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by Jack D. Wilson 
2009 Rodeo Grand Entry photo by Jack D. Wilson
Folks, it is time to dress western and RODEO!
The Rodeo grounds open two (2) hours before events.
Family Days Discount
Wednesday, June 29, and Thursday, June 30, have been designated “Family Days”. For $50 two adults and up to four children can get tickets to the rodeo. This is a discount over our normal prices. Tickets have to be purchased either by phone (1-866-407-6336) or at our Ticket Office.
Tuesday, June 28
• Happy Hearts Rodeo for Exceptional Children (Prescott Rodeo Grounds), 5 p.m.
• Rodeo Performance, 7:30 p.m. (Daily Courier night)
Wednesday, June 29
• Rodeo Performance, 7:30 p.m. (Wrangler Tough Enough to Wear Pink night – raising funds for breast cancer research)
Thursday, June 30
• Rodeo Performance, 7:30 p.m. (Country Bank night)
Friday, July 1
• Kiwanis Kiddie Parade, 8:30 a.m. (Cortez & Goodwin St.)
• Rodeo Performance, 7:30 p.m. (Jack Daniels night)
• Rodeo Dance – Family night, 8 p.m. – 1 a.m., M&I Bank Parking Lot (303 N. Montezuma)
Saturday, July 2
• Rodeo Performance, 1:30 p.m. (York / Dodge night)
• Rodeo Performance, 7:30 p.m. (Coors / Canyon Distributing night)
• Rodeo Dance – 21 and older, 8 p.m. – 1 a.m., M&I Bank Parking Lot (303 N. Montezuma)
Sunday, July 3
• Cowboy Church (Prescott Rodeo Grounds), 8:30 a.m.
• Prescott Rodeo Days Fine Arts & Crafts Show (Courthouse Plaza), 9 a.m.
• Prescott Frontier Days Parade (Courthouse Plaza), 9 a.m. – Theme: Rodeo Pioneers
• Rodeo Performance, 7:30 p.m. (Murphy’s Restaurant night)
• Rodeo Dance – 21 and older, 8 p.m. – 1 a.m., M&I Bank Parking Lot (303 N. Montezuma)
Monday, July 4
• Prescott Rodeo Days Fine Arts & Crafts Show (Courthouse Plaza), 9 a.m.
• City of Prescott‘s Fabulous Fourth (Pioneer Park), Noon-10:30 p.m.
• Rodeo Queen Coronation (Prescott Rodeo Grounds), Noon — this is a FREE event
• Rodeo Performance, 1:30 p.m. (Coca-Cola)
Monday, July 5
• Prescott Rodeo Days Fine Arts & Crafts Show (Courthouse Plaza), 9 a.m.
by Jack D. Wilson, Foundation President
2009 Rodeo Grand Entry photo by Jack D. Wilson
Prescott Frontier Days® World’s Oldest Rodeo is steeped in history, but lacks a Rodeo Museum to showcase, celebrate and share our 123-year history with the world. We have rodeo artifacts displayed at Smoki Museum today, along with other rodeo artifacts and memorabilia at Sharlot Hall and Phippen Museums. The Prescott Frontier Days® Community Service Foundation believes Prescott should have its own Rodeo Museum and is raising funds for that. We have established a fund-raising target of $500,000.
Selected Rodeo Museums – Why Not Us?
- Pro Rodeo Hall of Fame, Colorado Springs, CO
- Tucson Rodeo Parade Museum
- Days of ’76 Museum, Deadwood, South Dakota
- Dublin Rodeo Heritage Museum, Dublin, Texas
- California Rodeo Heritage Museum, Salinas, CA
- Grant County Ranch & Rodeo Museum, John Day, OR
- Sidney Rodeo Museum, Sidney, Iowa
- Tri-State Rodeo Museum, Madison, Iowa
- Texas Rodeo Cowboy Hall of Fame, Fort Worth, TX
How you can help
The Prescott Frontier Days® Community Service Foundation has started a campaign to raise funds for a rodeo museum in Prescott Arizona. We developed a tri-fold brochure on the foundation and its goals and passed these out at a foundation table at all eight 2010 rodeo performances. This was the first time the foundation had a table at the rodeo – we were there to raise awareness about the foundation and our efforts to raise funds for a rodeo museum.
After the rodeo is over, foundation members will be developing a brochure specifically aimed at soliciting funds for a rodeo museum. We expect to have that brochure ready by September 2010. That brochure will be used as part of a major effort at fund-raising for a rodeo museum.
However, if you want to support a rodeo museum you can make a donation now. The Prescott Frontier Days® Community Service Foundation is a 501 (c) (3) IRS qualified non-profit trust. All donations appreciated, whether $5 or $500,000, we can use the help.
Donations should be made payable to:
Prescott Frontier Days® Community Service Foundation
And mailed to
Prescott Frontier Days® Community Service Foundation P. O. Box 706 Prescott, AZ 86302-0706Please include you name and address so that we can properly acknowledge your donation. If you have a question or need additional information, call the foundation president at (928) 445-5137.
