Research Resources
Documents for Download
Miss Sharlot Hall
The story of this young girl who became fascinated with Arizona history, became an accomplished woman of her time (1870-1943), and created a museum to preserve early pioneer history of Arizona.
Spanish Flu of 1918
More than a century ago (in 1918), the “Spanish Flu” struck an unsuspecting Northern Arizona. Click the title to read this Days Past article, that includes excerpts of a 2004 news-feature.
Lt. Ernest Love
A local Prescott aviator who went off to the “Great War” and never returned… a fallen hero who had flown 21 combat missions with the 147th Aero Squadron. The Prescott airport is named the Ernest A. Love Airfield in his honor.
They Called Him ‘Rowdy’
Yavapai Indian Rowdy was a native scout with the U.S. Cavalry during the Arizona Indian Wars. His valor and skills were rewarded by his receiving the Medal of Honor in 1890. Discover his story.
Joseph Reddeford Walker
Along the banks of the unexplored “Ookilstpava” River, Capt. Joseph Reddeford Walker and his party found some “color” along the banks and in those headwaters. This discovery and others shortly thereafter prompted a gold rush and the ultimate settling of Arizona’s Central Highlands.
Pauline Weaver
He was often referred to as the “first citizen of Prescott” — an early frontiersman who knew the country and the Indians well, and who helped to settle the Prescott area in the mid-1860s.
A Floating Wheelbarrow
Explorer Joseph Ives sought a water route to the West, and explored the Colorado River on a “floating wheelbarrow” in 1857. His adventure introduced the world to a “valueless” cañon we know today as the Grand Canyon.
Prescott’s First School
Built in 1868, the one-room schoolhouse was the first in Northern Arizona. Discover the history of education in the rugged frontier of Territorial Arizona. Building a Mansion in the Wilderness
On a grassy knoll just west of the downtown plaza, the first Territorial Governor commissioned a residence and office in Arizona in April 1864. It’s now the centerpiece of Sharlot Hall Museum.
Prescott’s Winemaking Heritage… more than just Whiskey on the row
There was other beverages besides whiskey, hootch and beer in Territorial Arizona. Prescott included wine — claret and other French wines, as well as German-style riesling — and such distilled spirits as port, sherry and brandy.
Creating a Wilderness Capital…
Prescott was the first Territorial capital of Arizona, and was formed by events surrounding 1863… the Civil War and the Union’s need for Gold, which was found in the area. Within months, it became the second largest community in the Territory and home of the governor and legislature.
Willard Page Created a Niche Art Form
In the early 1900s, a vagabond artist became the master craftsman of an assembly-line style of quickly produced souvenir paintings that depicted the Southwest — a perfect fit for a tourist’s suitcase.
Tom Mix Movies
Hollywood heart-throb Tom Mix was not the first filmmaker to set up shop in Prescott, but he would often make Prescott his home away from Hollywood during his movie career. Learn the story of this bit-player turned superstar.
Indian Scouts
At a time when Anglos in the Arizona Territory were the minority, the U.S. military sent soldiers and cavalrymen to the western frontier totally unprepared for the vast terrain, heat and arid terrain, and raiding bands of natives. It took the best-of-the-best to deal with it, and they were the native Scouts.
Hometown Hero
When the “war to end all wars” was halted at the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month in 1918, one local hero was missing in action. His story revealed… and why the Prescott Municipal Airport is named E.A. Love Field.