The Laveen area has been inhabited by farmers and dairymen since the 1870's as well as populated and traveled across by the Pima & Maricopa tribal members. The area was formally given the name Laveen after the first postmaster, Walter E. Laveen, around 1918. The first school was built in 1913 on land donated by the Laveen family. Before 1911, when Roosevelt Dam was built to contain the Salt River, the community was isolated by the running water of the Salt. Before the dams were built, Central Avenue was the only bridged crossing of the Salt River. Early Laveen had a country store/post office, barber shop, blacksmith shop, garage, women's club building, pool hall and cotton gin and was quite self-sufficient.
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