By Mick Woodcock

Thanksgiving, as a holiday in Prescott, has its roots in 1866, when the Arizona Miner, reported: “Thanksgiving. – The President has issued a proclamation, recommending Thursday, the 29^th of November, to be observed as a day of thanksgiving and praise to God for all his mercies and benefits, and also recommending that the people humbly and devoutly implore him to grant to our national councils, and the whole population, that Divine wisdom which can alone lead the nation into ways of all good. The Governor has issued a proclamation which will be found in another column, recommending the observance of the day in Arizona, and we learn that Rev. C. M. Blake will preach in Prescott at 11 a. m. This is the first time a day of thanksgiving has been set apart in the Territory, but we trust it will be only respected. While as a people we have much to contend with, we certainly have much to be thankful for, and we should be glad to introduce here a custom so pleasant and proper as that of annually acknowledging the blessings we have received, and imploring a continuation of the Divine favor.”
 

By Elizabeth Bourgault

Once in Kunming with the AVG, Frank flew with both the First (Adam & Eves) and Second (the Panda Bears) squadrons. He attained the rank of Deputy Squadron Commander of the Adam & Eves and was credited with seven Japanese planes destroyed.
 

After the Flying Tigers were disbanded on July 4^th, 1942, Frank remained in China with four other members of the AVG and was officially absorbed into the United States Army Air Force. On July 5^th, 1942 they were assigned to the 14^th Air Force, 23^rd Fighter Group. Frank became Commander of the 74^th Fighter Squadron under Group Commander Col. Robert L. Scott and was immediately promoted to Major. The 23^rd Fighter Group was assigned to the China Air Task Force under Brig. General Chennault, the AVG’s originator.
 

By Elizabeth Bourgault

Frank Schiel, Jr. was born in Phoenix on November 20, 1917 to Frank and Virdie Fernandes Schiel. In the early 1920’s, the family moved to Prescott and lived at 128 N. Summit Avenue. At that time, Prescott’s population was only 5,010. As a youngster, Frank loved the idea of flying and spent hours building model airplanes. He was a Daily Courier paperboy and active in Boy Scouts. In junior high, Frank organized the Prescott Junior Aeronautical Club, and in high school he was known as the “Flyin’ Cowboy.” Carl Hickerson, who owned a plane, wrote that “Frank used to hang around our hanger… wanting to help and to know how things worked. He got rides with all of us.”
 

By Bob Harner

Word of Yukon gold reached the U.S. in July 1897; by August, former scout, rodeo champion and Buffalo Bill Wild West Show star Arizona Charlie Meadows assembled an expedition (the Arizona Company) and headed for Canada. Accompanied by his “wife,” beautiful showgirl Mae McKamish Melbourne, Charlie was convinced he could make more money selling goods and services to miners than from prospecting.
 

By Marjory J. Sente

By spring 1902, what is now known as Grand Canyon Village, located at the South Rim of the Canyon, was a beehive of activity. People came by stage, train and car. Martin Buggeln had bought the Bright Angel Hotel the prior summer and quickly cast his lot with the Santa Fe Railroad by providing services for its passengers during their visit to the South Rim. Until El Tovar opened in 1905, the Bright Angel Hotel and Camp were the primary accommodations for tourists.  
 

By Bob Harner

Once the Excelsior docked in San Francisco in July 1897 and a handful of newly rich miners disembarked with sacks of gold nuggets, the Canadian Klondike Gold Rush was underway. By spring of 1898, more than 30,000 would-be prospectors and entrepreneurs (most from the U.S.) were building boats at the Yukon River for the 600-mile voyage to the gold fields.
 

As early as January 1898, Arizona and Prescott were already gripped by gold fever. In a single month, the Prescott Weekly Courier reported multiple departures for the Yukon, along with other related news. For example, the January 7 edition states: “Peter Wenn, who has for a long time been in the employ of Goldwater Bros., has resigned his position with that firm and anticipates a starting for Dawson...next Wednesday. May he strike it rich.”
 

By Brenda Taylor

As the early pioneers established settlements and towns began dotting the deserts and forests of the Southwest, a specialized group of frontiersmen began arriving in these newly formed places. These were not your ordinary pioneers; they were part artist, part technician and part chemist. These were the frontier photographers who came to the Southwest, and ultimately Arizona, documenting the landscapes, Native Americans, ruins and culture, miners and mines, shipping and freighting industries, businesses, townspeople and the growth that was springing up around them. Some established photographic studios in burgeoning towns, and others were itinerant photographers who wandered through the deserts and woodlands documenting their discoveries. The Grand Canyon was a particularly hot spot for these image adventurers.
 

By Andrew L. Christenson

Ernest A. Love Airport was dedicated in 1928 and, up to the beginning of the 40’s, had limited local and transient use. With war looming, Congress set to improving air connections and selecting inland airports for pilot training. During the war, Love was used to train Navy Air Cadets. Once the war was over, civil aviation increased dramatically, and the Federal Airport Act of 1946 provided matching funds for improvements at existing airports.

By Jenny Pederson

Dancing and music, especially folk music, have been part of Prescott since its early years and integral to community celebrations, family gatherings and holiday parties. Often learned informally, songs were passed from musician to musician, played by ear or learned from family members and friends.

By Worcester P. Bong

If you’ve visited the Bob Stump VA Medical Center campus (formerly Fort Whipple) in Prescott the past few years, you probably noticed a flurry of ongoing construction. This is not the only time significant construction has taken place.