City in Navajo County, Arizona, US
City in Arizona, United States
Holbrook
(
Navajo
:
T?iisyaakin
) is a city in
Navajo County
,
Arizona
, United States. According to the
2010 census
, the population of the city was 5,053.
[3]
The city is the
county seat
of Navajo County.
[4]
Holbrook was founded in 1881 or 1882, when the railroad was built, and named to honor the first chief engineer of the
Atlantic and Pacific Railroad
, Henry Randolph Holbrook.
[5]
History
[
edit
]
The Holbrook area was inhabited first by the
Ancestral Puebloans
, then
Puebloans
, then the
Navajo
and
Apache
. In 1540
Coronado
searched for the
Seven Cities of Cibola
and camped some 60 miles east of Holbrook. Coronado sent an expedition west to find the
Colorado River
, and they crossed the
Little Colorado
some twenty-five miles east of Holbrook and found a wonderland of colors they named "El Desierto Pintada" ? The Painted Desert. The expedition was then led by the
Hopis
to the
Grand Canyon
.
U.S. settlements
[
edit
]
After the
Mexican?American War
ended in 1848 the area was ceded to the United States. From 1851 to 1857 the U.S. Army sent three expeditions along the 35th parallel, the third led by Lt. Beale who created a ten foot wide wagon road. The area was known as
Navajo Springs
, after a spring a dozen miles northeast of Holbrook. Soon afterwards a store and saloon were established at the confluence of the
Rio Puerco
and Little Colorado Rivers two miles east of Holbrook, and the area became known as Horsehead Crossing.
In 1876,
Mormons
emigrated from Utah and began settlements near Horsehead Crossing on both the Little Colorado and Rio Puerco rivers. During 1881 and 1882, railroad tracks were laid down and a railroad station was built to supply wood and water and to freight supplies south to
Fort Apache
. The community was then named Holbrook after the first engineer of the
Atlantic and Pacific Railroad
. The railroad sold a million acres to a Boston investment group which established the
Aztec Land and Cattle Company
, better known as the
Hashknife Outfit
. It leased another million acres of government land and became one of the largest cattle ranches to ever exist. Holbrook became its headquarters and quickly grew into a cow-town.
Wild west cow-town
[
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]
The
Hashknife Outfit
hired cowboys, many of whom were wanted men hiding from arrest. Rustling of cattle and horses over two million acres plagued the Hashknife Outfit. With cowmen, sheepmen, farmers, rustlers and outlaws competing for the same land, a range war ensued, called both the
Pleasant Valley War
and the Tonto Basin War. It likely killed as many men as any of the western range wars. Many of the events that played out during the Pleasant Valley War up to 1887 occurred in and around Holbrook, including the famous
Holbrook Shootout
.
Holbrook shootout
[
edit
]
On September 4, 1887,
Commodore Perry Owens
, the Apache County Sheriff, came to Holbrook to arrest Andy Blevins, a.k.a. Andy Cooper, for horse theft. Blevins had also recently bragged about killing two men and had killed many more, including two lawmen.
Sheriff Owens insisted on confronting the Blevins brothers alone, knowing there would likely be a shootout. He went to the Blevins' house, which still stands, knocked on the door, and when Blevins asked what he wanted, announced he'd come to arrest him. Blevins resisted arrest and a shootout occurred. Blevins, two brothers, a friend, and Blevins' horse were shot; all died, except one brother.
Owens emerged unscathed, despite being shot at from a half-dozen feet away. Owens single-handedly taking on four men made him a western legend rivaling the Earp Brothers and
Texas John Slaughter
as lawmen of the Old West.
Later development
[
edit
]
Holbrook was known as "the town too tough for women and churches" and in 1914 was said to be the only county seat in the U.S. that didn't have a church (the Mormons had moved 25 miles (40 km) south to Snowflake and Taylor). The original railroad station was replaced by the
Santa Fe Depot
in 1892.
Navajo County was divided off of Apache County in 1895 and Holbrook became the county seat. Many lawmen and cowboys from the area became
Rough Riders
with
Theodore Roosevelt
in the late 1800s. But by 1902, The Hashknife Outfit was bankrupt and the land was sold to the Babbitt brothers.
President Roosevelt named the
Petrified Forest
(including part of the
Painted Desert
) a National Monument in 1906. Holbrook was incorporated in 1917. Most of the Beale Wagon Road became
Route 66
in 1926 and passed through both the Petrified Forest and Holbrook. Tourism started taking over the economy.
Holbrook meteorite
[
edit
]
Arizona is famous for its huge
Meteor Crater
, but Holbrook also witnessed its own small meteor event. In the evening of July 19, 1912, a smoke trail appeared in the sky and soon after, at 7:15 p.m., a meteorite with an estimated mass of 190 kilograms (419 pounds) exploded high in the atmosphere.
An estimated 16,000 or more minor fragments rained down over Navajo County in an area approximately six miles east of Holbrook. The primary explosion was heard at least 40 miles away and one of the witnesses in Holbrook, then 17-year-old Pauline McCleve, described the event as the loudest sound she ever heard. The largest piece of the Holbrook Meteorite that has been recovered was found shortly after. It weighs 14.5 pounds and resides at
Arizona State University
in Tempe.
The Holbrook meteorite was found to be of the
chondrite
(stony) type.
[6]
Geography
[
edit
]
According to the
United States Census Bureau
, the city has a total area of 15.4 square miles (40 km
2
), all land.
