Sunday, Oct. 4
On this date in 1867, a bill to move the Capitol from Prescott to Tucson was approved by Gov. Richard McCormick.
On this date in 1876, the parents of Sen. Carl Hayden, Charles T. Hayden and Sallie Davis, were married.
On this date in 1883, two Florence-Globe stage robbers were killed in a gun battle with the sheriff’s posse.
On this date in 1905, the Maricopa County Board of Supervisors threatened to tear up the rails if the Phoenix Street Railway Company laid tracks on Grand Avenue in Phoenix.
On this date in 1908, a big black bear escaped from his cage at Elysian Grove Park in Tucson, pulled a 15-month-old baby from her carriage and crushed her to death.
On this date in 1929, an old adobe wall, originally built as a corral and was later part of the OK lumber yard in Globe, was torn down. It had once served as a gathering place for women and children of Globe during rumors of Apache attack.
On this date in 1929, the city of Casa Grande staged a three-day “Prosperity Jubilee” to celebrate the opening of its new airport.
Monday, Oct. 5
On this date in 1903, the U.S. Department of the Interior authorized the construction of Tonto Basin Dam, now known as Roosevelt Dam. This was the first large irrigation enterprise attempted by the federal government.
On this date in 1917, the main building of Sister’s Hospital in Phoenix burned to the ground. All patients were safely evacuated.
On this date in 1929, Shirley Christy, long-time resident of Phoenix and founder of the Arizona School of Music, died.
Tuesday, Oct. 6
On this date in 1906, fire destroyed the roundhouse and car shops of the Gila Valley, Globe and Northern railroads.
On this date in 1914, Pvt. Leroy Bradford, Troop B, 10th Cavalry, was killed in Naco, Arizona, in a battle with Yaqui Indians.
Wednesday, Oct. 7
On this date in 1894, the Phoenix Daily Herald described a brilliant meteor which flashed across the sky at about 9 p.m. The meteor traveled from east to west, lighting the night sky until it finally burst like a rocket over the Superstition Mountains and appeared to strike the earth near Silver King.
On this date in 1922, a Bisbee man was shot to death in an argument over the price of tamales.
On this date in 1922, a New-Cornelia Copper Co. appropriated $4 million for the construction of a concentrator and the extension of its power plant in Ajo.
On this date in 1926, three massive teeth, 4 inches (10 centimeters) thick, 12 inches (30 centimeters) wide and 14 inches (36 centimeters) long, were discovered in a dry lake bed near Quitobaquito. The find recalled an old Papago legend concerning a monster which has been said to have once lived in the lake.
On this date in 1929, all court and law offices in Prescott and many in Yavapai County were closed for the funeral of Judge J. Sweeney, Yavapai County’s first superior court judge.
Thursday, Oct. 8
On this date in 1878, Southern Pacific Railroad received a charter from the Territory of Arizona and permission to cross the Military Reservation at Yuma.
On this date in 1908, the announcement was made that as a result of the failure of the reverbatory furnace at Helvetia to give the proper results, ore would be shipped daily from Helvetia to the Old Dominion smelters at Globe. The ore would be freighted to Vail Station, shipped on the Southern Pacific to Bowie, then on to Globe over the Gila Valley, Globe and Northern R.R.
On this date in 1914, the Apache Trail Stage Company was chartered to haul passengers from the railroad station at Globe to Phoenix, where passengers could resume their rail journey.
On this date in 1924, Louis Y.F. Jaeger who established the first ferry over the Colorado River, was born.
Friday, Oct. 9
On this date in 1880, David K. Udall arrived from Kane, Utah, to serve as bishop of St. John’s Ward in Arizona.
On this date in 1898, St. Michael’s Mission, a converted trading post building, was blessed and officially dedicated to St. Michael, the Archangel. The first masses were offered on Oct. 11 with a table to serve as an altar, and salt and pepper shakers as wine and water cruets.
On this date in 1921, the railroad police of the Tucson division of Southern Pacific reported they had removed 3,373 hobos from Southern Pacific trains in one month.
On this date in 1929, plans for a Nogales High School band came one step nearer to reality with the signing of contracts for the purchase of band instruments.
On this date in 2009, three people died following a sweat lodge ceremony in Sedona conducted by self-help author James Arthur Ray. Ray served nearly two years in prison after being convicted of negligent homicide charges.
Saturday, Oct. 10
On this date in 1908, newspapers reported excellent progress on the new electric power plant under construction on the Hassayampa River south of Wickenburg. The 2,000 horsepower, $250,000 plant was to provide electricity for the town of Wickenburg and mines in the area.
On this date in 1910, the Constitutional Convention convened in Phoenix with George W.P. Hunt elected chairman. Initiative, referendum and recalls were included in spite of President Taft’s warning he would veto the Constitution if it contained those provisions.
On this date in 1920, the Tucson Gas, Electric Light and Power Co. gas plant was destroyed by fire and the city of Tucson was without gas for three weeks.
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