Notes for Photographers

BY: None

Those who would know Santa Cruz County must get off the pavement. The sixty-five mile trip from Tucson down U.S. 89 to the border is interesting, even quietly beautiful. Arizona 82, running east from Nogales toward Tombstone, is more revealing. The Ruby road leaving U.S. 89 five miles north of Nogales, and paved for twelve miles to the recreation area at Pena Blanca, is delightful. The rest of the county reserves its charms for the more adventurous. Earliest known adventurer was the Franciscan, Fray Marcos de Niza, first civilized white man to penetrate the unknown West. In the interests of the Spanish Crown, he crossed the San Rafael Valley in quest of the Seven Cities of Cibola, more than four hundred years ago. A monument to his valorous undertaking stands at Lochiel, tiny settlement at another gateway to Mexico, thirty miles east of Nogales. An electric power line finally reached the area last August.

From the Mustang Mountains east of Elgis, were rounded up because of the damage they were inflicting on the range.) The rocky, oak-covered, canyon-riven hills brooded, waiting for someone to rediscover their hidden treasure.

Charles D. Poston, often called Father of Arizona, started mining operations in the Cerros Colorados and the Santa Ritas soon after the Gadsden Purchase. Fort Buchanan recendy had been established on the Sonoits, and riches seemed within easy grasp. But the pattern apparently had been set. The govern ment, impoverished by the the Civil War, soon was forced to abandon the fort. The handful of pioneer Americans were on their own, and disaster followed. The mines were pillaged by renegade Mexicans. The Apaches were rampant. Graves in many burying grounds are marked "Killed by Apaches." In the Santa Cruz Valley, only Pete Kitchen remained, entrenched in his ranch-fortress some five miles north of Nogales.

Two miles northeast of Lochiel, a ranch house sits in a sea of rolling grassland. Here in 1883, Colin Carmeron, who had named Lochiel for his ancestral home in Scotland, imported a large herd of Hereford cattle in Arizona Territory. Two hun dred years before arrival of the Norte Americanos, a strange cavalcade sometimes crossed the high valley. Father Eusebio. Kino, missionary extraordinary, a superb horseman despite Bowing robes, travelling usually with a lone military escort and a company of assorted Indians, made numerous exploratory trips in Southern Arizona. Between 1687 and 1711 he estab lished a chain of mission sites stretching from his headquarters in Sonora to San Xavier del Bac near Tuson.

Toward the end of the 18th century, a number of land grants by the Spanish Crown encouraged establishment of huge ranches in the river valleys.

In the days when the lush grass was "belly high to a horse," thousands of cattle ranged the country. Life was colorful and the haciendas were islands of hospitality.

But only briefly. The Apaches finally drove the hacendados back into the interior those who survived. Cattle and horses ran wild over the grasslands, blackened embers and crumbling adobe walls stood among the creeping wild gourd vines. (Only forty years ago, fourteen carloads of wild horses, most of them The pendulum swung the other way again as the war ended. Prospectors, miners, and promoters flocked into the country. Soon, twenty-mule-team wagon trains shuttled berween mines in the Patagonias and near Crittendon, now one lone house on Arizona 8z, two miles east of Patagonia. Thousands of tons of ore were shipped south through Nogales Pass to the nearest seaport at Guaymas. Forts were re-established to pro tect the frontiersmen, hay and beef contractors followed to supply the forts. Merchants, ranchers, and, finally, a few fam flies settled in the area. Silk-hatted dignitaries with their bon neted ladies gathered at the "Line City" to celebrate completion of a branch railroad line from Fairbank to Nogales in 1882. Rail down from Tucson was laid four years later.

The Fairbank branch line was abandoned several years ago. The old S.P. Depot at Patagonia is being restored as a community project under leadership of local Rotarians.

Commerce moves largely up and down the Santa Cruz Valley with import-export headquarters at Nogales. According to customs figures, imports last year totaled $ror,626,919. Goods to the value of $39,961,719 were exported. This makes Ambos Nogales the second largest Port of Entry for Mexican-American trade along the entire 2000-mile border, surpassed only by Laredo, Texas.

Activity in the mines again drifted to a near-standstill twenty years ago but prospecting has never ceased. The hills are studded with claim stakes. The Red Mountain road was built to accommodate diamond drilling crews which have been boring holes in several locations for the past two years. Just testing, they say. The road is narrow, nearly straight up and punctuated with hairpin turas, but the view of Patagonia from the heights reminds one of a Swiss postcard.

