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Phyllis and Edward Soza
The author has long been member-associated with the Arizona Historical Society (AHS) and the Tucson Heritage Foundation (THF), where he served on the Board of Director. The principal role of the THF was the restoration of a 19th century adobe residence, downtown Tucson, which General John Charles Fremont had rented briefly in 1881, when serving as Arizona's 5th Territorial Governor.
The adobe had been deemed a historically significant structure, because it was Tucson's only remaining building connecting Tucson to Arizona's Territorial Period. The dwelling, saved from urban renewal demolition, was originally named the John Charles Fremont House/Casa del Gobernador when dedicated in 1973 by Mrs. Richard M. Nixon.
In 1992, the Board of Directors of the Arizona Historical Society renamed the structure, the Sosa-Carrillo-Fremont House Museum, in recognition of the three families most closely associated with the house. This action amicably closed the circle on a previously contentious issue. View a QTVR panorama of the Sosa-Carrillo-Fremont House Museum. Get the free QuickTime player.
Edward Soza at 1973 dedication of the
Fremont Museum/Casa del Gobernador
From the Soza family's perspective, the property is historically linked to the progenitor of the Arizona Sosa, Soza families. The lineage flows directly from Alferez José Maria Sosa 1746-c.1810 to grandson José Maria Sosa 111, thence to his daughter Manuela Sosa McKenna.
The Arizona Historical Society, bestowed on this writer, its highly coveted AL MERITO AWARD on February 19, 1975, at a luncheon ceremony at the Arizona Inn, Tucson.
Edward Soza at age 1
Benson, Arizona, 1922