History Information

The Prescott area has always drawn people; over 9,000 years ago, a flourishing population of up to 100,000 people inhabited the area. These may have been the ancestors of the Yavapai Tribe whose reservation now borders the city.

 
Historical Links: Prescott | Prescott Valley | Chino Valley

GOLD – its discovery in 1838 brought national attention to Prescott, and further discoveries in 1861 drew the attention of President Abraham Lincoln. Lincoln was looking for possible sources of funding for the North during the Civil War and created the Arizona Territory in 1864. John Goodwin, as first territorial governor, established Prescott as the first territorial capital. The new governor began the work of laying out the current downtown streets.
Prescott developed rapidly and in 1865 was described as being built exclusively of wood and inhabited almost entirely by Americans. Both of these facts made it unique among early communities in Arizona. Prescott lost its title as the Capital of Arizona to Tucson and finally to Phoenix in 1889. In 1900, a devastating fire burned Prescott to the ground; but it was rebuilt, and many of the buildings you see today are reminders of its past. Today, the older residential streets are lined with tall trees and pitched-roof frame houses, including turreted Victorians. Prescott has many homes and businesses on the National Register of Historic Places and its white granite courthouse, set among green lawns and spreading trees, reflects the Midwestern and New England background of Prescott’s pioneers.
The Original Territorial Court House
Another View
Downtown Circa 1920
A Day At The Square
Listing information is deemed reliable, but not guaranteed.

This IDX solution is (c) Diverse Solutions 2012.