Tempe Historic Property Survey

The Arizona cotton industry began around 1912 when a special hybrid of Egyptian cotton, known as Pima long-staple cotton, became an important cash crop for valley farmers. In 1914, Charles Waterhouse, president of the Salt River Valley Cotton Growers Association, joined with several prominent Tempe businessmen to establish Tempe's first cotton gin. The Tempe Cotton Exchange had two ginning areas, two seedhouses, and a large yard where bales of cotton were stored until they could be shipped to eastern mills. During the havest season, the gin operated non-stop to produce twenty five 500-pound bales a day.

Besides producing cotton lint, an important byproduct of the gin was USDA certified Pima cottonseed, which was used for planting the following year's crop. The seedhouse, where the seeds were stored, was a very important part of the gin. This octagonal concrete structure had several wedge-shaped compartments. The cupola on top could be turned so that seeds would be dumped into only one compartment at a time, allowing each farmer's seed crop to be stored separately. The seedhouse was the last remaining structure of the Tempe Cotton Exchange. It was demolished in 1991.

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