Dedicated to all the cowboys and cowgirls living the dream, and a tribute to the World’s Oldest Rodeo in Prescott, AZ. See the YouTube video:
Get your rodeo tickets at World’s Oldest Rodeo
Learn to be a winner from 2 time World Champion Walt Woodard
- Prescott Rodeo Grounds
- MAY 7, 8 & 9 from 9am – 4pm
- All Levels Beginner to Professional
- Classroom & Video Sessions
- RV Hook-up available
Walt Woodard -- Two time world champion
Limited number of Students — Enrolment $500.00
$200.00 Deposit required by May 1, 2010
For Information contact:
Prescott Frontier Days®, Inc., PO Box 2037 ,Prescott, AZ 86302 (928) 445-3103
Prescott Frontiers Days, Inc. World's Oldest Rodeo
Sponsored by:
Olsen's Grain
Chino Valley • Dewey
Flagstaff • Verde Valley
2 Scholarships available from Olsen’s Grain.
For each rope purchased from 3/1 – 4/15,
your name will be entered into the drawing.
Prescott Museums
© Jack D. Wilson 2010
Prescott Arizona is a relatively small town of about 43,000 people. However, its thirst for the arts is disproportional to its population. Arts have many forms including the performing arts, painting, sculpture, public art, galleries and museums. This article focuses on our many museums, and includes existing museums, collections on loan and future museums.
Existing Museums
Sharlot Hall Museum
(website: http://sharlot.org/ ) was founded in 1928 by Sharlot M. Hall. The museum is within easy walking distance of the Courthouse Plaza and Whiskey Row. It is located at 415 West Gurley Street. Their phone number is (928) 445-3122. If you like history, you will love this museum. It is a museum campus with several buildings including the original Territorial Governor’s Mansion (yes, Prescott was the territorial capital on two occasions). You can spend an hour or a day here and they have a museum gift shop with fascinating merchandize. Here is a YouTube video about the museum: An Inexpensive Arizona Family Getaway – Sharlot Hall Museum
Phippen Museum of Western Art
(website: http://www.phippenartmuseum.org/ ) opened its doors to the public on October 13, 1984. It is named after George Phippen, first president of the Cowboy Artists of America. The Phippen Museum is located 7 scenic miles north of the Courthouse plaza in downtown Prescott, Arizona. From the downtown area, take Highway 89 North past the Granite Dells. The museum is on the right (4701 Highway 89 North). Their phone number is (928) 778-1385.
The Smoki Museum
(website: http://www.smokimuseum.org/ ) has an interesting and somewhat controversial origin. The “Smoki People” were area businessmen, not native American Indians – for the full story see http://www.smokimuseum.org/page16.html#smoki. The museum is located at 147 N. Arizona Ave. about seven blocks east of the Courthouse Plaza. Their phone number is (928) 445-1230
Here is a quote from their website on the origin of the museum:
“Designed to resemble an Indian pueblo, the Smoki Museum was built in 1935 of native stone and wood. It was constructed with labor provided by the Civilian Works Administration and the Smoki People. The Smoki People were a group of Prescott citizens organized in 1921 and dedicated to the perpetuation of American Indian ceremonies and dances. Until 1990, the Smoki People held annual pageants at the Yavapai County Fairgrounds, but they also became a large social organization focused on developing appreciation for Southwest Indian tribes through the Museum and their annual program. ”
The Fort Whipple Museum
is our newest museum (website: http://sharlot.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=124&Itemid=90 The museum was a joint effort between the Bob Stump VA Center and the Sharlot Hall Museum. It is located on the grounds of the VA Hospital on Hwy. 89 in Prescott. Admission is by donation. Hours are 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays and closed for Thanksgiving, Christmas Day and New Year’s Day.
The Spot – a Child’s Museum
The museum opened in 2009 in the Prescott Gateway Mall. Their website is at http://www.thespotmuseum.org/index.php/the-spot
There vision and mission statements (from their website) are:
“Vision The spot…a Child’s Museum envisions children as lifelong learners who are inquisitive and knowledgeable about the world and are inspired to become stewards of a peaceful and sustainable planet. Mission The spot…a Child’s Museum provides interactive play experiences to stimulate curiosity, creativity, critical thinking and problem solving for children of all ages.”Collection on Loan
The Prescott Area Arts Trust (PAAT) owns the Solon H. Borglum collection currently on view at the Prescott Valley Civic Center. The Solon H. Borglum exhibit features 19 sculptures and other items from the renowned sculptor’s collection. Learn more and read the self-tour guide: Solon H. Borglum Fine Arts Exhibition http://www.pvaz.net/Index.aspx?page=438
The Prescott Area Arts Trust plans to install this collection into a museum setting in Prescott in the future.
Future Museums
Prescott Fire Department Museum
The Prescott Fire Department is the oldest fire department in Arizona. They celebrated their 125th anniversary in 2010. They have accumulated a wide variety of historical fire department memorabilia and plan to have a museum of their own in the future.
Prescott Frontier Days® World’s Oldest Rodeo Museum
The Prescott Frontier Days® World’s Oldest Rodeo has run continuously since 1888. It will celebrate its 125th season in 2012. Over that long history, Prescott Frontier Days® has collected a large amount of rodeo items of historic value.
About the author
Jack D. Wilson first visited Prescott in 1995 and has been a resident since 2000. He took a sojourn into politics and was the mayor of Prescott Arizona from Nov. 2007 – Nov. 2009. While he was mayor, he participated in two Mayor’s Ride to Work and had a Mayor’s Bicycle Advisory Committee. He now writes a couple of blogs and is President of the Prescott Frontier Days Community Service Foundation.
Prescott Rocks! 