By Mick Woodcock

John Marion, editor of the Arizona Miner, regularly reported on disruptions of the peace in Prescott, particularly when it involved soldiers from Fort Whipple. Some of this might be explained by an article in the December 28, 1867 issue where the editor describes an incident from earlier in the week.

By Mick Woodcock

Because of the unruly activities in Fort Whipple’s enlisted ranks, the local newspaper felt it necessary to call the officers of the fort into question about soldier-related shootings, but reminded all in an October 1867 notice, “In Force. – The act of the Legislature regarding the use of fire arms in towns, and the vagrant act are now in force.”

By Mick Woodcock

For the first three years of Prescott’s history, there is no reported violence other than what occurred in the countryside as settlers worked on wresting the land from its original inhabitants. That changed in 1867 with the robbery of the home of a Mr. McGinley, in town with a theatrical troupe.

By Worcester P. Bong

If you’ve been to the Prescott campus of Yavapai College attending a performance at the Performing Arts Center or taking a walk through the sculpture garden next door, you will notice the original south gates to Fort Whipple. When construction of  Yavapai College began in 1968 in Prescott, the planners had the foresight to retain these gates as a historical marker for future generations to see. So what was it like traveling past the south gates and what historical buildings were in place before Yavapai College opened in September 1970?
 

By Mick Woodcock

The courthouse was still new when the first event was held in the courtroom, and it was not a term of court. On Christmas Eve there was a town gathering to celebrate the holiday. Harriet Turner held this event the previous year in the old territorial legislative building, but now that a larger room was available, she took advantage of it.

By Mick Woodcock

When Yavapai County was created in 1864, it had no government buildings and few employees. All counties needed a form of self-government, as legislated in the bill “AN ACT Creating a Board of Supervisors in the several Counties of the Territory.” Signed into law December 30, 1865, it provided for counties to elect boards of supervisors and conduct business, stating the board could meet after election day, 1866.

By Eric Jacobson

The remarkable Isabella Greenway King was born in Kentucky in 1886 into a family of wealth, fame and social standing. The family lived briefly in North Dakota, where they were neighbors to future President Theodore Roosevelt. In 1901, she and her mother Martha moved to New York City so Isabella could attend Spence School and Miss Chapin’s School, private schools for upper class young ladies. At Chapin’s School she became friends with Eleanor Roosevelt, and in 1905, was a bridesmaid in Eleanor’s wedding to future President Franklin Delano Roosevelt (FDR).

By Mick Woodcock

What would a person do if they were transported back in time to 1867-1868 in Prescott, Arizona? A great many things would be very strange, with no cell phones, internet or Netflix. Worse than that, there would be no electricity. In fact, there would be no electricity anywhere in town and there would not be until the 1890s.

Culture shock would be in full effect. What to do? Back then, people talked and read books, periodicals and newspapers for a way to pass the time and keep up on what was going on. Those who wanted actual “entertainment” would have to wait for something to happen, or join a local club.

By Ricky Erway

Cleator lies at 3,501 feet in the Bradshaw Mountain foothills between Crown King and Mayer, seven miles southwest of Cordes on Forest Road 259 (formerly Prescott & Eastern Railroad line). The town depot, Turkey Siding, was along Turkey Creek.
 

By Brad Courtney

Like the modern day “big one,” when the San Andreas Fault finally makes that dreaded big slip and wreaks its long-predicted devastation, a fire of frightening magnitude was not a question of “if” but “when” in young nineteenth-century Prescott.

In April 1888, a Prescott Courier editorial described the unrelenting danger: “The people of Prescott can look back and thank the gods that fire has not ‘devoured’ a great deal of their property. We now tell our people that the hot, dry season which may last until next July is upon us; that there will be windy days and nights when, should a fire get a good start, it would be hard to check.” So it was that hot, dry night of July 14, 1900.