Cochise

Historical Context

Railroad Origins and Establishment

Cochise was born of steel rails and frontier ambition in 1886 when the Southern Pacific Railroad established a station at this strategic point in the Sulphur Springs Valley. Named for the famous Chiricahua Apache leader—whose territories had encompassed this region just a few years earlier—the site was selected as a water stop where steam locomotives could replenish their supplies before tackling the challenging terrain that lay ahead.

Transportation Infrastructure Foundation

Unlike many Arizona settlements that emerged around mining operations, Cochise owed its existence entirely to transportation infrastructure. The Southern Pacific had completed its transcontinental route through southern Arizona in 1881, and Cochise developed as part of the secondary infrastructure needed to support this major transportation artery. The railroad company built a modest depot, water tower, and section house for maintenance workers, establishing the nucleus around which the town would grow.

Cattle Ranching Development

The surrounding Sulphur Springs Valley, with its relatively flat terrain and natural grasslands, attracted cattle ranchers who recognized the potential for raising livestock in the region. By the early 1890s, several substantial ranching operations had established themselves in the vicinity, using Cochise as their shipping point for cattle bound for markets in California and the East.

Railroad Junction Status

Cochise’s growth accelerated in 1894 when the Arizona and South Eastern Railroad (later the El Paso and Southwestern) constructed a line connecting the mining boomtown of Bisbee to the Southern Pacific mainline at Cochise. This transformed the settlement from a simple water stop to a strategic junction point, prompting additional development including warehouses, shipping pens for cattle, and expanded facilities for passengers transferring between lines.

Peak Development Period

By 1900, Cochise had reached its peak population of approximately 400 residents, a modest size compared to mining boomtowns but substantial for a railroad community in the sparsely populated territory. The town boasted several businesses including two general stores, three saloons, a hotel, a school, and numerous residences ranging from substantial homes for railroad officials to simpler dwellings for laborers and ranch hands.

Territorial Context

Cochise existed in the context of Arizona’s territorial period and early statehood. When the town was established, Arizona was still more than two decades away from achieving statehood, and the region was transitioning from the often-violent conflicts of the Apache Wars to a more settled phase of development. The community’s growth paralleled Arizona’s emergence from frontier territory to an increasingly connected part of the expanding nation.

The Ghost Town Today

Current Physical Remains

Today’s visitor to Cochise encounters a landscape where the past and present coexist in fragmented form. The remaining structures stand isolated amid the vast desert landscape, with many original buildings having succumbed to time, weather, and salvage operations.

The Cochise Hotel

The most prominent remaining structure is the old Cochise Hotel, a two-story adobe building constructed in 1896 that served railroad passengers and cattle buyers. Though weathered, its substantial walls have withstood the decades, and the building underwent partial restoration in the 1980s. The hotel’s wide verandah, once a gathering place for travelers and locals alike, still faces the railroad tracks, though its wooden floors are warped and uneven from years of exposure.

Commercial Buildings

Nearby stands the former general store, its false front typical of Western commercial architecture, though its windows are now empty and doors sealed. The faded remnants of a painted sign—”Gardner’s Mercantile Est. 1892″—remain barely visible on the sun-bleached wood. Behind this building, concrete foundations mark where warehouses once stood, their superstructures long since collapsed or salvaged for materials.

Railroad Infrastructure

The railroad depot itself is gone, demolished in the 1950s when passenger service ended, though its concrete platform remains alongside the still-active tracks. The massive stone-lined pit that once housed the water tank stands empty, its engineering still impressive despite its abandoned state. Several hundred yards from the main cluster of buildings, the concrete footings of the cattle loading pens can be discerned among the desert vegetation.

Archaeological Evidence

Evidence of the town’s former street grid is still visible in the form of compacted earth where roads once ran. Archaeological surveys have identified the locations of numerous former structures through foundation outlines and artifact scatters. These remnants suggest a community that, while never large, was substantially more developed than what remains visible today.

