Along the California Trail: Our State’s Pioneers with Jay Cravath

Good Shepherd of the Hills Episcopal Church 6502 E. Cave Creek Rd., Cave Creek, AZ, United States

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

FREE

Set in Stone but Not in Meaning: Southwestern Rock Art with Allen Dart

The Palace 116 N. RailRoad Ave, Willcox, AZ, United States

Ancient American Indian petroglyphs (symbols carved or pecked on rocks) and pictographs (rock paintings) are claimed by some to be forms of writing for which meanings are known. But are such claims supported by archaeology or by Native Americans? Archaeologist Allen Dart illustrates how petroglyph and pictograph styles changed through time and over different parts […]

FREE

Why Arizona Dark Skies Matter with Matthew Goodwin

Mohave County Library Lake Havasu Branch 1770 McCulloch Blvd N., Lake Havasu City, AZ, United States

Flagstaff, Arizona was the world’s first community designated an International Dark Sky Place for its active efforts reduce light pollution and protect the visibility of the night sky. There are now over 130 dark-sky communities, places, and parks globally. Arizona alone has 17 dark-sky places, which is more than any other country in the world. […]

FREE

Flying Through Arizona: The Story of the First National Women’s Air Race with Natalie J. Stewart-Smith

Buckeye Valley Museum - 116 E. MC85, Buckeye, AZ 85326 116 East MC85, Buckeye

In 1929, the first national women’s air race from Santa Monica, CA to Cleveland, OH passed through Arizona. Stopping in Yuma, Phoenix, and Douglas, the intrepid fliers solidified their determination and sisterhood along these Arizona waypoints. Who were these aviators? What were their planes like in 1929? What challenges did they encounter along the way? […]

FREE

For the Love of Turquoise with Carrie Calisay Cannon

Phippen Museum 4701 N Hwy 89, Prescott, AZ, United States

Turquoise has a long standing tradition amongst Native cultures of the Southwest, holding special significance and profound meanings to specific individual tribes. Even before the more contemporary tradition of combining silver with turquoise, cultures throughout the southwest used turquoise in necklaces, earrings, mosaics, fetishes, medicine pouches, and made bracelets of basketry stems lacquered with piñon […]

FREE

Arizona Goes to the Movies: A Filmmaking History with Jim Turner

Velma Teague Library - (VTL Meeting Room) 7010 N 58th Avenue, Glendale, AZ 85301 7010 N 58th Avenue, Glendale, AZ, United States

From Douglas Fairbanks filming in Nogales in 1917 to “How the West Was Won” statewide in 1963, the state of Arizona has always been a photogenic favorite for movie producers. The program looks from “Real to Reel” to see how Hollywood has affected popular views of Western settlement and continues to impact social interactions. The […]

FREE

Arizona Goes to the Movies: A Filmmaking History with Jim Turner

Scottsdale Mustang Library 10101 North 90th Street , Scottsdale, AZ, United States

From Douglas Fairbanks filming in Nogales in 1917 to “How the West Was Won” statewide in 1963, the state of Arizona has always been a photogenic favorite for movie producers. The program looks from “Real to Reel” to see how Hollywood has affected popular views of Western settlement and continues to impact social interactions. The […]

FREE

Flying Through Arizona: The Story of the First National Women’s Air Race with Natalie J. Stewart-Smith

Apache Junction Library 1177 N. Idaho Rd., Apache Junction, AZ, United States

In 1929, the first national women’s air race from Santa Monica, CA to Cleveland, OH passed through Arizona. Stopping in Yuma, Phoenix, and Douglas, the intrepid fliers solidified their determination and sisterhood along these Arizona waypoints. Who were these aviators? What were their planes like in 1929? What challenges did they encounter along the way? […]

FREE

The Underground and Overground Railroad with Tamika Sanders

Virtual AZ, United States

Using storytelling, historical artifacts and songs, this presentation will depict the ingenuity and resiliency used by those involved in the Underground Railroad to help over 100,000 enslaved people escape to freedom between 1810 and 1850. We’ll then fast forward to the Jim Crow era and explore the Overground Railroad created by the Green Book which […]

FREE

From “Chief” to Code Talker: Four Profiles of the Navajo Code Talkers with Dr. Laura Tohe

Oro Valley Public Library 1305 W. Naranja Drive, Oro Valley, AZ, United States

During WWII a group of young Navajo men enlisted in the Marines without knowing that they would be called on to develop a secret code against the Japanese military. This select group of Code Talkers devised a Navajo language code that was accurate, quick, never broken, and saved many American lives. This talk profiles four […]

FREE

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