Dailey ArleneDuring the Mexican struggle for independence from Spain (between 1810 and 1821), Spain was unable to maintain military control over Arizona lands. Taking advantage of this situation, local Indians attacked and destroyed all missions and settlements except Tubac and Tucson.
In 1824 Arizona passed from Spanish rule to Mexican rule. The surviving mission lands were redistributed to the Mexican colonists, but the region’s rule itself changed very little.
During these times trappers and traders (moving in small groups of colonists) from the United States began to move into the interior of Arizona. Perhaps the first American to discover Arizona in late 1825 was James Ohio Pattie, followed by Kit Carson, Michel Robidoux, and others in early 1826.
The number of colonists from the United States increased rapidly, and as the number of traders also increased with it, very soon Mexico faced the problem of coexistence and the development of further relations between the two countries, Mexico and the United States.