By Michael Wurtz
As archivists at the Sharlot Hall Museum we have a responsibility to correct the misinformation that can often plague the community. My New Year's Resolution is to get Yavapai County residents to understand three things: William O'Neill nickname is "Buckey" with an "e", there is no "False Thumb Butte" in Chino Valley, and there are no tunnels under Prescott.
Prescott's most beloved statue is the Captain William O. O'Neill Memorial (or Rough Rider Monument) which has been guarding the Courthouse steps since it was unveiled in 1907. Some local businesses share one common error if they are named for Prescott's mayor and Captain of the "Rough Riders" during the Spanish-American War in 1898. O'Neill's nickname should be spelled with an "e" - as in Buckey, not Bucky. Even the statue, which has been misidentified as everything from "Buckie O'Neal" to "Buckley O'Neill" on some of our historic postcards, includes the sans "e" spelling right on a plaque placed on the granite pedestal in 1982! The truth is that O'Neill signed most of his correspondence with "Buckey." His wife, Pauline, refers to him as Buckey in her letters, and the newspaper at the time of dedication of the statue specifically mentions Buckey O'Neill in its headlines. A small mistake, but a misconception none the less.
Perhaps this attention to detail could be considered compulsive, but there are other obvious errors in what we believe is part of Prescott's history. Take the story of the territorial governor's party arriving in Chino Valley in 1863, and establishing the capitol of Arizona next to what they thought was Thumb Butte. This is a false "False Thumb Butte" tale. The truth is that Captain Nathaniel Pishon had recommended the Chino Valley site to General James Henry Carlton in Santa Fe, New Mexico. Pishon liked the site because it had good water and grass for the animals, it was three miles from firewood and eight miles from timber. Pishon specifies the location as 25 miles north of the mining communities along Lynx Creek. Carlton agreed that this is the place and told him to set up a military post there and call it Fort Whipple. Pishon did so on December 10, 1863. In January of 1864 the governor's party arrives at the fort in Chino Valley, on purpose. Where else would they go if given a choice- the protection and supplies of a fort or the untamed unknown land where miners complained of Indian attacks?
Shortly after their arrival, the territorial government officials proceeded to investigate the area south of the fort to find a suitable location for the seat of government. By May they decided on a nice spot along Granite Creek with a view of the real Thumb Butte and moved Fort Whipple nearby, named the town Prescott, and established the first permanent capitol of the Territory of Arizona. Yes, Chino Valley was a temporary "first capitol," but it was no mistake. Although what is listed on some maps as Pinnacle may look like a small version of Prescott's "signature skyline," it is not worthy of mistaken identity and the embarrassment of Prescott's founders.
Prescott has done a wonderful job of romanticizing its past, and for good reason. We have a block nicknamed Whiskey Row, a tradition of pronouncing our city's name like the sound of a sheriff's revolver being fired from the hip, and a plethora of fires in our early years. With all of the great true stories about Prescott, why do we continue to insist that there are tunnels under the town? There are stories of tunnels running from the southwest corner of Goodwin and Montezuma clear to the railroad depot at the north end of Cortez Street. I have even heard of one that goes through the granite under Granite Creek. Some say that the Chinese community had to use the tunnels for fear of the white population. Perhaps not respected at that time to the level of other whites, the Chinese still had absolutely no need to go underground to conduct business. In fact, Granite Street was Prescott's Chinatown with many businesses to serve Asians and Anglos.
In a 1974 article for The Paper, Jonne Markham interviewed over 50 individuals, many of whom can remember Prescott from long ago. Gail Gardner, Budge Ruffner, Joe Hartin, and Dewey Born all had heard stories of tunnels, but never had infallible evidence to indicate their existence. Imagine being a boy in Prescott and not knowing where all the "secret" tunnels were! The best explanation for the stories of tunnels seems to be that there were once basement businesses which were later covered under sidewalks leaving doors that would, from the inside, appear to lead to a tunnel, but in fact, lead to nowhere. Much like all of the non-history of Prescott.
Michael Wurtz is an Archivist at Sharlot Hall Museum.