U.S. Route 66, known as the “Mother Road,” was built in 1926. It ran from Chicago to L. A. During the depression of the 1930s, it became the major path by which people migrated west, seeking work, warm weather and new opportunities. Shore shares the history of Route 66 in Arizona, including the impact it […]

Early traders traveled through Arizona Territory, selling goods from their wagons, but they soon built stores that evolved into trading and social centers where wool, sheep, and Native arts were exchanged for sugar and salt, pots, pans, bridles, and saddles. Navajo trading posts are best known, but trading posts existed on every reservation in Arizona. […]

Women of many faiths cared for the bodies and souls of Arizona’s early inhabitants. Meet five of these altruistic women who influenced the history of the territory. Theresa Ferrin’s holistic practices and comprehensive understanding of healing herbs earned her the title “Angel of Tucson.” Florence Yount is recognized as Prescott’s first woman physician. Teresita Urrea […]

The Hohokam archaeological culture flourished in southern Arizona as early as the sixth century. Hohokam artifacts, architecture, and other material culture provide clues allowing archaeologists to identify where the Hohokam lived, interpret how they adapted to the Sonoran Desert for centuries, and explain why their culture collapsed in the mid-1400s. This presentation illustrates Hohokam material […]

In 1921 the Hopi were told that “church people” petitioned Congress to stop their “pagan” dancing. A platform was erected on the U.S. Capitol steps where both Houses of Congress assembled with their families to see the Hopi dancers. Following the performance, Congress passed a Resolution giving the Hopi permission to carry on their dancing […]

Post-war Arizona really popped and added to the pop culture known as Americana. The housing pop for the returning military personnel who were moving to Arizona changed the landscape. Iconic restaurants such as KFC, McDonald’s, and Bob’s Big Boy owe Arizona for their POP culture status. Vestiges of these post-war days are still around and […]

Early traders traveled through Arizona Territory, selling goods from their wagons, but they soon built stores that evolved into trading and social centers where wool, sheep, and Native arts were exchanged for sugar and salt, pots, pans, bridles, and saddles. Navajo trading posts are best known, but trading posts existed on every reservation in Arizona. […]

In 1929 the newly-formed Transcontinental Air Transport (TAT) company launched an ambitious plan to establish the country’s first coast-to-coast airline service from New York to Los Angeles.  Assisted by famous pilots Charles Lindbergh and Amelia Earhart, the TAT established a series of pioneering airports along the route (including Clovis, Albuquerque, Winslow, and Kingman) and helped […]

Join Temple as she presents Elizabeth “Baby Doe” Tabor, the central figure in a western mining frontier saga involving money, divorce, family heartbreak, and pioneer resilience.  Baby Doe was admired by miners and hated by “decent” women, yet she captured the heart of the richest man in the West, Horace Tabor.  After winning Horace away […]