Accessibility and Visitation

Cochise is relatively accessible to visitors interested in Arizona history. Located approximately 70 miles east of Tucson and about 35 miles north of Douglas, the ghost town can be reached via paved roads. Much of the remaining town site is visible from public roads, though some structures sit on private property where permission should be sought before closer exploration.

The Pioneer Cemetery

Location and Establishment

Situated on a gentle rise approximately half a mile northwest of the town center, the Cochise Pioneer Cemetery serves as a poignant chronicle of the community’s brief heyday and gradual decline. Established in 1888, shortly after the town’s founding, this burial ground contains approximately 80 marked graves, though local historians believe many more unmarked burials exist within its boundaries.

Physical Characteristics

The cemetery is enclosed by a simple barbed wire fence, replaced in the 1990s by volunteers from the Cochise County Historical Society, with a metal arch gate bearing the words “Cochise Cemetery” in hand-welded letters. Inside, weathered headstones of marble, sandstone, and wood stand in somewhat irregular rows, many tilting with age or disturbed by decades of freeze-thaw cycles and occasional flooding during summer monsoons.

Earliest Burials

The oldest definitively dated grave belongs to Thomas Moffatt, a railroad section foreman killed in an accident in 1889 when a handcar derailed. His substantial marble headstone, likely shipped in by rail from Tucson or El Paso, stands in stark contrast to many simpler markers nearby. The inscription, now weathered but still readable, notes he was “A faithful employee of the Southern Pacific Railroad” and includes the emblem of the Brotherhood of Railroad Workers.

Disease and Mortality Patterns

The cemetery reveals patterns of life and death that characterized frontier communities. A cluster of small graves from the summer of 1896 marks victims of a typhoid outbreak that swept through the town, claiming primarily children and the elderly. Several markers indicate deaths from workplace accidents, particularly those connected to the railroad and cattle industries, underscoring the dangerous nature of frontier livelihoods.

Military Veterans

Military veterans are well-represented, including several Spanish-American War participants and one Civil War veteran, Sergeant James Franklin of the 8th Illinois Cavalry, whose government-issued marble marker stands near the cemetery’s eastern boundary. Local tradition holds that Franklin came west seeking relief from respiratory problems contracted during the war, a common motivation for settlement in Arizona’s arid climate.

Extended Use Period

The cemetery continued to receive burials even as the town declined, with interments dating through the 1940s, long after Cochise had lost most of its population and commercial significance. The most recent marked grave dates to 1947, belonging to Eleanor Wilson, described on her headstone as “The Last Schoolmistress of Cochise,” who apparently remained in the nearly-abandoned community until her death.

Current Preservation Status

Preservation efforts have been sporadic, primarily led by descendants of those buried there and the county historical society. The harsh desert environment continues to take its toll on the fragile markers, with wooden crosses particularly vulnerable to deterioration. A documentation project undertaken in 2005 photographed and transcribed all legible markers, creating a valuable record as physical inscriptions continue to erode.

The Community Cemetery

Later Establishment and Development

Unlike the Pioneer Cemetery, which was established with the town’s founding, the Cochise Community Cemetery developed later as the settlement matured. Located approximately two miles east of the town center, this burial ground was formally established in 1910 on land donated by the Southern Pacific Railroad, reflecting the community’s transition from frontier outpost to established settlement.

Layout and Organization

The Community Cemetery contains approximately 120 marked graves arranged in a more formal grid pattern than the older Pioneer Cemetery. Family plots became more common, often delineated by concrete borders or low fences, indicating the presence of multi-generational families and stronger community roots. These family groupings provide valuable insights into Cochise’s social structure and the kinship networks that sustained the community.

Evolution of Memorial Practices

Burial practices evolved visibly between the two cemeteries. While the Pioneer Cemetery features primarily simple markers with basic information, the Community Cemetery showcases more elaborate monuments, including obelisks, carved angels, and commercially produced headstones with more detailed inscriptions and decorative elements. This evolution reflects both improved economic circumstances and easier access to memorial goods via the railroad.

