirage would be the site of first US neighborhood composed completely of 3D-printed, zero net energy homes.<ref>{{Cite web|date=March 19, 2021|title='The future of housing': California desert to get America's first 3D-printed neighborhood|url=http://www.theguardian.com/technology/2021/mar/18/california-housing-coachella-3d-printed-houses|access-date=April 1, 2021|website=the Guardian|language=en}}</ref> The project is a joint effort from companies Palari and Mighty Buildings.<ref>{{Cite web|title=This new California housing development aims to become the first 3D-printed zero net energy neighborhood|url=https://archinect.com/news/article/150256673/this-new-california-housing-development-aims-to-become-the-first-3d-printed-zero-net-energy-neighborhood|access-date=April 1, 2021|website=Archinect|language=en}}</ref> It will comprise 15 homes, and are expected to be completed by 2022.<ref>{{Cite web|date=March 24, 2021|title=First-ever neighborhood of 3D-printed homes to be built in California|url=https://www.independent.co.uk/climate-change/3d-printed-homes-california-eco-b1821865.html|access-date=April 1, 2021|website=The Independent|language=en}}</ref>

In February 2022, [[The Walt Disney Company]] announced that Rancho Mirage will be the location of its first [[Storyliving by Disney]] community. Named Cotino, the community will be developed in collaboration with DMB Development of [[Scottsdale, Arizona]].<ref name="DSE1">{{cite web |title=Disney Launches New Business to Develop Residential Communities |url=https://dse.news/releases/2022/02/16/disney-launches-new-business-to-develop-residential-communities/ |website=DSE.News |date=February 16, 2022 |publisher=Disney Signature Experiences |access-date=February 17, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220217200214/https://dse.news/releases/2022/02/16/disney-launches-new-business-to-develop-residential-communities/ |archive-date=February 17, 2022}}</ref>

===Etymology===
The name is both [[Spanish language|Spanish]] ("Rancho") and [[French language|French]] ("Mirage"). One story of the name's origin relates to a woman of the name Ruth Wheeler who visited Magnesia Falls Canyon and named the ranch she saw in a distance a [[mirage]].{{sfn|Mallette|2011|p=9}} The area adopted the name Rancho Mirage in 1934.{{sfn|Young|2011|p={{page needed|date=November 2021}}}}{{sfn|Young|2009|p={{page needed|date=November 2021}}}} The City of Rancho Mirage was incorporated under the same name on August 3, 1973.{{sfn|Bignell|2019|p=3}}{{sfn|Starr|2011|p=323}}<ref>{{cite book |last1=Low |first1=Setha |chapter=How private interests take over public space: Zoning, taxes, and incorporation of gated communities |pages=81–104 |editor1-last=Low |editor1-first=Setha |editor2-last=Smith |editor2-first=Neil |title=The Politics of Public Space |date=2013 |publisher=Routledge |isbn=978-1-136-08122-4 }}</ref>{{sfn|Van Vechten|2010|p=174}}

===Presidential history===
[[File:President_George_W._Bush,_Former_President_Gerald_Ford,_and_Betty_Ford.jpg|thumb|President [[George W. Bush]] greeting the media in Rancho Mirage with President [[Gerald Ford]] and [[Betty Ford]]]]
[[File:President_Benigno_S._Aquino_III_poses_with_United_States_President_Barack_Obama_and_fellow_Association_of_Southeast_Asian_Nations_(ASEAN)_Leaders.jpg|thumb|left|President [[Barack Obama]] at the 2016 US-[[ASEAN|ASEAN Summit]] in Rancho Mirage]]
[[File:President Ronald Reagan meeting with Secretary of State George Shultz.jpg|thumb|right|President Reagan meeting with Secretary of State [[George Shultz]] at the [[Annenberg Estate]]]]

Rancho Mirage has been nicknamed the "Playground of the Presidents" due to its extensive history of U.S. presidents residing in and visiting the city. For example, President [[Harry Truman]] regularly visited the [[Tamarisk Country Club]], while President [[Dwight D. Eisenhower]] lived nearby. President [[Gerald Ford]] and First Lady [[Betty Ford]] were residents of Rancho Mirage for thirty years.{{sfn|Mallette|2011|p=71}} The Fords moved to [[Thunderbird Country Club]] after leaving office.<ref name="Murphy20170118">{{cite news |last1=Murphy |first1=Rosalie |date=January 18, 2017 |title=Six of last seven presidents visited the Palm Springs area after leaving the White House |work=The Desert Sun |url=https://www.desertsun.com/story/news/politics/2017/01/18/former-presidents-coachella-valley-obama/96682614/}}</ref>

