IN THE LAND OF CORONADO

The first treasure hunt in the United States took place over four hundred years ago, involved more than thirteen hundred people, covered many thousands of miles, and took two years to complete. But even then the treasure was not found!

If you are careful to leave all your worries and modernday thoughts behind, and if you follow a newly built trail to the crest of a mountain about to have its name changed, and if you will pause and look south to where time, distance and shadow all become one-you may be able to see it happen again!

It was in the spring of 1540 that a man of white skin It was in the spring of 1540 that a man of white skinknown as Don Francisco Vasquez de Coronado marched north out of the Sonora Valley of Mexico and entered into a virgin land. Behind him was one of the greatest exploring expeditions the world has ever known. The man had already climbed barren mountains and crossed rivers and burning deserts. He was searching for a dream, as men always will, a dream called Cibola. Cibola, that fantastic land where seven cities had been built of gold and jewels.

Pursuit of that dream brought Francisco Coronado into what today is the United States, leading the first organized exploration party ever to penetrate that which we now call the Great Southwest.

He had been drawn there by the golden words of a Franciscan padre, Fray Marcos de Niza, who claimed to have seen with his own eyes a city larger than any in all Mexico and filled with richness beyond all imagination. Confident that another Cuzco or Tenochtitlan lay beyond the northern horizon Coronado marched north from New Spain with three hundred and thirty-six soldiers, four priests, and more than one thousand Indian allies-men, women and children. There were over fifteen hundred horses and mules, great numbers of cattle, sheep and even pigs bringing up the rear. In the lead of this vast expedition rode Coronado, he alone dressed in golden armor so that if he met another El Dorado gilded in gold they could at least meet on common ground.

a Franciscan padre, Fray Marcos de Niza, who claimed to have seen with his own eyes a city larger than any in all Mexico and filled with richness beyond all imagination. Confident that another Cuzco or Tenochtitlan lay beyond the northern horizon Coronado marched north from New Spain with three hundred and thirty-six soldiers, four priests, and more than one thousand Indian allies-men, women and children. There were over fifteen hundred horses and mules, great numbers of cattle, sheep and even pigs bringing up the rear. In the lead of this vast expedition rode Coronado, he alone dressed in golden armor so that if he met another El Dorado gilded in gold they could at least meet on common ground.

The treasure hunters, with the dreams of wealth before them, crossed from Sonora into Arizona via the broad valley of the San Pedro River, which flows north from the present day border to join the Gila. They rode on to anything but glory. For two years they sought Cibola, but it was a will-o-the-wisp and was never found for it never existed. The bold adventurer returned to Mexico with only defeat.

But his explorations had proved the existence of a vast new land to the north. And though he thought he had failed he actually had more success than he could ever dream.

Today, an area of two thousand acres on the southern flanks of the Huachuca Mountains, which rise to the west of the valley of the San Pedro, have been set aside as this nation's memorial to the bold Spanish conquistador who sought Cibola. Naturally enough, it is called Coronado National Memorial and its lands are bordered on the south by the International Boundary. It is a part of the National Park System, thus basking in the enviable position of being administered by the men in forest green who have the idea of both present and future in mind when it comes to preserving something of the past.

As a national memorial Coronado is most unique, both to Arizona and the nation. It is the only national memorial in the Southwest and one of only two west of the Mississippi River. The other is older and-for the present-more famous. Its name: Mount Rushmore, where four faces of stone peer out over the Black Hills. There are ten other national memorials, all in the east, all commemorating some event or place of national greatness. But Coronado is by far the largest of these unusual National Park Service members and most certainly commemorates the oldest of the various events and places memorialized.

of the Mississippi River. The other is older and-for the present-more famous. Its name: Mount Rushmore, where four faces of stone peer out over the Black Hills. There are ten other national memorials, all in the east, all commemorating some event or place of national greatness. But Coronado is by far the largest of these unusual National Park Service members and most certainly commemorates the oldest of the various events and places memorialized.

The memorial itself has but a short history. The establishment of Coronado National Memorial was done quietly and there were few who were aware of the addition of this newest of Arizona's many and varied national park units, which include a park, 16 monuments and a recreational area. It entered the national park registry just four years ago, approved by an Act of Congress on July 9, 1952, and officially signed into being by presidental proclamation on November 9 of that year. Previous to this the lands contained within the memorial had all been a part of Coronado National Forest. Units of this forest are spread across southeastern Arizona and edge over into New Mexico. One unit of the forest still surrounds the memorial.

