Indian Wars Dispirited Early Thanksgiving Celebrations

The first Thanksgiving Day, November 9th, 1866, was a solemn one in Prescott. Some were thankful that the Union had been preserved, while others that the killing and destruction had finally ceased.

It was “the first time a day of Thanksgiving [had] been set apart in this territory,” the newspaper reported, and was “duly respected” with a community remembrance. However, the annual festivity would soon slip into neglect in Prescott and elsewhere in Arizona.

The Mysterious, Phantom Fort Misery Near Oro

Many are familiar with the first building in Prescott, and the oldest surviving log cabin in Arizona, “Fort Misery.” 

Then there was a second Fort Misery near Oro—or maybe there wasn’t. The mystery and controversy about the military presence near the banks of Humbug Creek during the Indian conflicts has flared up in recent years.

The Plaza's Early History

Before the Courthouse was built,
the Plaza fielded baseball games.

As Robert Groom plotted out Prescott and created the Plaza in the middle of downtown, it wasn't necessarily meant for the county courthouse. The first courthouse was located on the street facing the plaza.

Instead, it was left as an open public space, and its uses were many and varied.

The History of Palace Station

Palace Station, located 17 miles south of Prescott, is one of the most famous stage stops in Yavapai County. Having been built in 1875, its history is long, and its future is bright. 

“Palace Station is one of the few remaining stagecoach stations dating from the settlement of the Arizona Territory. The station played an important role in the social and economic development of the new territory and is now…on the National Register of Historic Places.”

The Lost Ghost Town of Zonia

Main Street in Zonia as seen in the 1960s

Place name books that cover Arizona show no listing for the small ghost town of Zonia. Google Maps can locate the Zonia mine, but not the town itself. Even off-roading clubs that are well familiar with Arizona's backroads and ghost towns show no listing.

Yet this old mining town did indeed exist and flourished from 1899-1922.

Prescott Valley's UFO Wave

According to reports submitted by local residents to the National UFO Reporting Network (NUFORN), Prescott Valley experienced a wave of UFOs in the late winter and spring of 2000.

What's more, they seemed to be looking for something.