Today in Arizona History, Adv19
Columbia Basin Herald | UPDATED 5 years, 11 months AGO
Sunday, Jan. 19
On this date in 1895, the Nogales Oasis newspaper noted that in Phoenix, "there are now several restaurants offering a square meal for the sum of 15 cents."
On this date in 1921, the Phoenix Police chief issued an order that all pedestrians on the street after 8 p.m. were to be stopped and searched for concealed weapons in an effort to combat crime.
On this date in 1926, Margaret Rowe Clifton, author of Arizona's state song, died.
Monday, Jan. 20
On this date in 1862, the Colorado River started rising. Two days later, it rose 3 feet (0.9 meters) in three hours, reaching its peak on Jan. 23. Fort Yuma became an island and Colorado City, now Yuma, was washed away.
On this date in 1889, Burton C. Mossman, who was to become the first captain of the Arizona Rangers, arrived in Holbrook to become manager of the Aztec Land and Cattle Co., better known as the Hashknife Ranch.
On this date in 1912, 44 delegates representing every labor organization met in Phoenix and formed the Arizona State Federation of Labor.
On this date in 1912, work also began on the El Paso and Southwestern Railroad terminal in Tucson.
On this date in 1961, Stewart Udall becomes the U.S. Secretary of the Interior and the first Arizonan to serve in a president’s cabinet.
On this date in 2009, former Gov. Janet Napolitano is confirmed as the U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security and Arizona Secretary of State Jan Brewer becomes the new governor.
Tuesday, Jan. 21
On this date in 1877, Allen's Camp, Ariz. changed its name to St. Joseph after the Prophet, Joseph Smith.
On this date in 1921, the first serious accident in the history of Bright Angel Trail at the Grand Canyon occurred. Three pack horses loaded with hay, grain, provisions, bedding and 116 pounds of dynamite fell over the wall of the canyon and were killed on the rocks below. The supplies were for a construction camp at the foot of the trail where the National Park Service was building a bridge across the Colorado River.
On this date in 1934, Jesse W. Ellison, who established the Q ranch in Gila County, died.
Wednesday, Jan. 22
On this date in 1864, Gov. John Goodwin and his party of newly appointed Territorial officials arrived at Fort Whipple, where they set up the first temporary capital for the Arizona Territory.
On this date in 1870, the Weekly Arizonan made the somewhat puzzling statement that "business is, today, at a higher ebb than it ever before reached in Tucson."
On this date in 1903, a head-on collision of the Southern Pacific east and west bound passenger trains at Vail Station killed 22 people and injured 45.
Thursday, Jan. 23
On this date in 1874, Gov. Anson P.K. Safford appointed a Territorial Board to arrange for an Arizona exhibit at the Centennial celebration to be held in Philadelphia.
On this date in 1916, a levee on the Colorado River broke, covering the city of Yuma with 4 feet (1.2 meters) of water.
Friday, Jan. 24
On this date in 1887, the first donation to build the Mormon Temple in Mesa was received from Mrs. Helena Roseberry, a poor widow of Pima.
On this date in 1917, a revolt broke out in the Arizona National Guard encampment at Naco with Company M parading up and down the Company Street, shouting that they wanted to go home.
On this date in 1935, El Capitan Kelly, last of the Yuma Indian war chiefs, died at what was believed to be about 125 years of age.
On this date in 1947, Laura B. Middaugh, who claimed to be the great-great niece of Jacob Walz and to have in her possession authentic maps of the Lost Dutchman Mine, headed into the Superstition Mountains in search of the mine.
Saturday, Jan. 25
On this date in 1860, the Tucson-Fort Buchanan stage was washed downstream near Tubac in the Santa Cruz River during a violent flood. Horses and baggage were saved, but the mail was delayed for 24 hours.
On this date in 1906, Flagstaff schools were closed because of an earthquake.
On this date in 1934, John Dillinger was captured with three of his gang in a house in Tucson by police who seized handguns, submachine guns and a bulletproof vest.