Description

Ben and Osa Bridges on the steps the Soderstorms' house on the Fort Whipple and VA Center campus in Prescott, Arizona.

Ben Austin and Osa Pearl Bridges were the parents to Juanita (Bridges) Soderstrom and the grandparents of Sylvia (Soderstrom) Neely, who was the Sharlot Hall Award Recipient in 2014.

In 1948, Dr. James Soderstrom and his family, including his daughter Sylvia, were transferred to Fort Whipple VA Center.

Sylvia became a teacher in Prescott and where she met William "Bill" Neely, who she married.  In 1966, they chose to move into a house in Prescott in order to raise a family. They had two daughters, Lisa and Beth.

In the early 1980s, Sylvia began her long association with Sharlot Hall Museum as a volunteer, participating in many Folk Arts Fairs and conducting over 170 oral history interviews to help preserve Yavapai County and Prescott history. These interviews are archived at the Sharlot Hall Museum Archives.

After retiring in 1995 as a school teacher, Sylvia began recording and collecting history associated with the Prescott Public Schools. In 2006, from the City of Prescott, she received the Stewardship Award for the Lincoln School 100th anniversary celebration. In 2008, she received the Elisabeth Ruffner Award for Historic Preservation for her work on the 100th anniversary celebration for Washington School (2005) and the Lincoln School celebration (2006).

Source: Sharlot Hall Museum website, Sharlot Hall Award Recipient information.