City of Prescott Facts
Prescott Honors
Over the years Prescott has been honored over and over again. Below is a listing of the some of the recent honors that we have received. After having lived here for a while or just having visited you will agree that Prescott is "Everybody's Hometown".
- Top 100 "Crème de la Crème" or "Golden Eagles" of small towns in America - Boomtown USA: The 7 Keys to Big Success in Small Towns
- 6th of Top 45 Emerging U.S. Metropolitan Areas - Cities Ranked and Rated
- One of the Top 5 Places to Retire - Money Magazine
- Top "Green" Arizona City - Sperling's Best Places
- 3rd Best Metro for Job Creation - by the Milken Institute's 2005 Best Performing Cities Index (out of 179 smaller metros)
- 3rd in the Country - by Inc. Magazine for job growth and economic vitality
- One of 7 Great Places to Live - by Bottom Line
- One of a Dozen "Distinctive Destinations" - by the National Trust for Historic Preservation
- One of 100 Best Communities for Young People - by America's Promise
- A Top 10 True Western Town - by True West Magazine
- In the Top 20 Medium Community Hospitals - by Solucient, a National Leader in Health Care
- An Emerging Art Town - by Southwest Art Magazine
- One of Best Places to Retire - U.S. News & World Report Sept. 30, 2007
Historical Information
The following information is just a small sampling of the history of Prescott when it was first founded in 1864 to the early 1900s. There is so much history associated with this wonderful town that we can't write it all here. We recommend that you read one of the many books that contain a history of Prescott.
- Founded in the spring of 1864 under the name of Ft. Whipple
- Renamed Prescott (after noted historian William Hickling Prescott) at a public meeting on May 30, 1864
- First offering of lots (73) were sold in June 1864
- Prescott was the first Territorial Capital of Arizona (1864-1889)
- The first Frontier Days Rodeo was celebrated July 4, 1888 earning it the title of the "World's Oldest Continuing Rodeo" (Payson, Arizona and four other western cities also claim to have the oldest rodeo).
- In 1900 a devastating fire burned a large portion of downtown Prescott to the ground. Part of the area burned was the famous "Whiskey Row" section of Montezuma Street.
- The Courthouse Plaza was surveyed in 1864. Since then it has been the site for settling many criminal cases, sometimes with a hanging in the square.
- "Whiskey Row", the stretch of Montezuma Street along the western side of the Courthouse Plaza, was so named due to the many saloons and gambling halls that lined the street.
- The Elks Opera House, which is still in operation today, was built in 1905.
Famous Residents
Over the last 140+ years Prescott has had its fair share of famous people who at one time or another have made Prescott their home town. The following is just a small list of the colorful characters that have helped make Prescott what it is today.
- John Goodwin - The first Territorial Governor
- John C. Fremont - Territorial Governor from 1878 - 1881
- Virgil Earp - One of the famous Earp brothers of the Tombstone and gunfight at OK Corral fame, lived in Prescott from 1878 - 1879 and again in 1901 - 1903
- John H. "Doc" Holliday - Another famous person linked to the gunfight at OK Corral, lived in Prescott from 1879 - 1880
- William O. "Buckey" O'Neill - Lived in Prescott from 1882 - 1898. He was Mayor of Prescott and a Yavapai County Sherriff. He was Captain and Commander of Troop A, First Volunteer Calvary, better known as the "Rough Riders", when he died July 1, 1898. In 1907 a bronze statue commissioned in Buckey O'Neill's name was unveiled in the Courthouse plaza where it still stands today.
- Tom Mix - The famous silent film era actor resided in Prescott off and on from 1913-1928 at the Diamond S Ranch in Yavapai Hills.
- Sharlot Hall - The founder of the Sharlot Hall Museum and appointed Territorial Historian in 1909, lived in Prescott from 1882 until her death in 1943.
- George C. Ruffner - As a young man he was part of the committee that planned and staged the first Frontier Days Rodeo in 1888. He was elected sheriff of Yavapai County in 1894 and again in 1922 where he served until his death in 1933.