America's Best Historic Small Town - Bisbee, AZ

Blog Date: 01.31.02

Date Visited: 09.27.2022

www.cityofbisbee.com

All content is copyright 2020-2022, Larry Nader

Founded as a copper, gold, and silver mining town in 1880, Bisbee was named after Judge Dewitt Bisbee who was one of the financial backers for the town's Copper Queen Mine. But we have to go back a few years from there to find how the town came about.

The story starts back in 1877 when a U.S. Army reconnaissance detail of Calvary and Scouts were dispatched into the Mule Mountains to search for renegade Apaches. But, instead of Apaches, Jack Dunn a civilian tracker for the Army, found mineralizations signs that indicated that the mountains held lead, copper, and possibly silver. The very first claim staked in the area would be where the city of Bisbee is located today.

Following this initial claim, prospectors came from all over in hopes of striking it rich, and it was a quite prosperous adventure for many. However, Bisbee would prove to be one of the richest mineral deposits in the world as it produced one of the world's richest mineral sites, producing nearly three million ounces of gold and more than eight billion pounds of copper, in addition to the silver, lead and zinc that came from the area.

As the mining activity grew, so did Bisbee. By the early 1900s, Bisbee would become the second-largest city between St. Louis and San Francisco. With a population of more than 20,000, Bisbee was also one of the most cultured cities in the west.

The town and its mining operations were not without controversy though when, in 1917, the miners attempted to organize for better working conditions and wages. The Phelps-Dodge Corporation, owners of the mine, would counter the striking miners by using their own private police force to "deport" 1,000 striking miners to Hermanas, New Mexico under allegations that they were members of the Industrial Workers of the World (IWW). The company was sending a strong message that they were going to prevent unionization at all costs.

Over the following years, many of the neighboring towns' mines had closed but Jerome was still running strong, for a while at least. By 1950, Bisbee's population had dropped to under 6,000. Phelps-Dodge managed to keep the mine running for another 25-years before closing down the Copper Queen Mine for good in 1975.

Shortly following the mine's closing, Bisbee Mayor, Chuck Eads, pitched his idea of reopening the Queen Mine for tours. In a herculean effort, many of the townspeople volunteered to help clear away fallen rock and re-timber the inside of the mine. The efforts of the townspeople caught the attention of the US Economic Develpemement Administration who provided government funding to help complete the Queen Mine project in addition to helping Bisbee improve their downtown district in preparation for the new visitors they would attract. The mine opened for tours on February 1, 1976. Since then more than 1-million visitors have taken in the underground tour.

Today the city of Bisbee is the county seat for Cochise County and has incorporated the old towns of neighboring Warren, Lowell, and San Jose into its boundaries. Modern Bisbee is considered a culturally rich city that boasts a welcoming small-town charm while providing visitors with an amazing mix of art, history, architecture, outdoor fun, music, and dining. All this makes for a very eclectic feel to the town and its residents.

In fact, Bisbee earned the moniker of "America's Best Historic Small Town" when they were named such by USA Today in 2016. You will want to sure that Bisbee is on your list of stops when you are traveling in southern Arizona.