Heading in a NE'erly direction - away from the heat!

Globe, Arizona

(Sightseeing)

April 26, 2017 - April 28, 2017

We hadn't traveled in such a long time it felt sort of odd to be on our way again.  We didn't go to far the first night.  Globe was about a 3 hour drive.  It's in the heart of mining country and was named for "a large globe or ball of silver, perfect in shape, and about 9 inches in diameter. It was 99 per cent [sic] pure and valued at over $12,000".  This "globe" of silver was found by a miner in 1873 and the race for silver was on.  Silver mining was big here till the veins ran out.  Now copper is king and of course it's now done by open pit mining rather than underground shafts.

Picture of one of the big open pit mines near Globe.

Next 3 pictures show the tailings created by the waste rock from the mine.
It's not only unsightly but these piles block any potential views.

We expected to only stay the night before heading on but we found several interesting things to do in Globe.  The first was Besh-Ba-Gowah, a partially restored pueblo ruin established by the Salado people which they occupied from 1225-1400 A.D.  It's located just on the outskirts of Globe.  They had a really nice museum with wonderful examples of Salado pottery and baskets and explanations of how Besh-Ba-Gowah was used by different peoples after the Salado people abandoned it.

They had rooms where various activities (such as pottery making, basket making, etc.) were preformed.

I can't quite get a grip on the amount of effort it took to get
all this rock to the sight, then build all the walls.

In addition to the museum and the ruins they had an ethno-botanical garden which showed the types of plants used by the people who once lived here.

Cotton plants

Agave which was used extensively for rope, sandals, clothing, baskets, etc.

This tree wasn't marked but I think it's a Pomegranate. 

Doreen using a mano to grind corn on a metate.
It does the job but it's takes a long time to get an amount sufficient for a tortilla. 

Still not completely ground but nearly there.

Our next stop was the local Historical Society Museum which we enjoyed.  We didn't take many pictures there but we did get on of this old vacuum cleaner because it was unlike any we'd ever seen before.  Imagine dragging this "labor saving device" around the house.   The washing "machine" to it's right also took a lot of manual labor but it beats banging your cloths against a rock or scrubbing them on a washboard.  The picture of the open pit mine at the beginning of this installment was also taken at the museum.

The museum also houses items of genealogical interest and the day we were there quite a few people came in looking for information on their ancestors who one lived in the area.  Laura swung right into action helping one woman understand how city directories worked.

We also drove out to see (Teddy) Roosevelt Lake and Dam which is about 34 miles from Globe.  It's a big lake (actually a reservoir) and from the numerous campgrounds marked along the road it clearly gets a lot of use from local boaters and fishermen.  TR himself dedicated the dam when it was finished.

Park of Roosevelt Lake

Roosevelt Dam
The original dam was built of hand hewn rock.  The dam was reinforced and raised after the 9/11
attack. You can still see some of the original rock just above the waterline in this picture.  The
individual pieces are huge!

Backside of the dam.
The original hand hewn rock was covered over with concrete when they reinforced and raised the dam.

The road alongside the lake use to traverse the top of the dam but after 9/11 things changed.
The bridge in the background was built to carry traffic past the dam rather than over it.

Going over the new bridge.

Globe made for an interesting stop and if you were only to see Besh-Ba-Gowah it would be more than worth trip.