Public Pulse

February 14th, 2008

Good Ol’ Chisholm Trail

Lyle, I so enjoyed your story this week. Makes one wonder about the "rest of the story," plural I mean. Probably no end to them.

Several years ago when I was delivering "Meals on Wheels" here in Yuma there were many old time residents that needed someone to talk to. The stories were many & varied & fascinating. One very elderly woman in particular loved to talk. She related that her father paid a penny each day to take the ferry across the Colorado River to go to his work in the fields. The Colorado River carried ocean going vessels as far north as Parker, Arizona at that time. She also related a tale of her brother being one of the first members of the Arizona Navy to protect trade along the River. There are still many remnants of mining camps, trading posts, & Calvary Outposts along the route.

I have not verified her stories, but this is a sampling of some of our local history.

Another interesting point is about the Old Fort Yuma Prison. The prison had been closed down & when the local school burned down the students attended classes in the old prison. To this day the students call themselves the Yuma Criminals & the teams the "Crims".

Such fun to learn about history. Makes me wish I had known that years ago.

/s/Vicki Henderson Gehringer
Yuma, Arizona

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