Learning English as a second language comes with a lot of baggage. It’s not just “i” before “e” except after “c.” Influences include family, economics, culture, immigration, geography, politics, the law, and education. This presentation focuses on the different ways people learn English. Surprisingly, most people surveyed, learned English by simply being tossed into the […]

Female veterans are invited to join a free four-session writing workshop to explore personal experiences through writing. Each week, participants will explore writing techniques including memoir, humor, poetry, fiction, and non-fiction, and write short pieces to share with the group.  All levels of writers are encouraged to attend, including beginners! Female veterans from all eras […]

This presentation explains who the mountain men were, how they lived, and why they were in Arizona. Using a colorful presentation, Weber, clad in buckskins, focuses on the life and times of Pauline Weaver, Prescott, Arizona's first white citizen, and other famous mountain men who made their way through this territory. Using photos, maps and […]

Words have incredible power: they can inspire imagination, elevate the spirit, inspire feats of valor, or wound like a knife. In this talk Arizona Humanities Executive Director Brenda Thomson discusses the impact of words and freedom of expression in our American culture. This program is part of the City of Phoenix's Arts and Humanities Month […]

What is Día de los Muertos? From where does it originate? And how is it celebrated? Día de los Muertos or Days of the Dead is a significant and highly celebrated holiday in Mexico, Latin America, and the Southwestern United States. To understand Día de los Muertos one has to set aside preconceived notions. To […]

Meet five early Arizona women who endured troubles and hardships during the territory’s early days, all of whom brought a unique perspective to the raw land. Apache warrior Lozen fought to hold onto land once freely roamed by her people. Larcena Pennington crawled down the Santa Rita Mountains after surviving captivity by the Apaches. Mary […]

The rise of car travel in the 40s, 50s and 60s meant that thousands of people were traversing the broad expanses of the Southwest looking for new landscapes and adventure. As the cars sped past, restaurants, motels, curio shops and gas stations needed large, bright signs to make an impression. This informative and entertaining visual […]

The Fred Harvey company operated its exceptional chain of restaurants and hotels along the Santa Fe Railway from 1876 through the 1960s. Among its many innovations was the employment of “Harvey Girl” waitresses: single women who chose to leave their families and adhere to strict lifestyle restrictions for the opportunity to work at respectable jobs. […]

What is Día de los Muertos? From where does it originate? And how is it celebrated? Día de los Muertos or Days of the Dead is a significant and highly celebrated holiday in Mexico, Latin America, and the Southwestern United States. To understand Día de los Muertos one has to set aside preconceived notions. To […]