Small amounts of copper and zinc have been found in the area and during the last World War several small mines were operated while the price and scarcity of minerals merited it. But the metals were low grade and all operations operations have since closed down, probably not to be opened again.

Now, five years have passed and the memorial project is getting under way actively. As a part of the National Park Service's Mission 66 planning, Coronado National Memorial's improvement program is slated to be completed as soon as possible, with some aspects of the farsighted program already under way. In November of 1955, Superintendent C.A. Burroughs arrived from Wupatki National Monument near Flagstaff. As the memorial's first and only permanent ranger he found he was thus superintendent of no one other than himself, andhad arrived just in time to really go to work! In the months that have followed his appointment, Coronado has found itself with a loyal and staunch defender and champion, while Superintendent Burroughs has found himself with his hands full of a variety of major tasks, plus the initiation of the fulfillment of a grand and glorious ideal.

Primarily, Coronado National Memorial has been set aside as a permanent commemoration of the brave and daring achievements of Coronado and his companions. In addition to this, the memorial stands to symbolize the great importance of the Spanish background which colors the history and culture of the entire Southwest, from Texas to California, to such a great extent. But most of all, it gives permanent indication of the closest of relationships that exists today between Arizona and its neighboring states and the adjacent states of the Mexican Republic to the south.

It is with this in mind that a long-range idea has been born. It is hoped that one day not too far distant the two nations which blend here may create an International Memorial which will appropriately honor the one man and his two countries, for Coronado found no political boundaries and he created none. When such a memorial has been set up, to include the southern expanses of the Sonora Valley, along with the upper portions in the United States, with flags of both nations flying side by side, then the Coronado story will be told in full.

Such items of lasting importance often seem endlessly delayed, but plans are already underway for the Mexican government to acquire these adjoining lands, which strangely enough have long been owned by an American who married into a Mexican family many years ago.

Creation of an international area of this nature would not be without precedent. The Waterton-Glacier International Peace Park was set up in 1932 "forever as a symbol of permanent peace and friendship" with Canada as the good neighbor. Truly it would be a wonderful and great step forward if the idea created then could be carried to completion through the establishment of the Coronado International Memorial with Mexico.

But this dream of the future has been pushed slightly into the background for the moment and the superintendent of Coronado is concerned with a multitude of other things, all designed to properly present the memorial as a fascinating and memorable double-set jewel of scenery and history. Both of these are hard to beat, for Coronado has both glorious far-flung views and the recall of the inspiring events that took place here. For this reason, certain additions will be most welcomed.

In anticipation of the future, the road through Montezuma Pass has already been widened so that there is adequate parking space at the summit, where the Coronado Mountain Trail provides visitors with the real essence of this historical land. It is a short, newly-built Visitors to Coronado National Memorial Park find a trail guide to explain plants and features on trail to Coronado Peak.

trail that leads southward and upward for half a mile to the crest of the last rise in the Huachucas and permits matchless views of the wide valley that was Coronado's route into the Southwest. This peak is about to be christened Coronado Peak. A Southwestern National Monuments booklet will soon be available in printed form which will provide a silent, though well-versed, guide for those who follow this fascinating trail.

In time, a small museum will be built near the parking area. Its intent will be to re-tell the Coronado story as well as explain the natural features of the area.

A new headquarters will be built near the eastern entrance to the memorial and fireplaces and tables for picnicking will be provided nearby. Interpretive and directional markers will be installed at appropriate places -and then the memorial will be officially open for business.

But officially or not, the area is already open for business and many people are having the joy of discovering the precious jewel on the international border. It is shown on the newer roadmaps and though it is a bit out of the way, inquiry plus careful attention given both to map and road brings final success in reaching the memorial. Some five thousand visitors succeeded in 1955 and this year's visitation will possibly double that amount. And this is only the beginning! When present developments have been completed there will be many others who will find a visit to Coronado to be richly rewarding in a variety of ways. But you needn't wait. Any and all visitors are always welcomed, and Superintendent Burroughs, when on duty, proves a most gracious host.

