Mile High City

High in the pines of Yavapai is Prescott, the mountain city-hub of a vast mining, cattle, sheep and angora goat raising area; and rendezvous of vacationists who revel in the cool, sun-washed pine breezes of summer, and the brisk, but not severe tang of winter. While it snows now and then in Prescott during the winter time the sun is ever faithful and usually beams down in comfortable warmth every day during the winter. But in summer-Prescott affords a most delightful climate. The pure desert air from the high plateau country -cool pine breezes and a sparkling summer sun; Prescott, the "Jewel of Arizona's Mountains" is indeed a most fascinating city and a haven for healthful living. The fact that the atmosphere in this area is almost free from moisture makes it particularly distinctive. One of the long to be remembered sensations is the fragrant smell of the pines after one of the frequent summer showers especially if the visitor had crossed the desert before arriving in Prescott.

Prescott is essentially a mountain city as it practically stands on a mountain top. Its elevation is 5,347 feet which gives it the attractive designation, "Mile High City." Prescott is hemmed in on three sides by higher mountain ranges, and to the west stands Thumb Butte, and to the north, imposing Granite Peak.

Granite Creek meanders through the dense pine forests of the serried mountain ranges and encircles the city. After seasonal rains, it flows through its channel in the town.

Born of the gold and silver found in the mountains around Prescott, naturally it was the richness of the mines that led to a considerable population. Prescott grew as its mines developed. The dense growth of grass that covered surrounding mesas also had its effect upon the desirability of the location for the site of a city. The town was named Prescott after the noted historian of the romantic school, William Hickling Prescott, whose "Conquest of Mexico" had inspired Arizona's first secretary of state to suggest this name for the first capital of the new territory at a meeting held on Granite Creek in 1864.

In 1867 the capital was moved to Tucson where it remained for only ten years. After losing its position as territorial capital the population fell to less than 500. The mines, which had attracted many settlers, were on the eve of failure owing to the high cost of transportation and supplies and to the persistent hostility of the Apache Indians.

In 1870 there was a revival, due to the introduction of machinery and more modern methods of mining. The Indian problem was lessening except for periodic disturbances and people began to come in on all trails. New strikes were made and by 1873 over 7,000 gold mines were recorded in the vicinity of Prescott.

The capital was temporarily moved back to Prescott in 1877. Then followed twelve years of wrangling; the capital was placed on the auction block at every session of the legislature with Prescott and Tucson the chief bidders— either fighting to hold it or to get it.

Finally, in 1889, an act passed by the legislature and signed by the governor provided that the capital go to neither city but to Phoenix permanently. The removal of the capital followed almost immediately, and there it has remained.

Meanwhile mining was supplemented by a thriving stock-raising industry, and the frontier town had grown into a city. The population had increased from 500 to 4,000 and Prescott firms were doing the largest business in the territory. The coming of the railroad from Ashfork to Prescott in 1893 and its expansion to Phoenix in 1895 provided inexpensive transportation, and Prescott continued to thrive.

In July 1900, like so many western towns, Prescott had its great fire. The business section and the area around the courthouse and plaza were swept by fire. The flames completely demolished "Whiskey Row" and part of the wall of the old capitol. Only two of the town's score of saloons were left.

Meanwhile the saloon-keepers and other business men who had suffered the loss of great stocks of merchandise, had moved whatever salvaged equipment and supplies they were fortunate to possess, to the court house plaza where they continued in operation in tents and in the open-set along the plaza, and before the ruins were cool, the debris was being cleared away and material for new buildings unloaded on the ground.

Prescott is the seat of Yavapai County and in the center of the city plaza is the striking white granite court house. Classical in design, it is one of the most beautiful architectural examples in the Southwest.

The historic bronze monument of the Rough Rider fronting the north entrance to the court house is by Solon Borglum, and is considered one of the finest of equestrian statues. Erected by Arizona citizens through an appropriation by the state legislature, it pays honor to Roosevelt's Rough Riders and is dedicated to the memory of "Bucky" O'Neill and his comrades who died while serving their country in the war with Spain. The figure on the herse is a likeness of O'Neill who, during his residence in Prescott, served in various official positions including that of Yavapai county sheriff, and mayor of the city.

Two outstanding attractions for which Prescott is noted are the Frontier Days Celebration, centering around the Fourth of July, and the Smoki Snake Dance and Ceremonials, held the first Sunday in August.

The Frontier Days Rodeo has been an annual event since 1888 when the first public rodeo ever held in the United States took place here. Cowboys from the ranches in the surrounding hills are on hand; punchers from the desert and mountain reaches in distant parts of the state drift in to compete. There are rodeos and there are rodeos, but the Prescott show is a bit different not only because of its historical significance, but the people of this mile high city do not just stage their Frontier Days celebration and rodeo-they live it.

The Smoki People of Prescott present their annual Snake Dance and Ceremonials with all of the seriousness and reverence of the Indians themselves. The Smoki, pronounced Smoke-eye, are a group of Prescott business and professional people whose organization has as its specified purpose, the study and perpetuation of the folklore, dances and customs of the native Indians of the Southwest, and today give their reproductions as nearly like the original as possible. Their performances are very spectacular, and worthy of the nation-wide praise afforded them.

The Hopi Snake Dance, as performed by the Indians, calls for the use of live rattlesnakes, while the Smoki resort to non-poisonous reptiles. Why the Hopi Indians are not affected noticeably by the bite of the snakes that have not been milked, is a matter of conjecture. The Snake Dance is a Hopi prayer for rain and is held annually at one of their villages high on the mesa tops in the Painted Desert region. The Smoki annually present a program of varied dances and ceremonials of Arizona Indians, varying from year to year but always climaxing with the weird and barbaric Snake Dance.

The Smoki Museum in Prescott is a treasure-vault built by the Tribe as a repository of Indian artifacts and literature pertaining to the Indians of the Southwest, and is open to the public.

The Arizona Pioneers Home in Prescott is the only institution of its kind in the United States. This threestory, block-long brick building, situated high on a bluff overlooking the city, is state maintained, and the aged and infirm pioneers are admitted to the home as guests of the state, if they are at least sixty years old and if they have resided in the state for thirty-five years or more.

Fort Whipple, now a Veterans Administration Hospital, is composed of a large group of buildings on a seventeenhundred acre reservation northeast of the city. Old Fort Whipple, from which this hospital was expanded, was a famed landmark, having played an important part in the early history of Yavapai county.

Mining for gold, silver, copper, lead and zinc is still Prescott's principal means of support although a fair portion of the city's trade is due to the country's ranchers, who maintain great herds of cattle. And in peace time, when the war clouds have cleared away, Prescott will again take her place as one of America's most delightful summer resort cities, where, high in the mountains in a setting of great beauty, the cool pine breezes blow over the city, and the warm summer sun beams down to the delight of all who are fortunate enough to partake of it. Prescott is truly the "Jewel of Arizona's Mountains."