Production of grain in the county's 7,000 acres of level agricultural land is slowly being crowded out by residential development. The region's rugged topography is part cause for its comparatively slow growth. Some areas can be traveled only on horseback. The difficulties of leveling and grading make construction of buildings and roads relatively expensive. The "rolling to rough" country, however, will carry more than twice the usual number of cattle per section and ranches half a dozen return routes to choose from. If the country around Elgin looks familiar, it's probably because it is. This and other areas have appeared in movies and on T.V. Sonoita is where the horses are. Races are held the last week in May. An important Quarter Horse Show is is held in June. There are Sonoita Amateur Roping Club competitions at the fairgrounds every other Sunday. The Annual County Fair and Stock Sale at the end of September is one of the few honest-to-goodness, old-fashioned fairs left in the country. Guest ranches in an ares like this have much to offer anyone who is interested in the "real thing."

Ghost towns here are also real, just battered bits and pieces, but soul-satisying to those who can reconstruct the old days in imagination. It is perhaps this quality of genuineness in both the country and its people that the visitor finds most appealing. Don't make the mistake of equating lack of affectation with Are spread all over the county. About 18,000 calves are shipped annually. Nogales, containing 70% of the county's population, is now moving rapidly into the hills. Homes are under construction along U.S. 89. The Patagonia area inevitably will expand as the Patagonia Lake recreation area develops. The 260-acre lake, scheduled for opening in 1970, is situated in an area of exceptionally dramatic beauty in the southern foothills of the Santa Ritas. Development will provide fishing. camping, and water sports. Although lying largely within an adjoining county, the 140-acre Parker Canyon Lake draws an increasing number of visitors via Arizona 83 south from Sonoita. Well-marked and well-graded, the road winds for thirty miles through the hills to a National Forest Service picnic area amid junipers overlooking the lake. There are boats, a 4-unit motel and a store where refreshments can be obtained. It is wise to leave the highway with a full gasoline tank. A return via Lochiel, Washington Camp and Harshaw makes a delightful loop trip. Allow plenty of time, for on this route many sites beg closer inspection, notably the historic Mowry mine and the once rip-roaring town of Harshaw, still home to a handful of people. To vary the return from Lochiel, turn left after Washington Camp and take the road over the mountain to Nogales. Meanwhile, back at the lake, there are naivete. This is not a "provincial" area. People live here because they prefer to. Among charter planes parked at Nogales there are usually a few which belong to "commuters" from distant metropolitan areas. Incidentally, bus service between Nogales and Tucson is excellent. A daily bus runs to Douglas via Fort Huachuca. Reasons for choosing to live here are obvious. At an average elevation of 4500 feet - at "population level" summers are not oppressive, winters are bracing. Average temperatures are a high of 65, a low of 27 in January. Summer averages range from a daytime high of 94 in June to a maximum of 63 at night. Of the 1,246 square miles in this county smallest in the stare more than half lies within the Coronado National Forest. This makes for a lot of greenery. Annual rainfall is 15.6 inches. The fact that 85% of the county's residents are bilingual those with Mexican and "Anglo" cultural backgrounds alike suggests the close ties with our neighboring country. The status quo is fine, but change is in the air. And the people know it. Despite minor disagreements, they stand united in determination to embrace the future without discarding the traditions and the historical past. One strongly suspects they will be successful.

FEBRUARY 19όδ

OPPOSITE PAGE

"MORNING VISTA PENA BLANCA LAKE" DARWIN VAN CAMPEN. Pena Blanca Lake just off of Arizona 289. View was taken from a cove along the eastern side of the lake looking toward the boat dock. 4x5 Linhof camera; Ektachrome; f.22 at 1/25th sec.

FOLLOWING PAGES

"GARDEN PATH AT OLD TUMACACORI" DARWIN VAN CAMPEN. View shows garden path in Tumacacori National Monument. 4x5 Linhof camera; Ektachrome; f.22 at 1/25th sec.; 150mm Symmar lens; November; bright sunlight; Weston Meter 200.