Demographic Diversity

The demographics represented in the Community Cemetery demonstrate the changing composition of Cochise as it matured. A section near the eastern fence contains several graves with Hispanic surnames, primarily railroad workers and their families who formed an important component of the community. Several markers indicate birthplaces in Mexico, the Midwest, and as far away as Italy and Ireland, underscoring the diverse origins of those who made Cochise their home.

Religious Affiliations

Religious affiliations become more apparent in the Community Cemetery, with various Christian symbols adorning many markers. A small section near the southwest corner contains graves marked with Stars of David, indicating the presence of Jewish merchants and traders in the community—a common pattern in railroad towns throughout the Southwest.

Decline in Use

Unlike the Pioneer Cemetery, which received burials throughout the town’s existence, the Community Cemetery saw a decline in interments paralleling the community’s fading fortunes. Few graves date from after 1930, suggesting that as the population dwindled, remaining residents chose burial elsewhere or departed entirely. The cemetery experienced a period of severe neglect from approximately 1940 through 1980, when volunteer preservation efforts began.

Current Maintenance

Today, both cemeteries receive occasional maintenance from county agencies and volunteer groups, though the Community Cemetery, being more accessible from current roads, has benefited from more consistent attention in recent decades.

Newspapers and the Town Voice

Regional Newspaper Coverage

Cochise never supported its own dedicated newspaper, a reflection of its modest size and proximity to larger communities with established publications. Instead, the settlement received coverage primarily through the pages of the Tombstone Epitaph and later the Bisbee Daily Review and Douglas Dispatch. These regional papers maintained correspondence columns for outlying communities, with a local resident serving as the “Cochise correspondent.”

James Howell’s Correspondence

The most consistent of these correspondents was James Howell, the station agent from 1898 to 1912, whose weekly submissions provided detailed accounts of town activities, visitors, shipping statistics, and occasional editorial commentary on local concerns. Howell’s reports, published under the heading “Cochise Chronicles” or sometimes simply “From Cochise,” offer valuable insights into daily life and community development. His writing style combined factual reporting with occasional literary flourishes, as when he described a particularly dramatic monsoon thunderstorm as “nature’s grand artillery illuminating the valley with celestial fireworks.”

Community Documentation

These correspondence columns documented the rhythm of community life—from cattle shipment figures and train schedules to social gatherings, school events, and church activities. They recorded the visits of cattle buyers from California, traveling salesmen, railroad inspectors, and occasional dignitaries passing through. Personal milestones received prominent attention, with births, marriages, and deaths carefully noted, often with biographical details about the individuals involved.

Local Communication Methods

While lacking its own printing press, Cochise did produce occasional community bulletins and notices posted at the railroad depot, general store, and other gathering places. These handwritten or mimeographed notices served immediate communication needs within the community, complementing the more formal newspaper coverage that connected Cochise to the wider region.

News Distribution and Literacy

The railroad facilitated relatively rapid newspaper delivery, with Tombstone and Bisbee papers arriving the day after publication. The general store and hotel maintained reading rooms where these newspapers would be available, serving as informal community centers where residents gathered to discuss regional and national news. Subscription records from the Bisbee Daily Review indicate that approximately 30 Cochise households maintained individual subscriptions by 1905, suggesting a relatively high literacy rate and interest in current events.

Declining Coverage

As the town’s population declined, newspaper coverage diminished accordingly. By the 1920s, the correspondence columns had become irregular and briefer, eventually ceasing entirely around 1930. This disappearance from the region’s newspaper pages both reflected and reinforced Cochise’s fading significance in the regional consciousness.

Railroads and Connectivity

Fundamental Transportation Role

The railroad was not merely one aspect of Cochise’s history—it was the community’s fundamental reason for existence. Understanding the town requires appreciating the complex relationship between this remote settlement and the transportation networks that gave it purpose.

