Cowboy’s and Native American History in Prescott

You know a town that once had 40 saloons side-by-side (and one who still boasts about hosting the world’s oldest rodeo) has some stories to tell. 

The former capital of the Arizona Territory, Prescott has long been known as a frontier mining town. Originally inhabited by the Yavapai tribe, Prescott was inhabited by European settlers in the 1860s. By the 1870s, the town was beginning to grow, and welcomed residents like Doc Holliday and the infamous Earp brothers, Wyatt and Virgil. Holliday called Prescott home only a year before the infamous 1881 O.K. Corral shootout. 

For the real nitty-gritty of the cowboy lifestyle, we shouldn’t look to who but what. Whiskey Row still stands over 150 years after it first graced Prescott. A quick succession of three fires, in 1877, 1883, and 1900, didn’t stop the patrons from imbibing. 

It is rumored that when the infamous Palace Saloon burned in 1900, the patrons merely crossed the street to Brunswick Bar and kept drinking while the fire burned.

Both Earp brothers and Holliday often drank in the Palace Saloon. They also contributed to the saloon’s bloodshed. While Wyatt Earp killed two men in different gunfights behind the Palace, Holliday killed a man inside the bar itself. 

The Palace Saloon still operates, and continues to hold its palace of honor as the oldest business and oldest bar operating in the state of Arizona. 

Another important group that helped to shape Prescott is the Yavapai people. The discovery of gold in 1863 saw the development of Yavapai traditional land into the mining town of Prescott. The Yavapai Wars, or Tonto Wars, were fought between 1861-1875, and took place between the Yavapai and Tonto tribes against the United States Government. 

With the growing number of settlers came a growing number of conflicts with the Yavapai tribe. The settlers wanted the U.S. government to remove the Yavapai people so they could occupy and exploit the land. After raids on ranches conducted by the Yavapai in January of 1864, American soldiers launched attacks to discourage further action by the Yavapai.  

In 1864, Arizona Territory Governor John Goodwin decreed that all Native American tribes should be detained and sent to reservations. By 1875, the Yavapai were moved from the area of Prescott to the San Carlos Reservation. It wasn’t until 1935 that the Yavapai-Prescott tribe would have 75 acres of land returned to them as a reservation. Eventually, the reservation was expanded to 1,500 acres in 1956.

Today, there are almost 400 tribe members on the Prescott reservation. 

In recent years the tribe has pivoted into tourism and retail opportunities as their previous focus on timber, mining, and agriculture became more challenging as natural resources declined. Multiple casinos, a resort, business park, and shopping center are all housed on the Yavapai reservation.     

Gun slinging, saloons, and a tribe at war have all shaped Prescott into the historically rich place it is today. Learn more about Prescott’s adventurous history with stops at the Sharlot Hall Museum, the Museum of Indigenous People, and the Phippen Museum. The Wild West definitely has a story to tell!