The memorial is most easily reached from the east via Bisbee and State Route 92. Near the southern end of the Huachuca Mountains a county road turns south, then curves west, changes from blacktop to an unsurfaced dirt road and after eight miles of wandering it crosses into Coronado National Forest and soon dips into Coronado National Memorial.

Once there it eases its way up the gentle southern flanks of the Huachucas. To the southeast the lone peak called San Jose straddles the International Boundary. At its eastern base is Naco, half in the United States and half in Mexico, where prehistoric mammoth bones were unearthed just a few years ago.

The views are left behind as you enter Montezuma Canyon, but once there a close series of switchbacks carries you up toward the pass and soon the eastward vista has opened up again. The narrow dirt road takes wholeheartedly to the business of climbing the mountain and eventually gains its highest place on the saddle known as Montezuma Pass. At these somewhat higher elevations piñon pine and the usual juniper have been added to the sagebrush and the chapparal slopes. Numerous varieties of cactus are mingled in, including several chollas.

The entire area is relatively dry. Winters are extremely mild and snow is a rarity. Even casual rains are all too infrequent. For this reason, wild life in the memorial tends to be limited. There are a few deer, an occasional coati-mundi and an infrequent javelina.

The road does not stop at the pass, but curls down the western slope of the Huachucas and sagely heads for Nogales and pavement some forty miles away. It is a good road across a pleasant land. It tackles and surmounts two other ridges of the corrugated mountains that run obliquely to the border at irregular intervals and never falters until its goal has been reached. The memorial could as easily be entered from this direction if you are not easily defeated by unsurfaced, single-track roads that seemingly go nowhere, but always lead to a fascinating somewhere. In reality, they are the most delightful roads you can follow and though rarely posted, they are the real highroads to the adventure offered by these vast and lonely lands. But enough! Let's you and I go to Coronado National Memorial!

It is hard to say just when we should go. There are no campgrounds in the area at the present time, nor any accommodations for overnight any closer than Bisbee, thirty miles away. Nonetheless you really should visit the area at dusk as well as in broad daylight, preparing yourself to camp alongside the road or making a leisurely after-dark return to Bisbee or Douglas.

For at night the memorial is a paradox. In the gathering shadows, after a departing sun has carefully etched the mountains in gold and bronze, then pocketed its precious colors and fled, four hundred years recede and nothing has really changed from the moments of Coronado's great adventure except that you are here. It is almost as if you can feel the presence of the conquistadores-and perhaps you can, for their gallant spirits have most certainly never vanished from this land, but still linger here. Passage of time cannot erase anything such as that!

But as dusk deepens and blurs into darkness, the mountains become silhouettes on the horizon and the paradox develops. Thirty miles to the south electric lights snap on in Cananea in Sonora. Tomorrow you can cross the border to the east and take a slow and tortuous road that will consume four hours in reaching Cananea and one or two more before reaching the West Coast High-way and Hermosillo, but from here Cananea is only a whisper away. To the east Naco jumps into being electrically and scattered between are half a dozen other lights of rancheros and tiny settlements.

Or has reality been misrepresented here and these are but the lights of Coronado's fires where his lieutenants plan tomorrow's march? It is very hard to saywhen you stand there on the darkened slope of the Huachucas and the currents of time eddy around you and deposit you neither here nor there.

At noon it is another story! This is the time to take the Coronado Trail and stand atop Coronado Peak. East lie the blue shadows of far distant mountains and perhaps the faint smudge of smoke from the smelter at Douglas. But then it could be a dust devil so don't let it deter your imagination. West are the barren ridges that somewhere conceal Nogales, while south lies the face of Endless-ness. Peak after peak undulates away to the skyline where Sonora finally blends into the blue that seems a million miles away. It is here, at the end of this trail, that you may stand with your eyes wide open and imagine that history is being repeated.

It isn't very hard, for nothing seems to be different. The vastness of the valley is no less today than it was four hundred and seventeen years ago. And from this high place where boundaries cannot be seen it is all one land, not two. There seem to be no fences, no signs of human habitation. There is only the past and even in the brilliance of noonday sun there are the grey ghosts of Coronado's legions. You may pause here and dream for as long as you wish and you will not be disturbed, except by other dreamers.

And dreamers properly belong here for this is the land of Coronado.

