Description

Monument to one of the original camel drivers for the U.S. Government, Hi Jolly (Philip Teadrow). Erected in 1935 in Quartzite, AZ.

Hi Jolly wasn’t his name. The famed camel driver was born Philip Tedro, a Greek born in Syria. He converted to Islam and made a pilgrimage to Mecca, hence his first name, Hadji Ali. The American version of that became Hi Jolly. It was also a better name for a camel driver, which is what he was when he first came to this country as part of a U.S. Cavalry experiment in the 1850′s. He is by far the most colorful of the camel drivers because he remained in the desert southwest and became a prospector, scout and was a courier for what was called the Jackass Mail. He was a packer, hauling freight in the area also. Hi Jolly died in December of 1902, in what in now known as Quartzsite, Arizona. In his day the town was called Tyson’s Well, but the history does not stop there. In 1934 the Arizona Department of Transportation erected a monument over his grave. His grave became the beginning of the pioneer cemetery.

THE LAST CAMP
OF
HI JOLLY
BORN SOMEWHERE IN SYRIA
ABOUT 1828
DIED AT QUARTZITE
DECEMBER 16, 1902
CAME TO THIS COUNTRY
FEBRUARY 10, 1856
CAMELDRIVER – PACKER
SCOUT – OVER THIRTY
YEARS A FAITHFUL AID
TO THE U.S. GOVERNMENT
ARIZONA
HIGHWAY DEPARTMENT
1935