In the early to mid-1880s, U.S. Army Chaplain Winfield Scott visited the Salt River Valley and was impressed with its potential for agriculture. Returning in 1888 with his wife Helen, he purchased 640 acres of land where downtown Scottsdale is now. Winfield and his brother George Washington Scott became the town's first residents. It was soon known as Orangedale due to the large citrus groves the Scotts planted.

The area that includes what became Scottsdale was inhabited by the Hohokam from approximately 300 BC to 1450 AD. This ancient civilization farmed the area and developed a complex network of canals for irrigation that was unsurpassed in pre-Columbian North America. At its peak, the canals stretched over 250 miles. Many remain extant today, and some have been renovated and put back into use. The Hohokam disappeared around 1450 or 1500 under mysterious circumstances, most likely because of a prolonged drought.

The city was dubbed "the West's Most Western Town" decades ago, and a ride through Old Town Scottsdale still showcases cowboy signs and horses. Many of the buildings have Western facades, including Scottsdale's first post office, the Sugar Bowl ice cream parlor, and the Rusty Spur Saloon.

The Depression years saw an influx of artists and architects to Scottsdale, including Frank Lloyd Wright. In 1937, Wright and his wife purchased 600 desert acres at the foot of the McDowell Mountains and established Taliesin West, his winter home and his architectural firm's southwestern headquarters. His influence on the regional architecture is commemorated by a major street bearing his name and a 125-foot (38 m) spire memorial designed by Wright himself in North Scottsdale.

No physical evidence of Camp Papago Park remains today in what is now a residential section of Scottsdale, near the Cross-cut Canal. But during World War II, about 375 Americans guarded more than 4,000 German prisoners. In December 1944, twenty-five POWs escaped into the surrounding desert after digging a 176-foot-long tunnel without being detected. Though the camp proved easy enough to escape, the vast distances and desert terrain of Arizona were insurmountable, and most of the prisoners returned to the camp within a few weeks.

In 1994, Scottsdale Mayor Herb Drinkwater declared chili the city's official food by mayoral proclamation.

The Arizona Cowboy College has been training cowboys since 1980. Prospective cowboys are taught how to work successfully on a ranch, ride a horse, and read livestock behavior.

Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure takes place in San Dimas, California, but the actual filming location was Scottsdale's Coronado High School.

The city is in the Salt River Valley, or the "Valley of the Sun," in the northern reaches of the Sonoran Desert.

Scottsdale is home to a variety of nightclubs, restaurants, hotels, lounges, and bars, most notably in the Old-Town district, where visitors can get a tropical vibe with the 1950s era Cuban style Canal Club, enjoy the well crafted cocktail at the LGBTQ+ friendly AZ88, or sip on some local wines at LDV Winery.