Gadsden Hotel in Douglas

We had one more stop in Douglas and that was the absolutely gorgeous Gadsden Hotel.  

 

The Gadsden opened in 1907 and became a home away from home for cattlemen, ranchers, miners and businessmen. In 1928 the hotel was burned down leaving only the elevator in tact with no where to go. 

 

The hotel was rebuilt in 1929 with a solid white Italian marble staircase and four pink marble columns with 24K gold leafing.

The stained glass window at the top of the staircase is 42 feet long and 6 feet tall and depicts the Southwest Desert.

 

There is a vaulted stained glass skylight that runs the full  length of the lobby. 

The hotel has been seen in several movies like The Life and Times of Judge Roy Bean and Terminal Velocity. The hotel has had several visitors like John Wayne, Amelia Earhart, Eleanor Roosevelt, Lyndon B. Johnson, Pancho Villa (it is rumored that he rode his horse up on the marble staircase), Paul Newman, Tom Selleck, and Peter Fonda.

 

The hotel fell into disrepair and luckily got new owners in 2016 who have been working to restore the hotel completely. There are several rooms that you can stay in on the second level. It also has a restaurant right next door. Definitely worth a stop to relive some of those good old days.

Douglas, AZ - A Very Interesting Small Town

We headed south from the Chiricahuas to the border town of Douglas. I had been doing some reading about the place and found a couple of places I wanted to check out. The further south we went, the prettier the clouds got.

Douglas was originally built in 1901as a smelter town to support the copper mining being done in Bisbee. It later became a major commercial port for trade and travel with Mexico. 

By the time we got to Douglas it was definitely lunch time. We read good reviews about the Original Grand Cafe but we had a little bit of trouble finding it. It is right on the main street but it had an awning out that covered the name of the cafe. I think we drove around the block three times til I finally spotted the word cafe. 

We had Mexican food and it was authentic. They brought homemade chips and salsa to the table. I took one bite of the salsa and thought my tongue was going to turn black and die. Paul didn't have any problems with it. So when I got my tacos I did not add any salsa to them. They were exceptionally good. Paul really enjoyed his meal even with the killer salsa on it. 

I didn't take any pictures of the restaurant, but well worth a visit if you're ever down in that area.

Our first tourist stop was at the Last Supper Museum. This museum has been open three years and has already amassed over 2000 pieces which makes it the world's largest collection of Last Supper inspired pieces of art. I have just a few pictures that I am going to post. I was overwhelmed to say the least.

I cannot imagine that there is anything out in the world that hasn't been used to make a Last Supper scene - from Marlboro cigarettes to Pez dispensers. 

Another stop we made was the Bisbee/Douglas International Airport. 

There isn't much to see at the airport. A couple of buildings, a runway, no control tower. And why does she want to go there. I'm sure Paul was wondering also. I do drag him to some strange places. 

They have a Border Air Museum but it's by appointment only and we couldn't make the time work to see it. But this airport has many aviation "firsts". 

Starting in 1908 the Douglas Aeronautic Club built the first aero plane in AZ that was pulled aloft by a pair of Quarter Horses. First aero plane to be used for military purposes. 

An infamous first occurred when an American mercenary pilot dropped a bomb on Naco, AZ instead of Naco, MX. The first time the US was ever hit by a bomb from a foreign aircraft. 

In 1933, Eleanor Roosevelt officially designated Douglas Municipal as the First International Airport in the United States.

Amelia Earhart flew into the Douglas Airport as part of "The Powder Puff Derby" air race from Santa Monica, CA to Cleveland, OH. 

It is amazing the things you can find out about a place if you just dig a little. Atlas Obscura and Roadside America are two of my sources of information.  

Land of Standing Up Rocks

After a good night's sleep, we were ready to go. First thing was breakfast. After checking the reviews we decided to stop at the FE Skillet. (FE = iron). The food was really good but I think they are struggling to stay open. I noticed today when I checked their website they are only open on Mondays. Which is too bad. The food is all homemade. I had biscuits and gravy which were excellent. And her scones made me want more than one. The big problem for us, was that the biscuits were made from scratch and it took a good 45 minutes before they were ready. 

Chiricahua National Monument

The Chiricahua Sky Island rises to 9,763 feet. The Chiricahua Apaches call this the land of Standing Up Rocks. These beautiful formations were formed about 27 million (give or take a few) years ago when the Turkey Creek Volcano spit out a bunch of ash. 

The National Monument was established in 1924. I recently read a news article that said the government is looking into making the area a National Park. I personally think that will bring a lot more people to the area which is both good and bad.

When you get to the monument you will find Faraway Ranch which has been restored to represent what life in the early 1900s was like. As you get further in Bonito Canyon there is a narrow, eight mile scenic drive which climbs from the grasslands to the summit at Massai Point. There are a few pullouts along the way and if there is nobody behind you that's in a hurry, you can stop and take pictures.

Speaking of pictures - there are a lot of them. I couldn't decide which ones to post. But I did not post all of them.  

Paul has a special camera and takes such great pictures. I just had to get one of him in action.

You know I love cloud pictures so I am going to end this with one that I took as it started to rain on us. Yes, rain again for the second time.

A New T-Shirt - Nope

Tombstone, AZ   High - I've forgotten. But the weather was really nice. Warm but not hot. The nights are cooling down.

 Lunch time - we decided to stop at the Farmhouse Bakery Restaurant. This is the restaurant that Pat, Marilyn, and I had stopped at and had such a great hamburger. And the food did not disappoint this visit either.

There is just no way to not stop in Tombstone when you're in southeast Arizona. Especially when Paul really wanted a t-shirt from Tombstone (preferably from the Harley store). If you remember, the girls and I stopped in Tombstone a couple months ago on a Monday. Again Paul and I were there on a Monday and the streets were really quiet. I figure the store owners want a day to recover from the wild week-ends.

Our search for the perfect t-shirt was not successful. Most of the stores looked like they needed to be restocked. Their inventory was quite low. 

I let Paul wander up and down the street while I sat and people watched. I also watched as the clouds started getting darker and the wind picked up.  

 We did succeed in leaving the fudge store without buying anything. That's pretty news worthy.

 Leaving Tombstone we actually got rained on. But it was only just enough rain to make the car spotted with dirt. We did not expect the rain because this area has really been suffering from a drought. They are preparing for wildfires this summer.

It was time to head to Sunsites, AZ where we had reservations at the Inn at Sunsites. 

 

I read some really nice reviews about this place and the price was reasonable. Not a lot of choices unless you're in Benson or Willcox. The rooms were really nice and really clean.

Dinner was at TJ's Bar and Grill. We weren't really expecting anything special in the way of food on this adventure - boy were we surprised. We found some of the best food ever. First stop - TJ's. We would definitely eat here again. (fresh cut fries sealed the deal for me).

We had a busy first day and headed back to the Inn. One problem for me. I don't stream anything so I had no idea how to use the TV in my room. Paul volunteered to show me but I was tired and decided I would just read my book. I don't think my brain could have grasped the streaming thing. The bed was comfortable and I'm not sure how much of my book got read.