As with many towns in the United States, Superior began as a place known to Native Americans. In the 1870s, a group of Apache warriors refused to surrender to the United States military. They leapt from a mountain instead of surrendering; the mountain became known as Apache Leap and is located near modern-day Superior. The town was eventually developed and named Superior because of the Lake Superior and Arizona Copper Company.

The company developed the town as a mining town. The mine was operational for almost 90 years before closing. During its operation, Superior supplied millions of tons of copper. Oftentimes, that copper was transported through nearby towns of Phoenix and Tucson. Superior is about an hour away from Phoenix and an hour away from Tucson. If you book an RV in Superior, you can drive along routes that likely carried valuable copper in decades past.