"CHILI PICKING SANTA CRUZ COUNTY" CHARLES W. HERBERT. Photo taken at the Santa Cruz Chili Products farm at Amado along U.S. 89. 4x5 Speed Graphic camera; Ektachrome Daylight; f.22 at 1/60th sec.; Graphic 135mm Optar 1000 sec. lens.

"VIEW OF OLD TUMACACORI AND SANTA CRUZ VALLEY" JOSEF MUENCH. Tumacacori Mission is on U.S. 89, eighteen miles north of Nogales. Situated in the heart of fertile Santa Cruz Valley and in the shadow of the Santa Rita Mountains is the old Spanish mission, founded in 1700 and built in its present form around 1820. In 1908 it was established as a national monument to protect the old buildings. 4x5 Linhof camera; Ektachrome; f.18 at 1/50th sec.; 81/4" Tessar lens; August; sunny day.

"IN SAN RAFAEL VALLEY" ALMA READY. Photo taken in the San Rafael Valley looking east across Canela Hills to the Huachuca Mountains. Mamiya C-3 camera; Ektachrome X; f. 16 at 1/60th sec.; Mamiya-Sakor 8mm f2.8 lens; April; patchy sunshine; drifting clouds.

"PATAGONIA AND THE GREEN HILLS OF SANTA CRUZ COUNTY" ALMA READY. Photo taken from the mesa "behind" (south) the town of Patagonia looking across town north to the Santa Rita Mountains. Mamiya C-3 camera; Ektachrome X; f. 16 at 1/125th sec.; Mamiya-Sekor f2.8 80mm lens; April.

"VIEW OF SANTA CRUZ COUNTY FROM MT. WRIGHTSON" HELGA TEIWES. View taken from top of Mt. Wrightson, 9,447 feet, in the Santa Rita Mountains (35 miles south of Tucson) reached by road to Madera Canyon off U.S. 89.

"IN RUGGED SYCAMORE CANYON SANTA CRUZ COUNTY" DARWIN VAN CAMPEN. Taken in Sycamore Canyon located along the road leading from Pena Blanca Lake to Ruby.

"SCENE ON U.S. 89 BETWEEN TUCSON AND NOGALES" PETE BALESTRERO. At the present Cow Palace (formerly Kinsleys' Ranch) about half way between Tucson and Nogales on Arizona 89. Scene is looking east towards the Santa Rita Mountains across the man-made lake at the resort. Elephant Head Butte is seen at base of mountains.

"GRAZING LAND SANTA CRUZ COUNTY" DARWIN VAN CAMPEN. Taken from along Arizona 83 just a few miles north of Sonoita.

"INTERNATIONAL GATEWAY NOGALES" PETE BALESTRERO. Photo taken from the hill east of the new Mexican Gateway at Nogales, Sonora, Mexico, looking down on the entrance complex. U. S. Customs House and Nogales, Arizona in distance.

"STATUES BY ALFREDO JUST IN NOGALES, SONORA" CHARLES W. HERBERT. This statuary group is located in Nogales, Sonora, five miles from the border on Mexico 15, highway leading down Mexico's West Coast. Here the artist, Alfredo Just, portrays in the first figure ignorance being vanquished by educated man.

"SUMMER CATTLE COUNTRY IN SANTA CRUZ COUNTY" JOSEF MUENCH. Summer on the Babacomari Ranch, an old Spanish Land Grant, has its setting a few miles east of Elgin.

"HAY BALING TIME-SANTA CRUZ COUNTY" DARWIN VAN CAMPEN. Taken along U.S. 89 about five miles north of Nogales. 4x5 Linhof camera; Ektachrome; f.32 at 1/25th sec.; 360mm Tele-Xenar lens; November; bright sunlight; Weston Meter 400.

"ROUNDUP TIME SANTA CRUZ COUNTY" PETE BALESTRERO. Photo taken on the Rio Rico Ranch just off highway nine miles north of Nogales. The cattle are Santa Gertrudis.

"RANCH SCENE NEAR ARIVACA" PETE BALESTRERO. Photo taken on Ruby Road, Arizona 289, between Ruby and Arivaca.

"AUTUMN ON THE RAIL X RANCH" JOSEF MUENCH. Taken along Arizona 82 between the towns of Patagonia and Sonoita. Here are seen cattle on the Rail X Ranch. It was in this region where this important industry had its beginning. It shows Herefords in pens with the rolling country turning golden under the touch of autumn.