Initial Infrastructure Development

Cochise began as a water stop on the Southern Pacific Railroad’s “Sunset Route” between Los Angeles and El Paso. The company constructed a substantial water infrastructure including a deep well, pump house, elevated tank, and delivery pipes—engineering works that represented significant investment in what was essentially wilderness. The station included a telegrapher’s office, critical for coordinating train movements in an era before radio communication.

Junction Point Transformation

The town’s importance increased dramatically in 1894 when the Arizona and South Eastern Railroad (later absorbed into the El Paso and Southwestern system) built a connecting line from Bisbee to Cochise. This 45-mile spur linked the profitable mining operations around Bisbee to the transcontinental route, with Cochise serving as the crucial junction point. The resulting transfer of passengers, freight, and mining products transformed Cochise from simple water stop to busy transfer station.

Peak Operations Period

At its peak around 1900-1910, Cochise saw approximately 12 trains daily—eight on the Southern Pacific mainline and four on the connecting route to Bisbee and Douglas. The Southern Pacific maintained a substantial depot with separate waiting rooms for men and women, a standard practice of the era. Nearby stood a Harvey House restaurant, part of the famous chain that provided standardized dining services at railroad stops throughout the Southwest.

Railroad Employment

The railroad employed approximately 25 people in Cochise directly, including station agents, telegraphers, track maintenance crews, and restaurant staff. These employees formed a distinct social group within the community, often living in company-provided housing near the tracks. Railroad work offered relatively stable employment with benefits unusual for the era, including medical care and retirement provisions, making these positions coveted opportunities.

Impact on Daily Life

Beyond direct employment, the railroad shaped nearly every aspect of life in Cochise. The community followed “railroad time,” with watches and clocks synchronized to the standardized time system implemented by the railroads. The rhythm of daily life adjusted to train schedules, with businesses opening early to serve passengers from pre-dawn trains and the general store staying open late when evening trains arrived.

Connectivity to the Outside World

For residents, the railroad provided connectivity to the wider world that would have been unimaginable just decades earlier. Newspapers from Los Angeles and El Paso arrived within days of publication. Mail-order catalogs like Montgomery Ward and Sears Roebuck allowed access to goods from eastern manufacturing centers. Medical emergencies could be addressed by boarding a train to larger communities with hospitals, a journey of hours rather than the days required by wagon travel.

Beginning of Decline

The beginning of Cochise’s decline coincided with changing transportation patterns in the 1920s. Improved automobiles and developing highway systems reduced passenger rail traffic. The consolidation of the El Paso and Southwestern into the Southern Pacific in 1924 eliminated the need for Cochise as a transfer point, as traffic was rerouted to more efficient connections. The final blow came in 1933 when the Southern Pacific constructed a more direct route that bypassed Cochise entirely, reducing the town to a flag stop on a secondary line.

Current Railroad Status

Today, the railroad tracks remain active, carrying freight traffic through the site where Cochise once thrived. Modern diesel locomotives pass where steam engines once stopped for water and coal, but they rarely slow as they move through what has become little more than a name on railroad maps. The concrete platform remains, along with the stone-lined pit that once held the water tank, silent monuments to the technology that created—and ultimately abandoned—this desert community.

The Decline

Initial Signs of Contraction

The decline of Cochise, unlike the dramatic collapse of some mining towns, followed a gradual trajectory tied directly to changes in railroad operations and transportation patterns. The first signs of contraction appeared around 1910, when improvements in locomotive technology reduced the need for frequent water stops. Cochise saw fewer trains stopping for servicing, though it maintained importance as a junction point.

Railroad Consolidation Impact

A more significant blow came in 1924 when the El Paso and Southwestern Railroad was absorbed into the Southern Pacific system. This consolidation eliminated the need for Cochise as a transfer point between separate rail lines, as traffic patterns were reorganized for greater efficiency within the unified system. Several railroad positions were eliminated, prompting the departure of families who had formed the core of the community.

