People & Places

  1. Alamo Courtyard

    Architecture and Urbanism of the Southwest

    Essay by John Messina, AIA, Research Architect, The University of Arizona  Southwest Studies Center and the School of Architecture Farmstead of a Spanish-American Farmer, Chamisal, New Mexico, 1940. Photo by Russell Lee, courtesy Library of CongressThe American Southwest is a vast, loosely defined… [read more]
  2. Barrio Anita

    Barrio Anita

      The Barrio Anita Neighborhood is a historic district in Tucson, Arizona. It is located west of Stone Avenue, east of Interstate 10, south of Drachman Street and north of St. Marys Road. [view map] The Neighborhood's major landmarks include the Oury Park Cultural Center and the Davis… [read more]
  3. etext

    Borderman: The Memoirs of Federico José María Ronstadt

    from the manuscript in the Ronstadt Family archives at Special Collections, The University of Arizona Library Originally published for the Southwest Center at The University of Arizona in 1993 by The University of New Mexico Press Borderman Fred Ronstadt wrote his memoirs on the backs of old F.… [read more]
  4. AZ Roadmap

    Defining the Southwest

    Definitions alter over time, between people, and beyond borders. Landmasses change as physical and human forces exert pressure upon them. And a region is carved, molded, and defined by people in historical relation to it. In Defining the Southwest , we gather multiple visions of what the… [read more]
  5. Horse cart

    Hooves & Rails

    A History Of The Tucson Street Railway (1897-1906) by W. Eugene Caywood in collaboration with Keith Glaab Outside of the Carbarn In the late nineteenth century, Tucson was a growing town with a strong desire to project a metropolitan image. One key to continued development was the establishment… [read more]
  6. Kids at play

    Huellas del Pasado… Footprints from the Past

                A bilingual school and community oral history collection by the students of Davis Bilingual Magent School 2002     English Spanish Content     Introduction     The Beginning: Tucson, Arizona Students from the third grade ask… [read more]
  7. Joseler

    Josias Joesler: An Architecture Eclectic

    When asked to name Tucson's most recognized architect, the first name that comes to most people's minds is Josias Joesler. This website presents Joesler within the context of Tucson’s architectural and community development, his prolific 30-year career with developer/builder John Murphey and his… [read more]
  8. Judge Huerta

    Judge Lawrence Huerta: Enriching Out Lives

      Judge Lawrence Huerta has led a life of service and dedication that serves as a model for many of us in Southern Arizona. He was the first Native American to attend and graduate from the University of Arizona School of Law and the first Native American to be a member of Arizona's powerful… [read more]
  9. Roy Drachman, Tucson High, Shortstop

    Just Memories

    In Just Memories, Roy P. Drachman shared his memories from a lifetime in Tucson. The original volume was printed and distributed in July, 1979. The electronic version was orginally created in December 1997 and the re-designed interface published to the Web in November 2004. Just Memories… [read more]
  10. civic mural

    La Cadena Que No Se Corta: The Unbroken Chain

    The Traditional Arts of Tucson's Mexican American Community  From November 3, 1996, through January 13, 1997, the University of Arizona Museum of Art hosted an exhibit entitled La Cadena Que No Se Corta: The Unbroken Chain. This website presents a virtual recreation of that… [read more]
  11. image

    Looking into the Westside: Untold stories 1900-1970

    We have done research investigating our heritage, our neighborhoods and our terrain. Gathering this research and carrying it through is sacred to our people and very important to where we all grew up. We have encountered the stories of "A" mountain, our families, local art and artists, neighborhood… [read more]
  12. Missions Arch

    Mission Churches of the Sonoran Desert

    In the spring of 1687, an Italian Jesuit missionary named Father Eusebio Francisco Kino started work among a group of Indians on the far northwest frontier of New Spain. The Indians he visited called themselves "O'odham" or "the People" in their own language and were called "Pimas" by the Spaniards… [read more]
  13. Screenshot of website

    Morris K. Udall: A Lifetime of Service to Arizona and the United States

    Morris King Udall served with pride and distinction as Arizona's Congressman from District 2 from 1961-1991. As well as serving in the House of Representatives for three decades, Udall ran unsuccessfully for the Democratic presidential nomination in 1976. He became one of the most creative and… [read more]
  14. Music of the Southwest

    Music of the Southwest

    The Music of the Southwest Web site is a tribute to the many performers, volunteers, and organizers of the Tucson Meet Yourself Festival. It is dedicated especially to its founder, Dr. James S. (Big Jim) Griffith, without whom none of these unique resources would be available to us and the… [read more]
  15. Sabino Canyon awash in color in the Spring

    Sabino Canyon: Our Desert Oasis

    Sabino Canyon awash in color in the SpringSabino Canyon is one of Southern Arizona's natural treasures. Fed by the waters of Sabino Creek and sheltered by the canyon walls, the plants and animals that inhabit the canyon offer an interesting contrast to those found in the surrounding desert. The… [read more]
  16. Bucking bronco

    School on the Range: The Little Cowpuncher Roundup

    School on the Range: The Little Cowpuncher Roundup is an oral history project sponsored by the University of Arizona and the Arizona Humanities Council. Videos of interviews with former Little Cowpunchers may be viewed on the pages for the Arizona ranch schools listed to the left. Redington… [read more]
  17. Sanag Fiesta

    Southern Arizona Folk Arts/El Arte Folklórico del Sur de Arizona

    English Spanish Welcome Welcome to Southern Arizona Folk Arts. The content for this website was contributed by Dr. James S. Griffith, founder of the Tucson Meet Yourself Festival, and retired folklore professor and director of the University of Arizona's Southwest Center. The images presented… [read more]
  18. Frame mirror

    St. Philip's in the Hills - Spanish Colonial Mission Church Revival

    St. Philip's In The Hills, July 2004 image: GMWelcome Although the majority of buildings designed by architect Josias Joesler during his career were residential, he also developed plans for public buildings such as schools, museums and, most successfully, churches. By far, the most prominent of… [read more]
  19. photo of ft lowell

    The Old Fort Lowell Neighborhood

    Welcome Saturday, February 11 Special 2012 Arizona Centennial Event Fort Lowell Day Celebration see the schedule of events The earliest settlers in the Fort Lowell District came around 300 A.D. Since then, different communities have come and gone leaving behind their characteristic remains. These… [read more]
  20. The Pasqua Yaqui Connection

    The Pasqua Yaqui Connection

      A cooperative project between the Pascua Yaqui Tribe of Arizona, Pima Community College, and the University of Arizona Visit The Official Pascua Yaqui Tribe Website About the Pascua Yaqui Connection website http://www.elearn.arizona.edu/pascuayaquiaz  [read more]
  21. A family photo

    The Pentland-Salcido Family: A Sonoran Family History

    English Spanish Bienvenidos. In the latter part of the 19th century Walter Pentland, an amateur photographer and mining engineer, worked in Mexico. Pentland, the son of a Scotish dentist who moved his family to Prescott, Arizona, in the 1850's, worked at mines throughout Mexico during his… [read more]
  22. Undated hand colored postcard depicting the Convent, North Wing and Sanatorium

    Trek of Seven Sisters

    Among the pioneers that came to Tucson in the 1870's were seven Sisters of St. Joseph of Carondelet. They opened a school next to San Agustín Church for the children of Tucson and three years later one for the native American children at the San Xavier Mission. Later the parochial school was put… [read more]