"TUBAC DREAMS OF YESTERDAY TODAY" JOSEF MUENCH. Tubac, a state park, is situated in Santa Cruz Valley along U.S. 89 some 22 miles north of Nogales. Brooding under the warm sun, Tubac, the oldest of the state's communities, has a charm all of its own and has become a retirement and art center. Ruins of the old Spanish presidio and church are under state protection.

"ON A RANCH IN SANTA CRUZ COUNTY" JOSEF MUENCH. Photo shows Hacienda of the Bells Ranch, situated in the rolling hill country just north of Nogales. Typical of lovely ranch residences in Santa Cruz County is this home, tucked away under big eucalyptus trees.

"MONUMENT TO FRAY MARCOS DE NIZA AT LOCHIEL" JOSEF MUENCH. This monument to Fray Marcos de Niza is located some thirty miles east of Nogales, close to the Mexican border. Fray Marcos de Niza, Vice Commissary of the Franciscan Order and Delegate to the Viceroy in Mexico, entered Arizona as the first European to set foot west of the Rockies in 1539 at the present site of the community of Lochiel. 4x5 Linhof camera; Ektachrome; f.14 at 1/50th sec.; 6" Xenar lens; April; sunny day.

"FATHER KINO CHAPEL AT PETE KITCHEN RANCH" PETE BALESTRERO. Kino Chapel at Pete Kitchen Ranch on U.S. 89 about eleven miles north of Nogales, Arizona. 4x5 Graphic View camera; Daylight Ektachrome; f.22 open and closed shutter; 88mm Wide Angle Bausch & Lomb lens; October, 2 No. 3B flashbulbs; ASA rating 40.

"REX RANCH - AMADO" RAY MANLEY. Rex Ranch, Amado, Arizona. 4x5 Linhof camera; Daylight Ektachrome; f.22 at 1/50th sec.; 90mm Super Angulon lens; bright sun.

"KENYON RANCH TUBAC" RAY MANLEY. Kenyon Ranch, Tubac.

"GUEST RANCH SCENE - SANTA CRUZ COUNTY" RAY MANLEY. Because of location and ideal weather conditions, guest ranches are popular in Santa Cruz County.

"RAIL X RANCH PATAGONIA" RAY MANLEY. Rail X Ranch, Patagonia.

"RANCH SCENE NEAR PATAGONIA" RAY MANLEY. Patagonia, in the Sonoita Valley, is heart of a large cattle ranching area.

"WHERE THE GRASS IS HIGH" RAY MANLEY. Because of elevation and rainfall, Santa Cruz County boasts some of the finest range lands in Arizona.

"AUTUMN SCENE RUBY MTS." JOSEF MUENCH. This view of autumn in the Tumacacori Mountains was taken one mile south of Tumacacori Mission along U.S. 89. 4x5 Linhof camera; Ektachrome; f.14 at 1/50th sec.; 6" Xenar lens; November; sunny day.

"ATASCOSA MTS. SANTA CRUZ COUNTY" DAVID MUENCH. View is to Atascosa Mtns. from along Arivaca Stage Road to Nogales in the Ruby-Oro Blanco mining area. Linhof IV camera; Ektachrome E3; f.25 at 1/10th sec.; 51/4" Schneider Symmar lens; November; evening, clear, high elevation blues in sky.

"COTTONWOODS DRESSED IN GOLD" JOSEF MUENCH. This setting was taken along U.S. 89 between Tucson and Nogales. Autumn in Santa Cruz Valley. Blue and gold are the favorite colors on the landscape when fall brings its special charm to Southern Arizona. The cottonwood trees, elegant in yellow dress, are especially lovely near the blue water. 4x5 Linhof camera; Ektachrome; f.18 at 1/25th sec.; 6" Xenar lens; November; sunny day.

LAST PAGE OF COLOR PORTFOLIO

"MT. WRIGHTSON HIGHEST PEAK IN SANTA CRUZ COUNTY" JOSEF MUENCH. This view of Mt. Wrightson was taken at the end of the paved road leading into Madera Canyon Recreation Area. This rugged peak in the Santa Rita Mountains reaches an elevation of 9,453 feet, highest in Santa Cruz County. 4x5 Linhof camera; Ektachrome; f.16 at 1/50th sec.; 81/4" Tessar lens; April.