good-times-rollin: Courthouse Plaza

Sunday, September 14, 2025

Wrapping Up Prescott

Point of Rocks RV Campground

Prescott, AZ

August 26, 2025

Prescott Courthouse Square

You may have guessed that Prescott is a favorite place we like to visit. We have visited several times now and we always find something new and very much enjoy old favorites. I am just now finishing this blog for our last trip when we visited at the end of August.

Walking the square and enjoying the park-like mood with locals and visitors is something we both enjoy. The four acre public space was established in 1864. The focal point is the stately granite Yavapai County Courthouse built in 1916.

But there is so much more.

Cowboy at Rest : 1904
Artist : Solon Hannibal Borglum

The sculpture depicts a cowboy stretched out on a rocky hillside. There is a slight smile and pensive look on his face as his horse stands over him.

Lady Ermintrude arrived in Prescott from New York in July, 1910. The beautiful fountain graced the plaza for more than 60 years. Over time, the fountain was showing signs of wear and in 1960 was removed and placed in storage at the Sharlot Hall Museum.

In 2016, as the Centennial of the laying of the cornerstone for the Courthouse was approaching, surviving components of the fountain and statue were discovered and restoration began. Research was found that Robinson Iron, a foundry in Alabama had the original patterns and the missing and broken pieces of the fountain pedestal were replaced and restored.

Lady Ermintrude stands elegantly today just as she did in 1910.
Ermintrude is a femine German name derived from irmen meaning "wholeness" and traut

meaning "beloved".

In 1912, this Deodar Cedar was planted on the northeast quadrant of the plaza to commemorate Arizona's statehood.

We made return visits to a couple of favorite places to eat in Prescott.

Brunch and take home pie at Berry's is yummy. The biscuits and gravy are the best and deciding on which pie to take home is a fun choice to make.

Somehow we manage to eat every morsel at brunch and leave with melt-in-your mouth slices of fruity goodness over a thin home-made crust and topped with a layer of lightly toasted meringue.

Date night at Papa's is a real treat. We had reservations for 6:30. Friday and Saturday nights are busy. The locals have gathered here for authentic, home-cooked Italian food in this warm and friendly atmosphere for over 30 years.

We both enjoyed the "not on the menu" special for the evening. Crab and shrimp with a variety of cheeses wrapped in a house-made lasagna noodle topped with Papa's marinara sauce and cheese and baked to a golden, bubbly delicious smelling melt in your mouth greatness. Served with Papa's freshly baked bread and a house salad with Mama's Italian dressing.

And we could not leave without a piece of cheesecake...made fresh every morning.

Back at Belle and Point of Rocks...

Afternoon playtime...

Firethorn...
The berries will ripen and turn red, yellow or orange in the fall.

Watching the birds...

Woodhouse's Scrub Jay

Back at the oasis it was a quiet week. Our only outing was to go to Gather. September and November are my favorite times to peruse this once a month, four day market in the Barrio Historic District.

And today we had an errand at Home Depot. Lucy went with us.

And on the way home we stopped at Dairy Queen. We each got a Blizzard and a senior discount! Wahoo!

Until next time, I'll close with a few photos from the backyard and our walks this week.

HAPPY TRAILS!

Saturday, May 17, 2025

The Courthouse Square

Point of Rocks RV Park

Prescott, AZ

May 11, 2025

With winds forecast to be a bit gusty on Monday, Joe and I decided a walk in the historic district would be a good choice for the day. The temps have been wonderful and although we have had some gusty winds, we have also had nice cool breezes. It's the kind of breezes when we let up the windows and enjoy the fresh air and sunshine inside. This was not our first visit to Courthouse Plaza, but a much more relaxed visit as we were staying in Camp Verde on our first visit here (back in April 2016) and left the pups for a few hours in the MH.

The concept of a court square has a long history dating back to Greek civilizations. In our country the town square dates back to colonial times. Having grown up in the south, I remember Sunday drives thru small towns with my mom and going in what seemed like circles to get around town squares. Our little hometown of LaGrange, GA had a town square which housed the Troup County Courthouse from 1828 to 1936. I'm not sure what happened to the courthouse, but the space today is a community park with a fountain. The town square in Prescott was plotted by Robert Groom who came to the area to mine. It was known that he was also a surveyor and was "pressed into service" to plot the streets and blocks for both Prescott and Wickenburg. After Arizona's statehood in 1912, the current granite, Neoclassical Revival style courthouse was built and opened in 1916. Today, the Yavapai Courthouse and surrounding Plaza are the "defining" features of of historic Prescott.

