Tag: history
Diamond Fields in Arizona?
Q: I have an 1891 map that shows an area in northeastern Arizona as “Diamond Fields.” Have diamonds been found in this area, and if so, are diamonds mined there now? A: This turned out to be pretty interesting. There is indeed a wide spot on the road near the junction of U.S. 160 and Arizona ...The Escape of Desperado Augustine Chacon
Augustine Chacon was one of the last of the hard-ridding desperados who rode the owl-hoot trail in Arizona around the turn of the century. Chacon was a resident of Sonora but did most of his mischief in Arizona, leading his gang on far flung forays of pillage and plunder. One time Chacon and his pistoleros ...Navajo Legend of Monument Valley
Geologists like to say this vast land of dramatic salmon hued sandstone spires was once buried 3,000 feet beneath ancient seas. Over the next several million years, layer after layer of sediments were deposited, then hardened, followed by an uplifting of the land. It's difficult to imagine, but the tops of these mountains and spires ...A Tribute to a Reluctant Hero in Sacaton
In a small park in Sacaton on the Gila River Indian Reservation, a bronze statue of a young man wearing a military uniform stands next to a bas-relief plaque affixed to a tiled wall. It is a replication of Ira Hayes. He was a U.S. Marine. And a reluctant hero. The plaque depicts six men ...A Little History Behind Arizona’s Early Mormon Missions
The first Mormon colonists from Utah arrived in Arizona in early 1854. The Navajos were on the warpath at the time and the Saints were driven out a year later. Between 1858 and the early 1870s Jacob Hamblin, the Mormon's greatest trailblazer, made several reconnaissance missions, locating river crossings, water holes and suitable trails. By ...Kofa Mountains Weren’t Always the “Kofa Mountains”
Q: What happened to the SH Mountains? I can’t find them on any maps anymore. A: Nothing happened to them. It’s not like they disappeared or something. It’s just that over the years they got renamed, and rightly so. They are now known as the Kofa Mountains, located about 70 miles northeast of Yuma. The SH Mountains ...Arizona Geography Trivia: Can You Pass?
Test your knowledge of Arizona Geography with this short quiz, originally published in Marshall Trimble’s Official Arizona Trivia. Don’t scroll down too quickly. The answers are posted shortly below the questions. When you’re finished, leave a comment with your score. Did any answers surprise you? 1. Name one of three Arizona dams named after U.S. Presidents. 2. ...General Arizona Trivia: Can You Pass?
Test your knowledge of Arizona with this short quiz, originally published in Marshall Trimble’s Official Arizona Trivia. Don’t scroll down too quickly. The answers are posted shortly below the questions. When you’re finished, leave a comment with your score. 1. What is Arizona's best-known nickname> 2. Name Arizona's five C's. 3. What is the largest Indian tribe in ...Seven Cities of Gold: The Story Behind Arizona’s Earliest Yarnspinners
Most folks believe the art of pullin' legs attached to tenderfeet began with the arrival of windjammin' mountain men, prospectors and cowboys. But it seems that Arizonans have been tellin' whoppers to newcomers much earlier. Latter-day liars would be hard pressed to match the native raconteurs who greeted the Spanish explorers. Legends of golden cities provided ...The (Mis)Truth About Montezuma’s Castle
Although the history of Montezuma Castle is pretty well documented, considering that nobody wrote down much of anything when it was a hot spot of ancestral civilization, there's this one thing that sticks out as a case of mistaken identity. Or make that, mistaken transplantation.
