, city (1990 pop. 54,923), seat of Yuma co., extreme SW Ariz., on the eastern bank of the Colorado River near the confluence of the Gila River; founded 1854, inc. as a city 1914. It is a major trade center of an extensive farm area irrigated by the Yuma project. The project has turned more than 100,000 acres (40,470 hectares) of desert into a fertile farm region known for its cattle, citrus fruits, melons, winter vegetables, grains, and cotton. Two nearby military installations contribute to the city's economy—the sprawling Yuma Proving Grounds and a U.S. marine corps air station. Early missions were built in the area by Fathers Eusebio Kino and F. T. H. Garcés; however, settlement did not occur until after Fort Yuma was built (1850) to protect overlanders on the route to California. After 1858, Yuma was a river port and the center of a gold-mining boom. Points of interest in the area include Fort Yuma (on the west bank of the river), the territorial prison (built 1875; now a museum), St. Thomas Mission (16th cent.), three dams on the Colorado River, and the California sand dunes.

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