By Mick Woodcock
In 1918, the war raging in Europe was not the only place to see the death of a Prescott man, when Robert J. Miller was shot to death by Harry Earl “Bud” Stephens at Oscar W. Bruchman’s store in Prescott on April 2, 1918. This was the conclusion of the coroner’s jury summoned by Yavapai County coroner Charles H. McLane.
By Bradley G. Courtney
The Juniper House, Prescott’s first restaurant, was founded by a multifaceted pioneer named George Barnard. A native Michigander, Barnard was one of several original Prescottonians who initially made his way west after hearing of the discovery of gold on Sutter’s Creek in California. Like several other 1849 Argonauts, he later moved to Arizona after learning of mineral strikes there.
Read MoreBy Jenny Pederson
[Article continues from the Days Past article published January 19, 2019]
In Prescott, Arizona, a community already home to “Whiskey Row”, there was no shortage of individuals who enjoyed partaking in alcoholic beverages.
For those who opposed temperance, arguments pointed to the joyful and social nature of drinking alcohol. As an anonymous writer of an opinion piece wrote in The Courier on December 15, 1883, “we never did believe in going without a friendly canteen, filled with something moist, not necessarily for the benefit of the canteen, but for our own comfort and delight. It is a pleasure to drink moderately when you are thirsty…. There are very few people in this world who do not like the taste of some beverage that is stronger than water.”
Read MoreBy 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 29th 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 4th, 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 5th, 1942 they were assigned to the 14th Air Force, 23rd Fighter Group. Frank became Commander of the 74th Fighter Squadron under Group Commander Col. Robert L. Scott and was immediately promoted to Major. The 23rd 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.
