Click on this line to the March 2012 Newsletter

Sierra Vista Historical Society Newsletter
SVHS NEWSLETTER
svhsnewsletter@cox.net
Volu
m
520-458-0703 WWW.SVHSAZ.ORG
Mar
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201 h
2
e 10
Num
Marion Margraf, editor
President
Dave Santor
Vice-President
Tom Shupert
Treasurer
Tim Doyle
Secretary
Ingrid Baillie
ber 1
Spring
ARTICLES
MUSEUM NEWS
The focus is naturally on centennial events.
Continued on Page 2
SVHS members in period dress. See p. 6
CELIA ANN BLAYLOCK
AKA Mattie Earp--not a farmer’s wife!
Continued on Page 3
SVHS ANNUAL MEETING
Coming up in May--see p. 7. See related
information on p. 8 about changes to the
Society’s by-laws.
A new museum acquisitiion p. 2
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Celia Ann Blaylock, p. 3
SVHS Newsletter
Henry F. Hauser Museum Nancy Krieski, Curator! PAGE2
Curator’s
Corner
Our celebration of Arizona’s 100 Birthday
th
continues in March with a mouth-watering
barbeque and an “Arizona Statehood with All the
Bells and Whistles” presentation on Saturday,
March 24th, followed on April 7th by our Amazing
Arizona presentation “What Called Them to the
Canyon?” with Rosemary Snapp. We hope you
will all be able to attend these informative and
entertaining events!
We are experiencing some changes at the
museum as city restructuring and budget constraints
continue to affect us. Beginning March 5th,
museum hours changed to 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.,
Monday through Thursday. Saturday hours (10
a.m. to 1 p.m.) will continue through April 14th and
return in November. In order to maintain top notch
security at the museum it is now mandatory that a
Museum Gift Shop volunteer man the shop during
museum hours. Volunteers truly are an integral part
of our operation and we are grateful for their
support!
The museum’s traveling exhibit component
of “Our Little Corner of Cochise County” is
currently displayed at Sierra Toyota and The Corner
Barber Shop. The figures will stay through March
and then the display will move to the Mall at Sierra
Vista for the month of April. We are delighted to
have this opportunity to get the word out about our
museum and to educate the public of the unique
history of our area. Please stop by any of these
venues to check out our first ever traveling
museum!
As always, your many efforts in supporting
the museum are greatly appreciated.
Until next time,
Nancy Krieski
Nancy.krieski@sierravistaaz.gov
520-417-6980
Corner Cupboard
One never knows what interesting item will show up
at the museum. We recently acquired an iconic
1950s western garment: a beautiful hand-made
squaw dress from long-time Sierra Vista resident and
retired school teacher Liz Kras. This dress belonged
to her mother, who worked with native peoples on
reservations in New Mexico and Arizona during the
1950s and ‘60s. The story goes that she was taught
the art of constructing such a dress by the native
women who became her friends. We are grateful to
Liz Kras for donating such a beautiful example of
this unique fashion of the West and for entrusting us
with its care.
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3
Tombstone 1881: A Sampling of Rogues--A Glorification of Thugs
Celia Ann Blaylock, alias Mattie Earp by Ed Riggs
Besides the prospectors and miners who came to Tombstone to search out wealth in the form of silver ore, others
arrived to search out alternate ways to strike it rich. This is one of a series of articles about those who came to
Tombstone, Arizona Territory. Some were rogues, some were thugs, some were not. You get to decide in which
category they belong.
Celia Ann Blaylock was born
in 1850 near Fairfax, Iowa,
third of five children, to Henry
Blaylock and Elizabeth Vance.
Raised by her strict
fundamentalist parents on the
family farm, Celie had no
interest in becoming a farmer’s
wife. She and her 15-year-old
sister Sarah left home in 1868
to see the world, or at least
Kansas.
Little is known of the next
few years, other than Sarah
returned home in disgrace in
1869, “spoiled goods” in her
parents’ eyes.
