Hecla, Arizona

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Hecla, Arizona
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Hecla
Location within the state of Arizona
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Hecla
Hecla (the United States)
Coordinates: 34°32′17″N112°07′18″W / 34.53806°N 112.12167°W / 34.53806; -112.12167
Country United States
State Arizona
County Yavapai
Elevation
[1]
4,597 ft (1,401 m)
Time zone UTC-7 (Mountain (MST))
Area code 928
FIPS code 04-32335
GNIS feature ID42742 [1]

Hecla is a former way station situated in Yavapai County, Arizona, United States. [2] Its name is derived from the nearby Hecla mine. [3] It is also known as Stone Corral.

Contents

History

John Stemmer, a former trooper, set up a waystation there on Ash Creek in the 1870s for travellers on the route between Prescott and the Verde Valley. [4] [5] Facilities included at least seven furnished rooms, a bar, retail store, kitchen, dining room, stables and two stone corrals. [4]

In 1884 it passed to AJ Hudson, who with his family continued to operate it as an inn for travellers. [4] Facilities added included a root cellar, and for 18 months a post office under the name of Hecla, by which it was then known. [6] [4] As well as providing for travellers, it was an important location for social gathering for the nearby small communities. [4]

In August 1898 a flash flood on the creek destroyed most of the facilities and the site was abandoned. [4] The stone corral and root cellar remain and it now exists as a historical site on the Prescott National Forest Reserve, accessed by the General Cook hiking trail.

References

  1. 1 2 U.S. Geological Survey Geographic Names Information System: Hecla, Arizona
  2. "Hecla (in Yavapai County, AZ) Populated Place Profile". AZ Hometown Locator. Retrieved November 26, 2016.
  3. Barnes, Will Croft (2016). Arizona Place Names. Tucson: Arizona Place Names. p. 203. ISBN   978-0816534951.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Judy Stoycheff. "The "Stone Corral"". Sharlot Hall Museum.[ dead link ]
  5. "A correspondent from Ash Creek..." The Weekly Arizona Miner (Prescott, Arizona). June 18, 1875.
  6. Theobald, John; Theobald, Lillian (1961), Arizona Territory: Post Offices & Postmasters, United States Postal Service via Arizona Historical Foundation

Further reading