Tornados in Yavapai County?

Arizona is known for straight-line winds, red flag warnings, and dust devils that can be strong enough to create tornado-like destruction, but actual tornadoes? Indeed, there have been rare times when the Quad-Cities area fell victim to genuine twisters.

Pleistocene Prescott Valley

It was 1984 on the Fain ranch near the headwaters of the Aqua Fria River when A. Jordan peered into a 13-foot deep arroyo and noticed a partial skeleton of a mammoth. 

Soon, paleontologists from the Arizona Archeological Society, Yavapai College, Sharlot Hall Museum, and Northern Arizona University were busy unearthing the remains. Their work would also uncover the remains of three additional large mammals: a horse, a bison, and a camel.

Prescott’s 1st Federal Narcotics Raid was AZ's Biggest (1922)

 

It was, at the time, the largest drug haul ever confiscated in Arizona—a take-down of “the center of the wholesale drug ring in Central Arizona,” according to the Arizona Republican. The drug kingpin was a Prescott resident and barber named Mayo Simpson. 

Mayo was no stranger to being at odds with the law. His first stint in jail was for burglary…at the tender age of eleven.

$7 Million in Gold Awaits to be Found

Initially, one might dismiss an account of over 230 pounds of placer gold just waiting to be found, but the Catholic Church had enough faith in the story that they employed fifteen men to try to locate it. Still, it remains hidden to this day.

The Zaniest Railroad Accident in Prescott History

It seemed a normal July day in 1888 Prescott, but soon a ridiculous, domino-effect of events would cause the most bizarre railroad accident in the city’s history.

Brave 14 Year-Old Testifies to Her Assault

It was February 11, 1922, when Mr. and Mrs. John A Rounds left with a neighbor, “Grady” CB Bartley, to find some firewood. While the couple was searching for wood, Bartley had something far more sinister on his mind. 

The three had left Mrs. Round’s sister, 14-year-old Mary Haynes, alone back at the house. After scouting for a bit, Bartley gave an excuse to head back to the house himself.

He “followed [Mary] into the kitchen and called the little girl into the bedroom,” the Prescott Evening Courier related. Afterwards, Bartley threatened the girl to keep her quiet.