Courthouse Plaza was listed in the National Register of Historic places in 1978.

More than 170 trees, including 127 American Elms, form a tree canopy providing a natural air-conditioner. The shade along with the lush green grass makes for a pleasant morning walk. And the dancing shadows are fun !

The Yavapai County Courthouse was placed on the National Register of Historic Buildings in 1977.

This beautiful statue of Bucky O'Neill is a monument to one of Prescott's "favored sons". Bucky was a miner, a gambler, newspaper editor, lawyer, sheriff, and a mayor of Prescott. When he was mayor, the Spanish American War of 1898 erupted. Theodore Roosevelt organized the Rough Riders (the 1st United States Volunteer Cavalry) and Bucky organized the Arizona volunteers who joined and he was appointed Captain of the Rough Riders. He was killed in battle in 1898.

Bucky O'Neill Monument
1907
Marble and Bronze Statue
Artist : Solon Hannibal Borglum

Yavapai County government gave the commission for the Bucky memorial to Solon Hannibal Borglum in 1906. Solon is considered to be America's first cowboy sculptor. "He left the people of this country something that can't be uprooted or broken. And for that we can thank Arizona."

And then there is Whisky Row which is actually the name of a street in Courthouse Plaza. While some say the courthouse is a defining feature, others might disagree. A lot went on back in the day on Whiskey Row with drunken cowboys, painted ladies, and gunfights at the top of the list. A fire in 1900 destroyed the original wooden saloons and buildings as the entire block went up in flames. The district was rebuilt by 1901 and this time, bricks were used for construction. More that 40 saloons lined the street This historic street is full of some of Prescott's oldest history.

The Palace Bar (which was also a hotel in the early days) and Restaurant is both the oldest business and the oldest bar in Arizona.

It was listed in the National Register of Historic Places in 1975.

Original elements of the 1901 rebuild, including the metal ceiling complete with bullet holes left over from gunfights, the swinging saloon doors, and wood arches, and carved details have been preserved.

When the fire of 1900 happened, the elaborate carved Brunswick-brand bar was carried across the street and is still used today.

Today the other brick building on Whiskey Row are a mix of entertainment, food, shopping and art galleries.

For lunch we choose Brown Bag Burgers & Brewery. Casual dining with a nice view of the plaza and yummy burgers. We both enjoyed a BBQ burger...piled high with beer battered onion rings, cheddar cheese, pickles, applewood smoked crispy bacon, BBQ sauce, and house beer mustard with a side of sweet potato fries.

After lunch we made a stop at Pralines of Prescott...a family run confectionary that had its start in 1991. This little shop is best known for its chocolate, but has expanded thru the years to include not only hand made chocolate, but also gelato, pastries, coffee, and espresso. We each enjoyed a cup of gelato and brought home a piece of fudge.

On Wednesday, we wanted to try out a hike with Lucy and chose a hike we had done back in 2016 as well. Peavine Trail is close by at Watson Lake. It is very popular with walkers, runners and bikers. Lucy went bonkers ! The bikers zoomed by and not a single one called out "on your left" or had a bell. Other walkers had pups...well behaved pups...and Lucy loves ALL people and pups and was over the top excited. After a 1/2 mile we turned around and headed back to the parking lot and took her straight to the doggie park to play.

We will definitely give the trail another go when we visit again!

So aswesome!

A bit of color along the trail...

A wonderful canopy...

A happy Lucy...

Back at the park, we do enjoy walks with Lucy...multiple walks everyday. We found red and yellow roses. There is roped off section at the end of our road to keep vehicles out. There are lots of picnic tables for gatherings and a very nice view of the valley. I did play on the rocks and spotted a gorgeous hedgehog cacti in full bloom peeking out of the boulders.

Joe noticed this bull snake on one of our walks. Joe says "it's beautiful" and I say "I don't do snakes". But I do know that they are non-venomous and enjoy rodents for a tasty meal.