Great Depression Effects

The Great Depression accelerated this decline, reducing both freight and passenger traffic throughout the rail system. In 1933, the Southern Pacific completed a more direct route that bypassed Cochise entirely for main line traffic, relegating the original line through town to secondary status. This downgrade resulted in the closure of the Harvey House restaurant and reduction of the station to unstaffed flag stop status, where trains would pause only when specifically requested.

Population Decline

Population figures reflect this gradual abandonment. From approximately 400 residents at its peak in 1900, Cochise had declined to roughly 150 by 1920 and fewer than 50 by 1940. The post office, which had operated continuously since 1889, closed in 1945, reflecting the community’s diminished status. The school, which once employed three teachers for different grade levels, contracted to a single classroom in the 1930s before closing entirely in 1947 when too few children remained to justify its operation.

Gradual Dispersal

Unlike some abandoned communities that emptied suddenly, Cochise experienced a gradual dispersal of its population. Many railroad employees transferred to busier locations such as Tucson or Benson. Merchants followed the shifting population centers, with several Cochise businesses relocating to growing communities along developing highway routes. Some ranching families remained in the surrounding countryside even as the town itself faded, maintaining connections to the location even as its commercial significance disappeared.

Final Abandonment Phase

The final phase of abandonment came in the 1950s when the Southern Pacific demolished the depot and several other railroad structures after passenger service ended completely. By 1960, only a handful of occupied residences remained, primarily housing retirees or ranch workers employed at surrounding operations. The general store, the last commercial establishment, closed in 1962 when its aging proprietor retired without a successor willing to maintain a business in the fading community.

Cemetery Continuity

Throughout this extended decline, both cemeteries continued to receive occasional burials, primarily former residents who had maintained connections to the community or descendants fulfilling family wishes to rest alongside earlier generations. These continuing interments, though infrequent, provided a thread of continuity even as the living community dispersed.

Cultural and Historical Significance

Railroad Community Case Study

Cochise represents an important case study in the development and decline of railroad communities that played crucial roles in Arizona’s transportation history. While never achieving the fame or population of mining boomtowns like Tombstone or Jerome, railroad settlements like Cochise formed the connective tissue of Arizona’s developing economic geography, facilitating the movement of people, goods, and information that integrated the territory into national markets.

Archaeological Documentation

The site has been documented in several archaeological and historical studies, most notably a 1996 survey conducted by the Arizona State Museum that cataloged remaining structures and their historical significance. The Cochise Hotel was listed on the Arizona Register of Historic Places in 1991, recognizing its importance as one of the few surviving structures directly connected to Southern Arizona’s railroad development.

Transportation Technology History

For historians of transportation, Cochise offers insights into the technological systems that supported steam railroading in arid environments. The water infrastructure—including wells, pumping equipment, and storage facilities—represents significant engineering achievements that made transcontinental rail service possible across challenging desert landscapes. Archaeological studies of these features have contributed to understanding the practical challenges of operating steam locomotives in water-scarce regions.

Western Settlement Patterns

The community’s development and decline also illuminate broader patterns in Western settlement. Unlike agricultural communities that could maintain viable economies at smaller scales, or mining towns that existed as long as extractable resources remained, railroad towns like Cochise were ultimately dependent on their function within larger transportation networks. When technological changes or company reorganizations altered these functions, such communities often struggled to find alternative economic bases.

Indigenous Historical Context

For the O’odham and Apache peoples, whose ancestral territories encompassed the Sulphur Springs Valley, the Cochise site holds different significance. Archaeological evidence indicates that indigenous trails crossed near the town’s location long before European settlement, utilizing the same natural passage through surrounding terrain that later attracted railroad surveyors. The rapid transformation of these landscapes following railroad construction represented a significant disruption to traditional lifeways, accelerating changes already underway through military campaigns and reservation policies.

