Arizona History
The Show spoke with Lynn Downey, an archivist, historian, and author of the book "American Dude Ranch: A Touch of the Cowboy and the Thrill of the West." In it, she traces the long and storied history of the dude ranch, America’s original western vacation.
May. 11, 2023
A special viewing of the 1989 movie, “Bill & Ted’s Excellent Adventure,” will be held at the former Metrocenter Mall in Phoenix.
May. 10, 2023
A new exhibit by art students at Hamilton High School in Chandler has opened at the city’s museum. The project is a direct response by students to an existing installation of documentary photography capturing Dust Bowl migrants on their journey from the central plains through Arizona and on to California.
May. 9, 2023
On the second floor of Burton Barr Central Library in Phoenix is a room filled with Arizona history dating back to territorial days. The James H. McClintock collection includes 2,000 photos, 15 scrapbooks and 33 linear feet of files.
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May. 1, 2023
The patio dress is an icon in Southwestern fashion history with its light cotton fabric and three-tired flowing skirt. These 1950s-style dresses or sets feature bright colors, Southwestern patterns and fancy rick-rack trim. Two Arizona designers made them popular midcentury when Southwestern tourism was booming and Western styles abounded.
Apr. 28, 2023
The city of Phoenix will officially recognize the second Monday in October as Indigenous Peoples’ Day. The new city holiday was approved during Wednesday’s council meeting.
Apr. 20, 2023
Bola ties have been Arizona’s official state neckwear since 1971. They have a distinctly western feel, so it makes sense that the Desert Caballeros Western Museum in Wickenburg has such a large collection — about 300 — of them.
Apr. 19, 2023
Phoenix residents with fond memories of the former Metrocenter Mall will get a chance to say goodbye during a public party. Fans of the 1989 movie “Bill & Ted’s Excellent Adventure,” which was partially filmed at Metrocenter, can enjoy it again.
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Apr. 14, 2023
Turf Paradise, the historic horse-racing facility in Phoenix, is up for sale.
Apr. 14, 2023
Every morning for the past three years, Ken Koshio has been waking up before sunrise to hike Phoenix's Piestewa Peak.
Apr. 10, 2023
A group of residents and business owners along Grand Avenue in Phoenix wants the city to stop plans to turn a church into apartments.
Apr. 4, 2023
Country music in the West and poetry reverberate the sounds of spring in this episode of Word, a podcast about literature in Arizona and the region.
Apr. 2, 2023
Once a month, while weather allows, volunteers gather at S’edav Va’aki in Phoenix to throw mud at an over 800-year-old structure. Its outside walls are vulnerable to erosion from wind and rain, and the mudslinging helps keep it standing.
Mar. 31, 2023
"When I moved back here two years ago, I noticed that all the queer news that I used to go to as a kid was gone," said Joseph Darius Jaafari, a reporter with the Arizona Republic. In January, he founded LOOKOUT PHX, an online LGBTQ newsletter on Substack
Mar. 28, 2023
A city-owned museum marking where Hohokam people settled, ran their irrigation system, and lived for more than a thousand years has been renamed in Native language. Phoenix Parks and Recreation officials now plan to market the repository as the “gateway to Phoenix heritage.”
Mar. 24, 2023
Route 66 has long been a nostalgic symbol of American opportunity and Western expansion. But for many people of color who made their lives along the historic route, it was a different story.
Mar. 24, 2023
An estimated 2,000 Arizonans currently living in Mohave County suffered the effects of radiation exposure from nuclear testing during the Cold War. Yet, the U.S. government doesn’t recognize them as victims. The Downwinders Parity Act introduced last month by Sen. Kyrsten Sinema is the latest in a long line of bipartisan attempts to compensate them.
Mar. 23, 2023
History is a collection of stories. It’s easy to get bogged down in dates, dead presidents, or disputes about what really happened, but Chris Smith brought history to life. If you took a history class at ASU a couple of decades ago, or shopped at Old Town Books in Tempe, you may have run into him.
Mar. 22, 2023
Tom Zoellner is a fifth-generation Arizonan. He wanted to get a deeper understanding of his home state — so he walked across it. The result is his new book, "Rim to River: Looking into the Heart of Arizona."
Mar. 22, 2023
The city of Chandler will be holding its annual Ostrich Festival this weekend. It’s a big event featuring rides, live music headliners and more. But why ostriches? Turns out, while ostriches are not native to Arizona, they go a long way back in Chandler.
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→ More Arizona history stories
Mar. 17, 2023
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