Celie, by 1871 using the
alias “Mattie,” is in Fort Scott,
Kansas, and may have already
met Wyatt Earp, who was
staying with his older halfbrother Newton on his farm
two miles outside of town.
One of two known photographs
of Mattie was taken in a Fort
Scott studio. While in Kansas,
Mattie began calling herself
Mattie Earp, although no record
of an official marriage ceremony
has been located.
Wyatt and Mattie relocated to
Peoria, Illinois in 1872, where
both were arrested several times
in police raids on charges related
to prostitution, once on a riverboat brothel. Wyatt’s brother
Morgan was also arrested with
Wyatt. In later stories Wyatt
claimed he was a buffalo hunter
during this time, but none of the
real hunters remembered him.
By 1873, Mattie and Wyatt
moved west to Kansas, first in
Wichita, later in Dodge City.
Mattie met James Earp and his
wife Bessie in Wichita and went
into business with Bessie in her
bordello while Wyatt drummed
up customers for her. He also
worked occasionally as a
policeman or deputy city
marshall. During the Wichita
stay, Mattie (and Wyatt) became
acquainted with a co-worker at
Bessie’s establishment: Catherine
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Mary Harony, known better to
history as “Big Nose Kate.”
After moving to Dodge City,
both Mattie and Wyatt pursued
the same careers they had in
Wichita. However, by 1878 the
end of the cattle drives was in
sight, and the potential for
wealth for both was decreasing.
Virgil Earp, from Prescott,
Arizona Territory, urged Wyatt
to come farther west.
Mattie became friendly with
Allie, Virgil’s wife, in Prescott,
where they waited for James
and Bessie to join them before
they headed south to
Tombstone in December 1879.
Tombstone had been founded in
1877, and the lure of quick
riches caught Wyatt’s attention.
Morgan Earp and his wife
Louisa soon joined them there.
Originally the brothers had
planned to start a stage business,
but soon discovered two other
companies were already
established. Wyatt began
gambling, and sometimes, along
with Morgan, rode as shotgun for
Wells Fargo, while James went
back into the saloon business.
Evidently the Earp women
also continued their chosen
careers, and stories are still told
in Tombstone that Wyatt would
tell Mattie to go out to earn him
some gambling money when he
was a little short.
Continued on the next page
SVHS Newsletter!
PAGE
But the Earp wives kept a
low profile in Tombstone and
were seldom seen in a social
role. Mattie was reported to be
drinking frequently and was
addicted to laudanum.
Following the famed gunfight
they joined their husbands in a
hotel for security. After
Morgan’s assassination they
accompanied Virgil and James to
California for the burial.
Mattie waited several
months for Wyatt to send for her,
but she never saw him again.
She moved to Globe, A.T. where
Big Nose Kate was running a
“boarding house” and went to
work with her. The second
known photograph was taken
there in 1885 (the one on p. 3).
In 1887, Mattie moved on to
the dying mining camp of Pinal,
near Superior, and lived and
conducted business in a small
cabin on the edge of the
community. In July of 1888, she
asked one of the few remaining
men in Pinal to get her some
whiskey and laudanum. He got
her some, poured her a drink and
a few drops of laudanum, and
then fell asleep in her cabin.
Waking the next morning, he
4
found both bottles empty, and
Mattie dead. The coroner’s
inquest ruled her passing a
suicide.
Her obituary in a Globe
newspaper on July 7 read:
“Mattie Earp, a frail denizen of
Pinal, culminated a big spree by
taking a dose of laudanum on
Tuesday and died from its
effects. She was buried
on the 4th.”
