The city of Tempe, Arizona is situated in the county of Maricopa. It lies east of Phoenix in an area known as East Valley. The cities of Guadalupe and Phoenix are on the west, Scottsdale toward the north, Chandler to the south, and Mesa toward the east. The United States Airways Group corporate head office is located in the city, as is the Arizona State University's biggest and oldest "Tempe" campus. The city of Tempe was recorded as having a population of approximately 161,719 during 2010 by the Census Bureau. The name of the city originates from the Vale of Tempe within Greece.
It was the Hohokam who originally claimed the land where the city of Tempe now sits. They constructed canals to help support their agriculture. However, during the 15th century the Hohokam abandoned their settlements. Just a few people decided to remain.
Fort McDowell was established in an area just 25 miles from present-day Tempe, way back during 1865. This new fort allowed for further construction of towns down the Salt River. To be able to help supply the fort, several US military service members along with Hispanic workers were hired to farm the land to grow animal weed and food. Within a year, these new settlers set up small camps near the river. These will turn into the very first permanent communities within the Valley after Hohokam fell to ruin.
The city of Tempe is dedicating to preserving the arts. The Community Center Complex, that is open to both children and adults, provides a wide assortment of classes that explore the performing and visual arts, as well as other subjects. More than 405,000 books are kept within the Tempe Public Library, a $12 million structure dedicated to preserving Tempe's rich cultural heritage. Other historic data can be found in the Tempe Historical Museum, that consists of numerous exhibits and collection on display. The Tempe Symphony Orchestra provides several free concerts yearly which are performed at the Boyle Auditorium. Frank Lloyd Wright designed the Grady Gammage Memorial Auditorium within the Arizona State University, which can seat over 3,000. The Spring and Fall Art Festivals are held by Downtown Tempe and are extremely popular with both residents and tourists. Tempe is also home to numerous stand-up comedy clubs as well as professional theatre places, such as the Tempe Center for the Arts.
US Airways and Insight Enterprises are two big Fortune 500s which have their headquarters in Tempe City. Other important businesses in the city of Tempe, comprise LifeLock, Limelight Networks, First Solar, the Salt River Project, Mobile Mini, Circle K and Fulton Homes. Arizona State University's largest campus is within Tempe. Until 2007, the city of Tempe was the host of the Fiesta Bowl. Since then, the city of Tempe has hosted the Insight Bowl.