Del Webb Sun Cities Museum

06/14/2026

An historic artifact originally created to celebrate the nation’s bicentennial has found its way back home to the Del Webb Sun Cities Museum.

The “Sun City Bicentennial Quilt,” created by Sun City residents in 1976, was initially donated in the 1980s to the Sun Cities Area Historical Society but turned over to the West Valley Art Museum for safekeeping.

The two-sided quilt has officially been turned back over to the historical society, owners of the Del Webb Sun Cities Museum, and is featured in a new display at the museum.

Clubs existing in Sun City during the 1970s stitched squares for the front side of the quilt, and patriotic symbols for the reverse side were sewn by residents. All pieces were then woven into a large quilt first unveiled during a community celebration on Jan. 14, 1976.

The new exhibit featuring the quilt includes panels and a video explaining how the quilt was made, the clubs and crafters involved in the making of the quilt and the history of how it ended up at the museum.

The museum’s summer hours are noon-3 p.m. Sunday, Tuesday and Wednesday. Admission is $5, but free for museum members. Visit www.delwebbsuncitiesmuseum.org for more information. See less

06/12/2026

The early construction for Sun City West began in 1977 with grading and preparation of the earliest phases. By 1979, with very strong sales, much of the community to the east of Meeker Boulevard was built out. Hillcrest golf course was complete and opened in January, 1979 (center of photo) and Pebblebrook golf course opened later the same year. Stardust golf course was already under construction. The Sundome and RH Johnson recreation centers can be seen just below Hillcrest golf course, still under construction. RH Johnson Blvd was only completed to the intersection with Meeker, and the first models built in Sun City West (the early sales were using the final models in Sun City) can be seen on the lower left side of Hillcrest golf course.

Come visit the Del Webb Sun Cities Museum to learn more about the history of Del Webb and the original Sun Cities. Located in the first Sun City Model Home at 10801 W Oakmont Dr in Sun City, AZ. Summer hours are Sunday, Tuesday & Wednesday 12-3pm. Group tours are also available on request.

Photo credit to the archives of the Del Webb Sun Cities Museum and The Webb Spinner company newspaper.

06/09/2026

Hosting tournaments is nothing new to the Sun Cities. In 1980, Sun City West was the host of the first ever Senior Chess Tournament for the US Chess Federation. Players from 18 states competed in the event and got a chance to also spend time exploring the then newest Sun City branded community.

Come visit the Del Webb Sun Cities Museum to learn more about the history of Del Webb and the original Sun Cities. Located in the first Sun City Model Home at 10801 W Oakmont Dr in Sun City, AZ. Summer hours are Sunday, Tuesday & Wednesday 12-3pm. Group tours are also available on request.

Photo credit to the archives of the Del Webb Sun Cities Museum and The Webb Spinner company newspaper.

06/05/2026

By 1963, the success of Sun City in Arizona led Del Webb to build three additional Sun City communities, one in Florida southeast of Tampa, and two in California (Kern City near Bakersfield and Sun City in Riverside County). While marketing for each was often done independently, this advertisement from the early 1960’s shared the story of all three and the unique heritage they shared with the cotton fields turned into the original Sun City in Arizona. Sun City West would continue the story in the late 1970’s.

To learn how 10,000 acres of cotton became the launch pad for the communities that changed a nation, visit the Del Webb Sun Cities Museum. We are in the first model home for Sun City, 10801 W Oakmont Drive, Sun City, AZ. Summer hours are Sunday, Tuesday, Wednesday 12-3. Group tours at other times available by request.

Photo credit to the archives of the Sun Cities Area Historical Society and Museum.

06/03/2026

Before there was a museum, the Sun Cities Historical Society’s roots go back to a windowless office at the Plaza Del Sol Medical Offices. It is here that the group began the process of sorting, cataloging, and reviewing the thousands of archive materials donated by the Del Webb Development Company to the fledgling new society. This photo in 1989 from the Sun City Daily News-Sun pictured early volunteers Jeanne Woodford (left), Emil Fischer, and Agnes Fansler sorting through materials. Many of those items are now part of the museum and are part of the extensive archives we house today. From humble beginnings to the 2025 Best of the West Valley Museum of the Year.

Come see the history of the original Sun Cities come alive, visit the Del Webb Sun Cities Museum at 10801 W Oakmont Dr in Arizona’s Sun City. We are in the first original model home from 1960. Hours are Sunday, Tuesday, Wednesday 12-3. Private group tours are also available by request.

Photo credit to the archives of the Del Webb Sun Cities Museum and the April 3, 1989 edition of the Sun City Daily News-Sun newspaper.

06/01/2026

One of the Del Webb Company’s early big “build a city” projects was the construction of San Manuel, Arizona, pictured in its early phases in November, 1953. The Webb Corporation was one of the primary contractors enlisted to build an entire community to support the 40,000 employees of the Magma Copper Mines. Beyond houses, building San Manuel meant also building all the infrastructure to support an entire small city. San Manuel bustled with activity while the mining operation flourished, but has sadly declined in more recent years with the closure of the mines in 1999.

Come visit the Del Webb Sun Cities Museum to learn more about the history of Del Webb and the original Sun Cities. Located in the first Sun City Model Home at 10801 W Oakmont Dr in Sun City, AZ. Summer hours are Sunday, Tuesday & Wednesday 12-3pm. Group tours are also available on request.

Photo credit to the archives of the Del Webb Sun Cities Museum and The Webb Spinner company newspaper.

05/30/2026

Our museum is grateful for the support of our members, guests, amazing volunteers and our business partnerships. We could not thrive without all of you. We appreciate the friendship and support of The Arizona Questers. If you enjoy exploring history, you might enjoy being part of the Questers. For more information, check out their website and find a local chapter at https://www.azquesters.org . Thank you to the Questers for your continued support of the Del Webb Sun Cities Museum.

The Arizona State Questers promotes preservation, restoration, and education projects in Greater Phoenix, Arizona, including Tempe, Scottsdale, Mesa, Glendale, Peoria, Sun City, and other communities in Arizona.

05/28/2026

A young Bob Barker stands in front of a Sun City, California home, along with a brand new car in January, 1963. Both the house and the car were prizes on nationally broadcast “Truth or Consequences” game show. Sun City, California was launched in 1962 as the third Sun City branded community behind Sun City in Arizona and Sun City in Florida. Today, Sun City, California is part of the city of Menifee.

To learn more about the history of the original Sun Cities, visit the Del Webb Sun Cities Museum, 10801 W Oakmont Dr in Sun City, AZ. Sunday, Tuesday and Wednesday 12-3.

Photo credit to the archives of the Del Webb Sun Cities Museum and the Webb Spinner (company newspaper).

05/23/2026

Who was the person the largest Sun Cities recreation center was named after? Robert H. Johnson (right in the photo with Del Webb) began his career as the sixth employee hired by the then small Del E Webb Construction Company. From his start as an accounting clerk, he would rise to ultimately succeed his boss and mentor, Del Webb, as CEO and Chairman at Webb’s passing in 1974. Johnson retired from the company in 1981 and went on to head the Del Webb Foundation for several years until shortly before his passing in 2009.

To learn more about the history of the original Sun Cities, visit the Del Webb Sun Cities Museum, 10801 W Oakmont Dr in Sun City, AZ. Sunday, Tuesday and Wednesday 12-3.

Photo credit to the archives of the Del Webb Sun Cities Museum and the Webb Spinner (company newspaper).

05/21/2026