Walter and Leonore Annenberg's estate, [[Sunnylands]], became known as the western White House during the [[Richard Nixon]] administration in the 1960s. At the time, the estate also became the biggest single-family home in the county. President [[Dwight D. Eisenhower]] also stayed here and President Richard Nixon wrote his last [[State of the Union]] here. President [[Ronald Reagan]] was also a regular visitor at Sunnylands and Presidents Gerald Ford, [[Jimmy Carter]], [[Bill Clinton]], and [[George W. Bush]] have all been visitors here. While President [[George H. W. Bush]] had an official summit here with Japanese Prime Minister [[Toshiki Kaifu]] in 1990, [[Queen Elizabeth II]] of Britain visited in 1980.{{sfn|Baker|2008|p=10}}{{sfn|Baker|2008|pp=117–118}} President [[Barack Obama]] spent two days here in 2013 where he visited with President [[Xi Jinping]] of China. President Obama then became the eighth U.S. president to visit Sunnylands. President Ronald Reagan attended eighteen New Year's Eve celebrations in Rancho Mirage,<ref>{{cite news |last1=Shapiro |first1=Ari |title=Sunnylands: Where Movie Stars And Presidents Play (And Work) |url=https://www.npr.org/2013/06/06/189255912/sunnylands-where-movie-stars-and-presidents-play-and-work |work=NPR |date=June 6, 2013 }}</ref> including every year during the [[Reagan Administration]].{{sfn|Mahler|2005|p=124}}

President [[George H. W. Bush]] played golf with [[Bill Clinton]] in Rancho Mirage throughout the 1990s. President Richard Nixon went to Rancho Mirage a month prior to announcing his resignation from office. Nixon signed the Sunnylands' guestbook on the day he was issued a full pardon from President Ford.<ref name=Murphy20170118/> [[Thunderbird Country Club]] has hosted presidents such as [[John F. Kennedy]], [[Lyndon B. Johnson]], Richard Nixon, Gerald Ford, George H.W. Bush, and Dwight D. Eisenhower. President [[Barack Obama]] visited the country club on Presidents Day in 2020. President Obama hosted three world summits in Rancho Mirage during his presidency.<ref name="kesq.com">{{Cite web|url=https://kesq.com/news/2020/02/17/barack-obama-in-rancho-mirage-for-presidents-day/|title = Barack Obama in Rancho Mirage for Presidents Day|date = February 18, 2020}}</ref> He hosted the first-ever U.S. summit with the [[Association of Southeast Asian Nations]] (ASEAN) in Rancho Mirage on February 15–16, 2016.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Eilperin |first1=Juliet |title=With European trade deal unfinished, Obama to head to Germany in the spring |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/post-politics/wp/2015/12/30/with-european-trade-deal-unfinished-obama-to-head-to-germany-in-the-spring/ |newspaper=Washington Post |date=December 30, 2015 }}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last1=Makinen |first1=Julie |title=Obama hosts ASEAN summit, a first in the U.S. |url=https://www.latimes.com/world/asia/la-fg-asean-summit-qa-20160215-story.html |work=Los Angeles Times |date=February 15, 2016 }}</ref> He also hosted [[King Abdullah II of Jordan]] here in 2014.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Parsons |first1=Christi |title=Obama is turning Sunnylands estate into Camp David West |url=https://www.latimes.com/nation/la-na-obama-sunnylands-20140214-story.html |work=Los Angeles Times |date=February 14, 2014 }}</ref>

President [[Donald Trump]] visited a fundraising event at Porcupine Creek in Rancho Mirage in February 2020.<ref name="kesq.com"/><ref>{{cite news |last1=Bohannan |first1=Larry |title=Porcupine Creek, site of Trump's upcoming fundraiser, one of the desert's most intriguing golf properties |url=https://www.desertsun.com/story/sports/golf/2020/02/13/larry-ellisons-california-rancho-mirage-golf-property-trump-visit-politics/4751560002/ |work=The Desert Sun |date=February 13, 2020 }}</ref>

President [[Gerald Ford]] died on December 26, 2006, at his home in Rancho Mirage. His first [[Death and state funeral of Gerald Ford|funeral service]] took place in the city days before those first in Washington, 
D.C., on January 2, 2007, and then in Grand Rapids on January 4 that same year.{{Sfn|McDowell|2021|p={{page needed|date=November 2021}}}} First Lady [[Betty Ford]] died on July 8, 2011, in Rancho Mirage.{{sfn|Yenne|2020|p=208}}