Nomadic hunters from the Great Plains made their way to the Little Colorado River approximately 12,000 years ago.  That movement gave rise to the Anasazi culture which spread across the Colorado Plateau.  , which encompasses a large part of Coconino County. By the 1600's, tribes consisted of the Hopi, Havasupai, Pai (Yavapai and Walapai) and the Paiutes. In the 1850's military expeditions passed through the area between the Little Colorado River and the Verde River.

In 1857, Edward F. Beale, an ex-Navy Lieutenant, led an expedition to survey the unexplored territory between El Paso, Texas and the Colorado River, which was later most notably associated with the legendary “Camel Experiment”. The “U.S. Camel Corps” was born on March 3, 1855 when Congress appropriated $30,000 for the project that funded the procurement of camels to be used by the U.S. Army in the “Great American Desert”. Beale was allotted 25 camels and they proved to be worthwhile despite their foul smell, bad tempers, and kicking and spitting. The camels were “retired” in 1863 and Beale was honored with a wagon road named after him.  Settlers migrated into the region from the north during the 1870s and 1880s. Mormon settlers first set up camp at Lee’s Ferry on the Colorado River and continued on to Fredonia, Jacob’s Lake, Tuba City and Mormon Lake. In 1883, the Atlantic & Pacific Railroad was completed across Arizona and westward.  Logging and cattle ranching were the major industries.