By Leo Banks

(This is the first part of a two-part article.) 

Prescott's most notorious prostitute had a small problem with the men in her life. They kept winding up dead, usually after drinking rat poison.  But she had her bad points, too. 

The story of Gabriell Dollie Wiley lends itself to such dark thinking. She was, after all, one of Arizona's great noir characters, a real-life crime-novel dame who did whatever it took to survive in early Prescott, brooking no interference from such trifles as the law or common morality.

By Parker Anderson

Over the last couple of years this writer embarked on extensive research regarding the legendary Yavapai County outlaw James Parker for the purposes of writing a play and possibly a book. The play was subsequently performed by the Blue Rose Theater.

In doing this, I ran into a problem that bedevils most researchers at one time or another-separating truth from legend.  In nearly all cases where historical figures are well known, facts get stretched in various retellings about their lives. Hundreds of untrue or unverifiable legends exist about the Earps, for instance. In the case of Jim Parker, I encountered no less than four different, irreconcilable versions of his history. I shall examine them here.

By Ken Edwards

Rufus Farrington was an early settler in the Arizona Territory, arriving in late 1863.  He was one of the incorporators of the Fort Mojave and Prescott Toll Road Company that was given exclusive right to build and maintain a wagon road between the two communities.  His road station at Walnut Creek, northwest of Prescott, was more than once the victim of raids by "Apaches". 

By Kathryn Reisdorfer

As I watched the throngs of people enjoying music, commerce and camaraderie the night of the Acker Musical Showcase, I was reminded of what early Christmases must have been like in Prescott.  People were on the street sharing with their neighbors-whether they were conscious of it or not-the heightened feelings of the season.  Christmas in the early days in Yavapai County was also a public affair.  People, eager for company, flocked into the towns from remote mining camps and ranches.  Even town-dwellers took part in the public activities.  After all, in this newly settled area, most people were not set-up well enough to entertain friends in their homes.  Still, far from many of their kin, they sought warmth and a sense of community. 
 

By William "Bill" Peck

In about 1823, fur trappers such as Jim Bridger, "Old Bill" Williams, James O. Pattie and his father, Sylvester, began penetrating the mountains of the west.  There were about 400 of their numbers, diligent humans, animals who could carry a pack of traps, and supplies that would stagger a horse. Horses were of little use to them since stealth was essential and these men survived only because they could "out-Indian" the Indians.

By Tom Brodersen

The first store on Prescott's Courthouse Plaza was operated by Michael Wormser, a pioneer Jew from Alsace-Lorraine, France.  Wormser purchased the adobe building on the southeast corner of Montezuma and Goodwin (next to the current Chamber of Commerce office) from Rafael Lucero of New Mexico.  For the next decade, Michael Wormser sold miners supplies and general merchandise on the Plaza. 
 

By Robert Spude

On November 19, 1904, Prescott's newspaper reported:  "Mrs. F. M. Murphy entertained a number of guests in honor of Miss Nellie Drake, who returned recently from a visit east.  The dining room which is in red, was beautifully decorated for the occasion and a dainty little souvenir in the shape of a Cinderella silver slipper filled with bonbons was given to each guest."

By Marguerite Madison Aronowitz

The city of Prescott is known for its many attractive features, including the historic courthouse, Whiskey Row, and a collection of five outstanding monumental bronzes that grace the downtown area.  Residents and visitors alike often ask about the stories behind these impressive works of art.

By Richard Gorby

There are two major reasons for most ventures into the Sharlot Hall Museum Archives: a search for family history and/or a search for certain aspects of Prescott history. 
 

For the family historian, genealogical indexes are kept on special shelves.  These include marriage, death and burial records, hospital deaths, funeral records, census records, city directories, telephone directories, probate and wills, school yearbooks and many other source materials.

By Al Bates

Late in 1942, a small group of young American men dressed in khaki could be seen practicing their marching skills on the streets of the small rural community of Prescott, Arizona.  On closer look, their garb was far from uniform.  While all wore khaki shirts and pants, some wore web belts round their waists while others wore belts of leather.  Some wore black shoes while others wore brown.  They were all bareheaded, and only a few wore any insignia.  Who were these 28 young men and what were they doing in the mountains of central Arizona far from any military base in the first year of America's participation in World War II?