In this presentation, Mr. Dart shows and discusses Native American ceramic styles that characterized specific peoples and eras in the U.S. Southwest prior to about 1450, and talks about how archaeologists use pottery for dating archaeological sites and interpreting ancient lifeways. He discusses the importance of context in archaeology, such as how things people make […]

This presentation will explore the US Army’s experiment with using camel from the Middle East to make it more mobile in the newly acquired Southwest.  In order to teach the soldiers about camels, a local from the Middle East, who was called Hi Jolly, was shipped over with the camels.  Even though Secretary of War […]

From mammoth hunters and canal builders to Native Americans, Hispanics, Americans, Irish, Serbians, and just about every nationality under the sun, Arizona has always been a land of many cultures. And while the Earps and the Geronimo are world famous, Arizona can also be proud of its unsung men and women and cooperative communities. Here […]

An ancient set of Indian paths and the natural flow of the Gila River created a major artery for travel through pioneer Arizona. The Gila provided a route for the earliest traders, including Toltecs of Mexico, who traded with the Anasazi and Hohokam. The intrepid Padre Francisco Garces, performed missionary work during six excursions along […]

July 1, 2018, marks the 75th anniversary of the establishment of the U.S. Cadet Nurse Corps, an innovation for its time that addressed an acute healthcare delivery crisis during World War II. This presentation draws from the voices of those who participated in the program. Participants will have the opportunity to view and discuss Cadet […]

In 1989, Alan Day lobbied the United States Congress and was granted approval to create our country’s first government-sponsored wild horse sanctuary on his South Dakota ranch. At the time, the government housed roughly 2,000 horses in feedlots. Fifteen hundred of those wild mustangs came to live at Mustang Meadows Ranch where, for four years, […]

The Big Band era, 1930s and 1940s, came during turmoil in the United States with Prohibition, the Depression and World War II. People were anxious to temporarily forget their troubles and the insurgence of the Big Bands gave them that outlet. For many, dancing and romancing to the bands were some of the happiest moments […]

From mammoth hunters and canal builders to Native Americans, Hispanics, Americans, Irish, Serbians, and just about every nationality under the sun, Arizona has always been a land of many cultures. And while the Earps and the Geronimo are world famous, Arizona can also be proud of its unsung men and women and cooperative communities. Here […]

Buckey O’Neill was one of Arizona’s legendary pioneers, even author William MacLeod Raine called him “the most many-sided man Arizona has produced”. Before dying in Cuba while serving as one of Theodore Roosevelt’s Rough Riders, O’Neill made his mark in Arizona as a newspaper editor, sheriff, mayor, and prospector, among other professions. Whether chasing train […]