Anecdotes of Prescott History Brought to Life From the Pages of Old Newspapers and Other Sources.
The Arizona Republican wrote in 1890: “The murder was one of the most cold-blooded ever committed in this territory, and is universally condemned.”
In January of that year, George Johnson, a respected cowboy, sued John Chart, who used to be a rancher in Thompson Valley, for $78 in unpaid back wages. Nine months later, it cost Johnson his life.
Despite being the Territorial Capital at the close of the 19th Century, Prescott still clung to many aspects of a rough mining town, and the educated wives of the politicians wanted to make it more civilized.
So in 1895, they formed a group dedicated to making Prescott a city where families could thrive. Originally, it was simply called the Prescott Women’s Club, but since many other groups with that title were solely focused on women’s suffrage, they soon changed the name to the Monday Club. It is still the oldest women’s organization in Arizona.
Were these 1000-year-old artifacts tokens of black magic?
Much mystery surrounds the small, clay figurines found in the forest south of Prescott, as well as the people who made them.
Dud Clark had been contracted to build a road from Prescott to Ash Fork when Lee Burhans called out to him. “Burhans was a member of a picnic party and was going through a large cave that had been well known for years, when he found a small opening that he had never before perceived,” the paper described. Peering through the hole with a match, he noticed that this opening was just below the roof of a large cavity. Lee got Dud, who then lowered a rope and descended to the cave floor with an “automobile lamp.” When he turned it on, his jaw went slack.
Surrounding the Civil War, not everybody was inclined to celebrate Independence Day. Many who lived in Yavapai County were sympathetic to Southern causes. “There was an apprehension that such diversity might exist here,” the Prescott paper observed, “and interfere with a genuine and hearty observance of the day.”
One might think that carrying the moniker of “World’s Oldest Rodeo” would imply it being the first. However, the famous rodeo we love is actually the world’s oldest continuously running rodeo. Just 4 weeks before the first “Cowboy Tournament” in Prescott, one was held in Williamson Valley.