Yours sincerely JACK'S ARCH:

There is little chance today of anyone finding a "new" formation in famed Monument Valley. Dozens of splendid arches, windows and bridges have already been noted, photographed and named. For this reason when Jack Sleeth of Goulding's Trading Post "discovered" a new formation, he was justifiably proud. It bears his name: "Jack's Arch." I thought you might like to see photos of it . . .

Thanks, Joe!

PHOTOGRAPHER FOUND:

I was very pleased to see my lightning photograph used in the July issue of ARIZONA HIGHWAYS. I thought it looked very nice and was well reproduced as usual. Though I am a bit disappointed in not receiving photo credit, I realize that even editors can slip up once in a while. With all your submissions, sorting of prints, etc., it is a wonder that things are kept as straight as they are. This picture was made near the Tucson Mountains overlooking Avra Valley. By watching the lightning and approximating its interval of flash, I was able to make an exposure of one second duration at an opening of f. 11 on 4x5 Anscochrome color film, daylight type. I used a 5" Symar lens on a 4x5 Linhoff camera.

During the summer rains this scene is quite typical of Southern Arizona each afternoon when cloudbursts, lightning and tremendous thunderheads are frequent. The following morning will often be clear with brilliant clarity, only to darken later in the day presenting another spectacular display of lightning, thunder, hail and rain. But he does it, And loves it!

RESERVATIONS PLEASE!

A pup with a loud vocation, Three children full of elation, A wife in constant dictation, A car with old age frustration, Makes man wonder where he got the idea, That vacations are needed every year . . .

DAY'S END ON THE DESERT

Where hills burned brightly but a little while ago Charred shadows are cooling, And where hot sand flamed mile on mile Gray ashes drift upon the wind, Yet, in the sky's great copper-kettle, Sunset still boils, Its blistering golds and scalding crimsons Seething in silence.

Until, without a moment's warning, Beauty spills over. Drenching the West before it drains away In sudden darkness.

ALARM CLOCK

The alarm clock rattled Its reveille, It called, it scolded Its symphonyAmerica's greatest Charivari.

THE MONUMENT

All night, with stealth, the restless wind Purloined bright grains of sand and laid Them down where ugliness was strewn. With care he piled them high and made a shining dune.

THE EYES OF THE BLIND

As once the whispered twilight fell, And flaming skies grew dim, I asked a man born blind to tell What sunsets meant to him.

And ever since he told me how He fancied them to be, I find dissatisfaction now With these poor ones I see.

SUMMER FANTASY

I love to lie in ripening grass And watch the patterns made by leaves Against blue sky, while white clouds pass Like fat and woolly unclipped sheep.

Behind them, nudging, gently shoving, A herdsman breeze keeps cloud-sheep moving.

FULL MOON

With care The tipsy moon Toils up the steep skyway, Then, straddling night's great banister, Slides down.

OPPOSITE PAGE

"Ruins in a Cliff: Montezuma Castle." By Ray Manley. The photographer says: "When my father first came to the valley and he was no pioneer, the fifteen mile trip to the Castle was a several hour trip with cars using 30x3½ inch tires. Crossing the Verde and Oak Creek, local cowboys would sometimes dig the river road crossing a bit deeper and stalled cars were pulled out with a lasso-at $5.00 a car. Picnickers heading for the "Castle" would grumble but pay the price. Old tree ladders were used back in "17" and on week days there were seldom any visitors. Now there are hundreds visiting this spectacular cliff dwelling some 80 feet above the canyon floor overlooking Beaver Creek below and farmlands once cultivated by Indians. 5x7 Deardorff, 8½ inch Commercial Ektar, 1/5th second, f.25, daylight Ektachrome. I may not have been the first to make a photograph from this point but take credit for pulling down several large dead branches obstructing the Castle view, making this vantage point more usable. Today there is a trail to the exact camera location where I once stood and a sign stating it is one of the spots suited for a good picture of the ruins. The white limestone reflects a lot of light into the shadow areas and correct exposure is nearly one f. stop smaller than most scenes."

BACK COVER

"Cottonwoods near Cornville." By Ray Manley. 5x7 Linhoff, 210 Symar lens, 1/25th at f.18, daylight Anscochrome film. Here on Frank Gyberg's ranch is a typical irrigation ditch in the Verde Valley used in watering alfalfa fields. A lot of water goes up the trunk of those trees but their shade, coolness and beauty make up for the water used.