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Spotlight on a Museum Volunteer
Fred Rusch does valuable work
for all those with an interest in
history. He writes:
My work as a volunteer
involves creating a computer
record of each oral history and
then indexing the history so its
contents can be easily
accessible to anyone looking
for information on a particular
person or topic. I began the
project by assigning an
accession number to each oral
history and then entering that
number in a database along
with the name of the person(s)
interviewed, the date of the
interview, and the name of the
interviewer. Once that was
finished, I read all the
completed transcriptions of the
oral histories (about 100 have
been completed) and for each
history assigned subject
headings using the international
museum classification system,
compiled a list of the specific
topics discussed, and made a
list of the names of people
discussed in detail, not just
mentioned, in the interview.
For instance, subjects for an
oral history may be terms such
as “military facilities,”
“mining,” or “city and town
Continued on the next page
Fred Rusch, museum volunteer
A view of the oral history data entry
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life”; the topics or search terms
could be “life on Fort Huachuca
in the 50s,” “mines in the
Huachuca Mountains,” or
“history of the Sierra Vista
Christmas parade”; and the
names of persons discussed
might be “Samuel Donnelly”
or “Dick Brooks.” I have now
completed this step, and am
PAGE
entering the subjects, search
terms, and people to the record
for the oral history that I created
earlier in the museum’s
database.
by Fred Rusch
In addition to assisting the museum
in organizing and indexing its
5
collection of over 200 oral
histories, Fred is a member of the
Board of Directors of the Cochise
County Historical Society. He is a
retired Indiana State University
faculty member and administrator,
who has master’s degrees in
English and library science, and a
Ph.D. in Bibliography and Textual
Criticism. --Ed.
A visit to an 18th century Spanish fort--the Presidio Santa Cruz de Terrenate
On March 3, 2012 a small group under the
aegis of Cochise College visited an historic
site that lies just north of Sierra Vista on
SR 83 (on the road to Tombstone, and just
west of the ghost town Fairbank).
Terrenate Presidio is spectacularly situated on a steep bluff overlooking the San Pedro River. SVHS
member and Cochise College instructor Rebecca Orozco (photo) led the discussion of the site’s history.
The fort was established in 1775 to guard against the depredations of raiding Apache groups who
themselves had replaced earlier sedentary peoples (probably Sobaipuri, at least along the river drainages),
but it was abandoned before it was completed, being too difficult to supply, maintain, and defend. Two of
four commanders and over 100 soldiers were killed in the five years of the fort’s existence. A number of
artifacts recovered from the site may be viewed at the Amerind Foundation in Dragoon.
by Marion Margraf
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Downtown Centennial Hoedown
The Downtown Centennial
Hoedown held at the Landmark Café on
Saturday, February 18, 2012 was a huge
success on two counts: Not only did
everyone enjoy the larapin’ food and the
fine music, but the Society netted a tidy
sum to add to the museum building fund.
First place for period attire went to Jan
Knoles and Charles Morrison. Jan is
shown on p. 1, front
row, third from left.
Charles is third from
left in the photo
directly to the left
on
on this page.
Amazing Arizona
Arizona Pioneer Women
On Saturday, March 17, 2012, Dr. Barbara
Marriott spoke about several pioneer women of
Arizona, drawing from oral histories collected in
the 1930s as part of the WPA’s Federal Writers’
Project. The histories are transcripts of interviews
of 144 women who came to Arizona between
1850 and 1890. In each case, these early settlers
suffered the dangers and discomforts of traveling
over primitive trails, and often confronted native
peoples or restless men operating within and
outside the law who had their own claims to
residence, to settle in towns and homesteads that
had only recently been established.
This event was well attended, and
refreshments offered by the Society were
enthusiastically received.
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Annual Member Meeting & Luncheon
The Society's annual meeting will be held on Friday, May 18, 2012 at the Pueblo del Sol Country
Club beginning at 11:00 a.m.. We will review the status of Society activities, elect officers for the
upcoming year, and vote on changes to our by-laws. (See the proposed changes on the next page.)
The highlight, however, will be the speaker, Mr. Ken Bennett, Arizona Secretary of State. Mr.