Cemetery Conservation and Memorial Practices

Preservation Challenges and Efforts

The preservation states of Cochise’s two cemeteries reflect their different historical trajectories and continued significance to descendants. The Pioneer Cemetery experienced lengthy periods of neglect during the mid-twentieth century, with minimal maintenance and significant deterioration of many markers. This changed in the 1980s when descendants of several Cochise families formed the informal Cochise Cemetery Preservation Committee, which later worked with the Cochise County Historical Society to document graves and implement basic preservation measures.

Pioneer Cemetery Stabilization

These efforts included perimeter fencing to prevent cattle intrusion, stabilization of the most endangered markers, and creation of a site map identifying known burials. A simple visitor’s register was installed in a weather-protected box, allowing descendants and researchers to record their visits and share information about family connections. While still relatively austere in appearance, with native desert vegetation predominating, the Pioneer Cemetery has been stabilized sufficiently to preserve its historical integrity.

Community Cemetery Maintenance

The Community Cemetery has benefited from more consistent attention, partly due to its greater accessibility from current roadways. In 1992, it was officially designated a county historical site, bringing occasional maintenance from county agencies. A local ranching family whose ancestors are buried there has taken particular interest in its preservation, organizing annual cleanup events that have become informal community gatherings for widely-scattered descendants with connections to Cochise.

Ongoing Memorial Practices

Memorial practices continue at both sites. The Pioneer Cemetery typically receives visitors during November’s Día de los Muertos observances, when descendants of Hispanic railroad workers place flowers and maintain family traditions. The Community Cemetery sees activity around Memorial Day, when a small service organized by the historical society honors the veterans buried there, with particular attention to Spanish-American War participants who represent an often-overlooked chapter in Arizona’s military history.

Environmental Preservation Challenges

Preservation challenges include the harsh desert environment, with summer monsoon flooding occasionally threatening grave sites, and winter freeze-thaw cycles accelerating the deterioration of stone markers. Vegetation management presents difficult trade-offs between controlling invasive plants that might damage grave sites and maintaining the natural desert landscape appropriate to the setting.

Documentation Initiatives

Documentation efforts have become increasingly important as physical markers continue to deteriorate. The Cochise County Genealogical Society has photographed all legible markers and cross-referenced these with available death records, census data, and family information to create a more complete inventory than what remains visible on site. This digital preservation ensures that the documentary value of the cemeteries persists even as their physical condition inevitably changes over time.

Visiting Respectfully

Access and Property Considerations

Visitors to Cochise should approach the site with appropriate respect for both its historical significance and current status. The remaining structures of the original townsite sit primarily on private property, though several are visible from public roads. Those wishing to explore more thoroughly should contact the Cochise County Historical Society, which occasionally arranges guided tours with property owner permission.

Cemetery Visitation Ethics

The cemeteries present particular ethical considerations. While technically on public land managed by the Bureau of Land Management, they are considered sacred historical sites and should be treated accordingly. Visitors should never disturb grave markers, remove artifacts, or conduct rubbings without proper authorization. Photography for personal or educational purposes is generally acceptable, though commercial photography requires permits from county authorities.

Preservation Concerns

Preservation challenges include erosion from increasingly intense seasonal rains—a growing concern as climate patterns shift—and occasional vandalism. The remote location, while contributing to the site’s atmospheric quality, also limits regular oversight. Visitors are encouraged to report any damage or concerns to the historical society or county authorities.

Information Resources

Local resources for information include the Cochise County Historical Museum in Bisbee, which maintains a small collection of photographs and artifacts related to the railroad community. More extensive archival materials can be found at the Arizona Historical Society in Tucson, including the Margaret Carmichael diaries and corporate records from the Southern Pacific Railroad that document the town’s development and operational history.

Educational Context

For those interested in the broader context of railroad communities, the Southern Arizona Transportation Museum in Tucson offers exhibits explaining the technological and social systems that supported rail networks throughout the region. Their research library contains valuable resources for understanding the engineering challenges of desert railroading and the communities that developed to meet these challenges.

