History & Statistics For


Brief History

GOLD - its discovery in 1838 brought national attention to Prescott, and further discoveries in 1861 by the Walker
party drew the attention of President Abraham Lincoln. Mr. Lincoln was looking for possible sources of funding for
the North during the Civil War and created the Arizona Territory in 1864. John Goodwin, as first territorial governor,
established Prescott as the first territorial capital. The new governor began the work of laying out the current
downtown streets. Also, the military detachment commissioned Fort Whipple which is still in Prescott. The old fort
is now the location for The Veterans Hospital. Many of the old buildings are still there. Several years ago, the
original main gate to the fort was found buried in the ground. It was restored and erected at it's original location.
You can visit the old Governors Mansion seven days a week at Sharlot Hall Museum on West Gurley Street.
Prescott developed rapidly and in 1865 was described as being built exclusively of wood and inhabited almost
entirely by Americans. Both of these facts made it unique among early communities in Arizona. Prescott lost its
title as the Capital of Arizona to Tucson and finally to Phoenix in 1889. In 1900, a devastating fire burned Prescott
to the ground; but it was rebuilt, and many of the buildings you see today are reminders of its past. Today, the
older residential streets are lined with tall trees and pitched-roof frame houses, including turreted Victorians.
Prescott has many homes and businesses on the National Register of Historic Places and its white granite
courthouse, set among green lawns and spreading trees, reflects the Midwestern and New England background
of Prescott's pioneers.

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