By artist Charles Kemp (1896-1961)
Oil on canvas
7 x 20 feet
This monumental mural captures a dramatic moment in Prescott’s history: Whiskey Row on the eve of the devastating fire of July 1900. Look closely and you’ll see workmen with shovels in the foreground, digging a water reservoir intended to charge the town’s newly installed fire hydrants — a project not quite finished before disaster struck.
Commissioned by Pioneer Bank at 108 N. Cortez Street and painted on site in 1960 by artist Charles Kemp, the mural stands as both a powerful work of art and a vivid historical snapshot of a turning point for the community.
Measuring seven feet tall by twenty feet long and weighing more than 400 pounds, the oil-on-canvas painting presented a significant installation challenge. With the enormous help of our facilities team and staff, the mural was carefully lifted, secured, and put into place — a process requiring precision, planning, and teamwork.
One of our team members created a time-lapse video of the installation, offering viewers a behind-the-scenes look at what it takes to safely display a work of this scale. We invite you to watch and experience the effort that brought this remarkable piece into public view.
This extraordinary mural is a gift of Wells Fargo Bank, and we are proud to share it with our community.
