By Parker Anderson

In days past, the town of Ash Fork had a reputation as an unsavory place-a place where the worst elements of society congregated to ply their questionable trades, and where seekers of vice went to entertain their wants. Contrary to popular belief, much vice was legal in those days, and law enforcement personnel were unable to do much about it unless provoked by specific incidents. The day came when this happened in Ash Fork, and Yavapai County Attorney Patrick W. O'Sullivan vowed to clean up the town.

The trouble started on February 20, 1913, when a bartender named John Rose, who worked in the Rambaud Saloon, was shot in the back of the head by a woman named Ruby Smith, described by the press as a "habitué of the bad lands". Ruby told the authorities that Rose had accidentally shot himself, but O'Sullivan didn't buy it, and she was arrested for murder. It was also told to the press that she was addicted to morphine. 

O'Sullivan took fast action, and issued an order that all dance halls and saloons in Ash Fork were to be closed, and Yavapai County Sheriff Keeler hastened to the city to enforce the order. Pointing out that all manner of robberies and hold-ups and occurred in the vicinity of Rambaud's Saloon, O'Sullivan publicly proclaimed the place to be a "public menace", and announced that he would seek to have Joe Rambaud's saloon license revoked on the grounds that he was running a refuge for "criminals, prostitutes, pimps, and vagabonds". O'Sullivan also ordered all female residents of the "red light district" to leave town, on the grounds that they were in violation of a law prohibiting prostitution within 400 feet of a public school. 

While all of this was going on, Ash Fork woke up one morning to find that James Terry, the owner of another saloon in town, had fired a gun at an enemy of his, Lee Drury, but had accidentally shot an innocent bystander, John Kendrick, instead. The victim survived, but the incident further exacerbated a bad situation and public outrage over crime-ridden Ash Fork was growing daily. Terry was arrested and charged with two counts of assault with a deadly weapon. James Terry had friends who came to his rescue, however, and they paid his $1,500 bail to get him out of jail while he awaited trial. 

Terry was convicted and sentenced to a term in the Arizona State Prison at Florence. But the crackdown on Ash Fork, was only moderately successful. Within a few months, complaints were coming into the Sheriff's office that incidents of "rolling" (robbery) were occurring, and that "women of ill fame" were once again plying their trade. 

But that was long ago. Today, Ash Fork is a much quieter place, with truck stops and occasional tourists. The residents of the town are happy there, and things are much more organized than they were in 1913. 

(Parker Anderson is a dedicated researcher at the Sharlot Hall Museum) 



Sharlot Hall Museum Photograph Call Number: (pb068f3i2). Reuse only by permission.
At the turn of the last century Ash Fork was situated as it is today - on the main thoroughfare across northern Arizona. Back then it was on the Santa Fe Railroad instead of I-40. In 1913 trouble in the town came to a head and the sheriff vowed to clean it up.