Editing Florence, Arizona (section)

===Adamsville===
In 1870, Fred Adams founded a farming community two miles west of the original Florence townsite. The farming town had stores, homes, a post office, a flour mill, and water tanks, It was named Adamsville. In the 1900s (decade), the [[Gila River]] overflowed after a storm and ran over its banks. Most of the small town was wiped out and the residents moved to Florence. The area where the town was established is now a [[ghost town]] and is currently within the boundaries of Florence. At the junction of Highway 79 and 287 there is a historical marker about Adamsville.<ref>[http://www.ghosttowns.com/states/az/adamsville.html Ghost towns]</ref>

A canal was built in the 1880s which enabled water from the Gila River to be diverted for irrigation. Farming and ranching then played a major role in Florence's economy. All of the federal land transactions for Southern Arizona were conducted in Florence until 1881, when the [[Federal Land Office]] was moved to [[Tucson, Arizona|Tucson]].