SEPTEMBER TRAILS

Our next venture led us to Jerome, a quirky little town, rather precariously perched on the side of Cleopatra Hill which is part of the Black Hills of Arizona.  Who knew?  Jerome was originally a mining town with population estimates as high as 10,000 souls, but today it's home to a few hundred individualistic and hardy folk co-existing with an historic and haunted hotel, trendy restaurants, one of a kind shops, and panoramic views of the Verde Valley far below.  It's located about 100 miles north of Phoenix, which makes it perfect for a day trip or (even better) a more relaxed overnight stay.

Jerome earned National Historic Landmark status in the late 1960s and promptly began labeling their buildings as to provenance.  This led us into Nellie Bly, a wonderland of kaleidoscopes.  Large, small, elaborate, plain, expensive and...less expensive.  And, to make it better, the shopkeepers require us to touch, photograph, and play with every one of the little marvels.

BC loves kaleidoscopes and wanted to spend the afternoon.  The fun, of course, is finding the end of the rainbow where you least expect it.

I mentioned historical in relation to  the Nellie Bly.  Well, the Nellie Bly building (as you can read below) was originally a brothel--actually three brothels as Jerome kept burning down in the late 1890s.  I think of myself as upright, but I am a little fascinated by the historical Madams.  The stories they could tell and the secrets they kept...  They knew more about the inhabitants of Jerome than anyone...and made money in the process.  What a business plan!  Apparently, in some cases, big money, as the sign reveals that Jennie was the wealthiest woman in the Arizona Territory when she was...unfortunately, murdered.  Historical signs are so antiseptic.  Excuse me, we'd appreciate the details on that one.   

 

I read in Wikipedia that Jerome was named "the wickedest town in the west" by the New York Sun in 1903.  Doesn't that just sound like something the New York Sun would have done?  I take exception, however, being a native of Dodge City, Kansas--Queen of the Cowtowns.  I believe, at one point--the 1880s--after a particularly egregious trespass from the law, Dodge City was seared into the conscience of the nation as "The Sodom of the West."  Now that, my friends, is wicked.

Jerome is definitely an entertaining pause in your travels.  Everyone is friendly, welcoming, ready for a bit of conversation, happy if you buy, but gracious if you don't.  It's a nice time.

   

And, finally, an appropriate greeting from our travels:

Amen.