In the early 1930s, Safford Freeman and his family settled in this area after applying for a patent under the Homestead Act. They were granted 640 acres to farm, graze, or mine. Here Freeman constructed a three room adobe home, along with several outbuildings and a well. In the early 1950s, the Freeman Homestead, along with many other home sites, was purchased by the National Park Service to protect all the lands within Saguaro National Park.