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Sedona to Flagstaff Through Oak Creek
The road from Sedona through Oak Creek Canyon to Flagstaff, Arizona’s scenic Highway 89A, was just a patchwork of private tracks until the first part of the 20th century.
The Hanging of Dennis Dilda
In the 1880s, Dennis Dilda had left behind a string of murders in Texas and New Mexico by the time he arrived in Prescott in the fall of 1885. But in the frontier, little was asked of a man’s background, especially one with a wife and children. Dilda soon got a job running the ranch of W.H. Williscraft about 40 miles outside of town.
Territorial Criminal Justice
This is the body of highwayman William Whitney Brazelton propped against a wall on Tucson’s Main Street as a caution to anyone planning a career in crime.
Firefighting in the Old Pueblo with Alex McNeil, Buck and Ted
This is Tucson fireman Alex McNeil on Old No. 1 chemical engine with his equine coworkers Buck and Ted in about 1906.
Trading Days in Canyon de Chelly
The S.E. (Sam) Day Sr. Trading Post was built at the turn of the century by Day and his sons near the spectacular canyon called Tse-ye (in the rock) by the Navajo and today known as Canyon de Chelly.
Boomtimes and Boomtowns – Lou and Oatman
This is Lou of Oatman, Ariz., sometime about 1920 in front of the building that served as his place of business. Most of the information on the sign to his right appears to be listing real estate he was selling or renting.
Builder and First Inmate of the Clifton Jail
This is a photograph of the old Clifton jail, probably taken in about 1900. The identity of the nattily dressed man is unknown, as is the explanation for the rubble piled high in front of the fence. We do know some about the jail, however.
The McNary Railroad
This is steam locomotive No. 36 on the old McNary Railroad in the White Mountains. At the time of this photograph, the railroad had been converted to a scenic line that carried passengers from McNary to the logging town of Maverick, south of Baldy Peak, during the summer season. As many as 200,000 passengers made the trip during the years it was running.
Page, Arizona
In contrast to the typical image of a little red schoolhouse, this one-room school in Page, Arizona, in 1957 was a war surplus troop carrier. (The troop carriers were called “cattle cars” and were pulled by trailer trucks during World War II.) The older woman standing in the doorway is Mary Howe.
Phoenix’s Plaza Bandstand
This is a 1901 photograph of the bandstand sat City Hall Plaza, located on the block between Washington and Jefferson streets and Montezuma (First Street) and Maricopa (Second Street). The men in the photo are not identified, but written on the back of the photo is the name of J.C. Dodds. The 1903 City Directory lists Dodds as a driver for Ezra W. Thayer. That is Thayer’s hardware store across t[...]
Three-Fingered Jack
This is Jack Laustenneau, presumably photographed in 1903 when he became the 2,029th prisoner to pass through the sally port of the Territorial Prison at Yuma.
The Governor’s Race (for the train)
The bald pate and rotund body seen here on the Capitol veranda is that of George W. P. Hunt, photographed on Valentine’s Day, 1912, delivering his inaugural address as the state’s first governor.
