Cowboys and Cowgirls: Icons of the American West Few symbols have been more durable than the American cowboy. This program will give an overview of this populist figure, whose image was first defined by painters Frederic Remington and Charles M. Russell. Also important to the story are brave cowgirls and the Mexican vaqueros. Buffalo Bill’s […]
The Mighty Colorado River: From its Sources to the Sea Jim Turner has traced the Green and Colorado rivers from their beginnings as clear bubbling glacial springs high in the mountains, then through roaring canyons in Utah, Arizona, and Nevada, and finally to the salt flats in Mexico. Stunning photographs tell the story of the […]
Tom Mix: King of the Cowboys Cowboy movie star Tom Mix was internationally famous, and many legends and tall tales have been told about his life. This presentation highlights some of the true stories about Mix and his connection to Arizona, debunking some of the Hollywood hype. What brought Mix travel that lonesome highway where […]
Lee Wee Kwon, Chinese Grocer in Tucson, 1917-1965 The Chinese had once dominated Tucson’s grocery business. Lee Wee Kwon was among the successful Chinese grocers whose business relied on the patronage of a Hispanic clientele. Lee entered the US as a refugee from Mexican Revolution. Before he came to Tucson, he had lived and worked […]
Swing Into History With the exception of the most ardent collectors and older generation, the influence and legacy of the big bands is largely forgotten despite their overwhelming popularity and significant role in early radio. Join Larson as he revisits the sounds America listened and danced to for more than three decades. Learn how iconic […]
Sheep Ranchers and Herders of Arizona An early viable economic activity of the 1800s in Arizona has been mostly forgotten. Basque, Canadians, Danes among others arrived in the mid to late 1800s to graze sheep on thousands of acres practicing transhumance. Many of these men worked for other established ranchers until ultimately they gained a […]
Arizona Ghost Towns Ghost towns dot Arizona’s landscape and provide unique insights into a diverse history. Some ghost towns tell a boom-to-bust story with few remaining traces of the people who once lived there, while others, like Jerome, have become thriving tourist destinations. Many are old mining locations that once bustled with life, while others […]
Little Sur Shot – Annie Oakley and the Closing of the American West Annie Oakley is perhaps the best recognized, but little know personalities that came out of the American West. Her life story is one which is enmeshed deeply into the fabric of the American character. However it was not a cookie cutter life. […]