Here are 5 interesting facts about March 17 in Arizona history:

1. In 1864, the Arizona Territory was established by the U.S. Congress, making it the 48th state. The new territory stretched from the Colorado River in the west to what is now New Mexico in the east, and from the Gila River in the south to the 37th parallel in the north.

2. In 1883, the first train arrived in Tucson, bringing with it the promise of faster transportation and greater economic opportunities for the city and the region. The Southern Pacific Railroad would eventually connect Tucson to Los Angeles and San Francisco, as well as to the rest of the country.

3. In 1927, Charles Lindbergh made a stop in Phoenix during his historic transcontinental flight from New York to San Diego. The Spirit of St. Louis, his famous monoplane, attracted a crowd of thousands to the city's old Sky Harbor airport, which had opened just two years earlier.

4. In 1930, the Hoover Dam, one of the engineering marvels of the 20th century, began to rise from the Colorado River on the border between Arizona and Nevada. The dam would provide power to millions of people in the Southwest, as well as irrigate farms and control floods in the region.

5. In 1991, the Arizona Diamondbacks were officially announced as the newest Major League Baseball franchise, bringing the state into the big leagues for the first time. The team began play in 1998 and won its first National League pennant in 2001, just four years after its debut.