Bennett is a native Arizonan who grew up in Prescott and attended Arizona State University. We
will announce the topic of his talk later, but be assured that he has promised to play his guitar!
I would expect the reservations to fill up quickly so watch for the reservation form and sign up
early.
Complete details will follow.
by Tom Shupert
Amazing Arizona Speaker Program
at the Ethel Berger Center:
Saturday, March 24, 2012
SVHS Barbeque-ribs or chicken $10
11:00 a.m.- 12:30 p.m.
Saturday, April 7, 2012 at 1:00 p.m.
What Called Them to the Canyon?
Carr Canyon Pioneers in the 19teens
Rosemary Snapp, Carr House historian
Saturday, March 24, 2012 at 1:00 p.m.
Arizona Statehood with all the Bells and
Whistles!
Jim Turner, historian
Celebrate Arizona’s birthday with a
mouth-watering barbeque!
It benefits the museum building fund!
There’s still time to buy a ticket ($10)
at EBC or OYCC
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8
Proposed changes to by-laws noted in red:
Article IV, Section 1: add language changing the start of the term
of office of newly elected officers.
Sections 1, 1A and 2 of Article V: Change name of current “Fund
Raising Committee” to “Finance Committee” in order to more
clearly set forth its purpose and broaden its scope.
Section 2D of Article V: Add language to Treasurer’s duties
regarding timing of audits.
ARTICLE IV
Membership Meetings
Section 1.
Annual Meeting. Annual meeting of the Society membership shall be conducted during the month of May each year
for the purpose of electing new officers for the coming Society year a term of one year beginning June 1 of each year and to transact any
other business as may properly come before the meeting.
...
t
f
ARTICLE V
Board of Directors and Officers
Section 1.
General Powers. The term “Board of Directors” shall apply collectively and solely to the Directors of the Society,
who shall undertake management of the business and affairs of the Society. The Directors shall in all cases act as a Board, and they may
adopt such rules and regulations for the conduct of their meetings and management of the Society, as they may deem proper, not
inconsistent with this Constitution and Bylaws and the laws of the State of Arizona. The term “Directors” shall include the elected
Officers, the appointed chairpersons of the following Standing Committees: Publicity, Newsletter, Membership, Fund Raising Finance, and
Gift Shop, and the appointed Parliamentarian and Member-at-large.
a
r
A.
Standing Committees. The Board may appoint Standing Committees as required to support the goals of the Society.
As a minimum, Standing Committees shall consist of Publicity, Newsletter, Gift Shop, Fund Raising Finance and
Membership. The Board shall instruct those members appointed as chairpersons as to the requirements of their
positions.
B.
Temporary Committees. The President or the Board may appoint Temporary Committees to support the goals of the
Society.
d
Section 2.
Number and Tenure. The number of Directors of the Society shall be neither less than six (6) nor more than eleven
(11). The Officers shall consist of the President, Vice President, Secretary and Treasurer. The remaining Directors shall consist of
Member-at-large, Parliamentarian, and the chairpersons of the Publicity, Newsletter, Fund Raising Finance, Gift Shop and Membership
Committees. The Officers and other Directors shall be elected or appointed to the office for a period of one (1) year. The officers shall
serve no more than four (4) consecutive terms in any one position. The Board may appoint members to duties/positions as required.
...
•D.
Treasurer – The Treasurer shall collect, record, account for and deposit in the Society’s bank account all monies
collected by the Society. He/she shall record all expenditures made by the Society with a description of each action.
All checks issued for amounts in excess of $1,000.00 will require two (2) signatures. The President, Vice President and
Treasurer are authorized to sign checks. The Treasurer shall present a proposed budget annually to the Board of
Directors for approval. The budget shall be presented at the first Board of Directors meeting of the fiscal year. The
Treasurer shall provide the records he/she maintains at the end of each fiscal year, at the time of leaving office, or at
such other time as the Board of Directors may direct, to an appointed audit committee approved by the Board of
Directors.