Memories of Gurley Street in 1970 Prescott

In 1970, Prescott, Arizona, was still a small town. According to the Census Bureau, the population that year was 13,631--an increase of 770 from 1960, or roughly, just one new family every four weeks. Similar to other towns this size, one of the great weekend pastimes for teenagers was cruising, and in Prescott, that meant driving up and down Gurley Street. 

The businesses on Gurley then were largely different from those today.

Prescott's Forgotten 'Event Center' 1878-1891

Its name could be confusing to modern readers. It was a large hall in the city, so the owner, George W Curtis, named it “City Hall”. However, make no mistake, Prescott’s municipal government had nothing to do with it and never used it.

1907: Pretty Heiress Abducted from Castle Hot Springs

At first, the management at Castle Hot Springs kept the crime a secret for over a week, even denying that it happened. What’s more, the victim’s family completely shunned any surrounding publicity. But when the trail for the abductor began to grow cold, and the search needed to expand, the secret came out.

Rattlesnake Stories of Yavapai County

An Arizona Black Diamond Rattlesnake

Where there are rattlesnakes, there are bound to be some interesting and amazing stories, and Yavapai County is no exception.

1870 Christmas in Prescott

From Harpers Weekly, Dec. 1870

“The mountains back of Prescott contain many wild turkeys,” the Weekly Arizona Miner crowed just after Thanksgiving. However, by the time Christmas came, they must have scurried away. The price for a “good-sized” wild Christmas turkey cost a whopping $12 (or nearly $300 in today’s money). Despite this, the feature that best defined Christmas in 1870 was the numerous Christmas dinners that were held. On Christmas Day, “at nearly every home there was a Christmas dinner,” the paper explained. “At many places there was a Christmas tree, laden with gifts for the dear ones.” 

Christmas Celebrations in Isolated Mining Camps, 1903

Iron King Mine

Despite being isolated in the wilderness of Arizona, mining camps still enjoyed wondrous and touching Christmas celebrations in 1903.