Conclusion

Transportation Infrastructure and Settlement

Cochise, Arizona stands as a telling example of how transportation infrastructure shaped settlement patterns in the American West, creating communities that rose and fell with changing technologies and corporate decisions. Unlike mining towns that exhausted their resources or agricultural communities that failed due to environmental limitations, railroad towns like Cochise followed a different trajectory—one tied directly to their functionality within larger networks of movement and exchange.

Physical Record of Development

In its weathered buildings, cemetery markers, and archaeological remains, Cochise offers a physical record of this distinct pattern of Western development. The town’s brief period of prosperity demonstrates how quickly rail connectivity could transform remote landscapes, bringing global commerce and communication to locations that had seen only occasional human presence for centuries. Its gradual decline equally illustrates how communities dependent on specific technological systems found themselves vulnerable when those systems evolved.

Contemplative Historical Experience

For today’s visitors, Cochise provides a uniquely contemplative experience of Arizona history. Lacking the commercial development and tourism infrastructure of more prominent ghost towns, it offers a more authentic connection to the past. Standing beside the still-active railroad tracks that brought this community into existence, hearing the occasional train pass through without stopping, creates a powerful sense of historical continuity and change.

Human Dimension of History

The cemeteries of Cochise speak to the human dimension of these larger historical patterns. In their markers—some elaborate, others simple; some well-preserved, others nearly effaced by time—we find evidence of the diverse individuals who built lives at this remote junction point. Railroad workers and ranch hands, merchants and hotelkeepers, women and children who created homes in a harsh environment—all found their final rest in this desert soil, their stories preserved in stone and memory.

Contemporary Relevance

As development continues to transform the Arizona landscape, sites like Cochise become increasingly valuable as tangible connections to territorial history. In preserving and respectfully visiting these places, we honor not only those who rest in marked and unmarked graves but also deepen our understanding of the complex forces that have shaped the contemporary Southwest. The empty platform where passengers once waited and the quiet cemeteries where pioneers rest remind us that even in our age of seemingly permanent infrastructure, the landscapes of human activity remain subject to forces of change that continue to reshape our relationship with the desert environment.

Additional Resources

Historical Sources

“Railroad Development in Arizona Territory, 1864-1912” by David Myrick (Howell-North Books, 1975)

“The Southern Pacific in the Southwest” by Richard Steinheimer (University of Arizona Press, 1986)

“Junction Communities: The Social Geography of Arizona’s Railroad Towns” by Carlos Schwantes (Journal of Arizona History, Vol. 34, 1993)

“The Carmichael Diaries: Woman’s Perspective on Railroad Town Life” edited by Susan Deaver (Arizona Historical Society Publications, 2001)

Relevant Historical Societies

• Cochise County Historical Society, Bisbee, AZ
• Arizona Historical Society, Tucson, AZ
• Southern Arizona Transportation Museum, Tucson, AZ
• Arizona Pioneer & Cemetery Research Project

Maps and Directions

• Arizona Ghost Town Trail Guide (Arizona Highways Publication)
• USGS Historical Topographical Maps (1900, 1937, 1954 editions show the evolution of the settlement)
• Southern Pacific Railroad Historical Archives (containing original survey maps and station plans)

Cemetery Records

• Cochise Cemetery Documentation Project (maintained by the County Historical Society)
• Arizona Gravestone Photo Project (online database with photographs and transcriptions)
• Cochise County Genealogical Society Records
• Find A Grave – Cochise Pioneer and Community Cemeteries

Newspaper Archives

• Tombstone Epitaph collection (1882-1912), Arizona State Library Archives
• Bisbee Daily Review archives (1897-1942), University of Arizona Special Collections
• Arizona Digital Newspaper Program (www.adnp.azlibrary.gov)

Railroad Historical Resources

• Southern Pacific Historical Society
• Railroad Museum of San Diego (housing corporate archives from the SP “Sunset Route”)
• Union Pacific Historical Collection (which acquired Southern Pacific records)
• Historic American Engineering Record documentation of Southern Pacific water facilities