The History of Downtown Gilbert
Gilbert is named for William "Bobby" Gilbert the man who sold land to the Phoenix and Eastern Railroad company and subsiquently had both a rail line and depot named after him. Gilbert was a small town that relied on farming and the railroad that passed though. The town was considered the Hay Capital of the World in the early 20th century. Downtown Gilbert started as home to a collection of general stores, as well as the schools and town hall. Not much changed for Gilbert until the 1970s when a large scale annaxation led to Gilbert growing from 2 square miles to 58 square miles. Today many of the original buildings remain in Downtown Gilbert, finding new purposes as resturaunts and stores.
