What is now the AZER was chartered as the Gila Valley Globe and Northern Railway (GVGN) in 1885. Before completion to Globe in 1899, the GVGN came under the control of the Arizona Eastern Railroad (AE). The AE was leased by the Southern Pacific Railroad (SP) in 1905 and merged into the SP system in 1924. SP sold the Bowie – Miami line to Kyle Railroad in 1988. Kyle was purchased by shortline holding company StatesRail in 1995. StatesRail was purchased by RailAmerica (RA) in 2001. RA sold the AZER to Permian Basin Railways on December 9, 2004.

Of historical note, the Gila Valley Globe & Northern’s first locomotive – appropriately GVGN number 1 -- was purchased from the Central Pacific Railroad, its number 1195. When new, the 1195 was named Jupiter.Jupiter was the Central Pacific locomotive that met cowcatcher-to-cowcatcher with Union Pacific number 119 at Promontory Point, Utah on May 10, 1869 for the driving of the golden spike commemorating the completion of the first transcontinental railroad. Despite its historical significance, in 1909 the GVGN, by then controlled by Central Pacific successor Southern Pacific, sold number 1 for $1000 as scrap.