Climate
[
edit
]
Holbrook has a
cold desert climate
(
BWk
) with cold to cool winters and hot summers. Although the mean snowfall is 0.16 metres (6.30 in), the
median
is zero, so the majority of winters do not have measurable snow. There are high
diurnal temperature variations
year-round.
Climate data for Holbrook, Arizona (1991?2020 normals, extremes 1893?2010)
|
Month
|
Jan
|
Feb
|
Mar
|
Apr
|
May
|
Jun
|
Jul
|
Aug
|
Sep
|
Oct
|
Nov
|
Dec
|
Year
|
Record high °F (°C)
|
74
(23)
|
87
(31)
|
89
(32)
|
93
(34)
|
101
(38)
|
108
(42)
|
110
(43)
|
105
(41)
|
106
(41)
|
95
(35)
|
89
(32)
|
78
(26)
|
110
(43)
|
Mean maximum °F (°C)
|
63.8
(17.7)
|
69.6
(20.9)
|
77.3
(25.2)
|
84.0
(28.9)
|
92.3
(33.5)
|
99.4
(37.4)
|
102.2
(39.0)
|
98.5
(36.9)
|
93.5
(34.2)
|
85.6
(29.8)
|
75.1
(23.9)
|
65.0
(18.3)
|
102.8
(39.3)
|
Mean daily maximum °F (°C)
|
51.3
(10.7)
|
57.1
(13.9)
|
65.2
(18.4)
|
72.1
(22.3)
|
81.4
(27.4)
|
91.5
(33.1)
|
94.1
(34.5)
|
91.0
(32.8)
|
85.6
(29.8)
|
74.8
(23.8)
|
61.1
(16.2)
|
49.8
(9.9)
|
72.9
(22.7)
|
Daily mean °F (°C)
|
36.5
(2.5)
|
41.0
(5.0)
|
47.9
(8.8)
|
54.7
(12.6)
|
63.6
(17.6)
|
73.2
(22.9)
|
78.3
(25.7)
|
76.2
(24.6)
|
69.6
(20.9)
|
57.7
(14.3)
|
44.9
(7.2)
|
35.6
(2.0)
|
56.6
(13.7)
|
Mean daily minimum °F (°C)
|
21.7
(?5.7)
|
24.8
(?4.0)
|
30.6
(?0.8)
|
37.4
(3.0)
|
45.8
(7.7)
|
54.9
(12.7)
|
62.4
(16.9)
|
61.4
(16.3)
|
53.7
(12.1)
|
40.7
(4.8)
|
28.7
(?1.8)
|
21.5
(?5.8)
|
40.3
(4.6)
|
Mean minimum °F (°C)
|
10.6
(?11.9)
|
13.2
(?10.4)
|
17.9
(?7.8)
|
25.9
(?3.4)
|
34.0
(1.1)
|
44.0
(6.7)
|
53.7
(12.1)
|
54.9
(12.7)
|
41.9
(5.5)
|
26.8
(?2.9)
|
15.9
(?8.9)
|
8.7
(?12.9)
|
5.9
(?14.5)
|
Record low °F (°C)
|
?20
(?29)
|
?9
(?23)
|
2
(?17)
|
10
(?12)
|
13
(?11)
|
30
(?1)
|
41
(5)
|
36
(2)
|
27
(?3)
|
15
(?9)
|
?10
(?23)
|
?21
(?29)
|
?21
(?29)
|
Average
precipitation
inches (mm)
|
0.73
(19)
|
0.35
(8.9)
|
0.52
(13)
|
0.26
(6.6)
|
0.29
(7.4)
|
0.25
(6.4)
|
1.05
(27)
|
1.71
(43)
|
1.13
(29)
|
0.90
(23)
|
0.50
(13)
|
0.44
(11)
|
8.13
(207)
|
Average snowfall inches (cm)
|
0.5
(1.3)
|
0.5
(1.3)
|
0.6
(1.5)
|
0.5
(1.3)
|
0.0
(0.0)
|
0.0
(0.0)
|
0.0
(0.0)
|
0.0
(0.0)
|
0.0
(0.0)
|
0.0
(0.0)
|
0.6
(1.5)
|
0.6
(1.5)
|
3.3
(8.4)
|
Average precipitation days
(≥ 0.1 inch)
|
3.9
|
3.5
|
4.2
|
2.2
|
2.4
|
1.7
|
5.3
|
7.4
|
4.6
|
3.3
|
2.7
|
4.2
|
45.4
|
Average snowy days
(≥ 0.1 inch)
|
0.4
|
0.4
|
0.4
|
0.1
|
0.0
|
0.0
|
0.0
|
0.0
|
0.0
|
0.0
|
0.4
|
0.5
|
2.2
|
Source 1: NOAA
[7]
|
Source 2: National Weather Service
[8]
|
Demographics
[
edit
]
Historical population
Census
| Pop.
| Note
| %±
|
1890
| 206
| | ?
|
---|
1910
| 609
| | ?
|
---|
1920
| 1,206
| | 98.0%
|
---|
1930
| 1,115
| | ?7.5%
|
---|
1940
| 1,184
| | 6.2%
|
---|
1950
| 2,336
| | 97.3%
|
---|
1960
| 3,438
| | 47.2%
|
---|
1970
| 4,759
| | 38.4%
|
---|
1980
| 5,785
| | 21.6%
|
---|
1990
| 4,686
| | ?19.0%
|
---|
2000
| 4,917
| | 4.9%
|
---|
2010
| 5,053
| | 2.8%
|
---|
2020
| 4,858
| | ?3.9%
|
---|
As of the
census
[10]
of 2000, there were 4,917 people, 1,626 households, and 1,195 families residing in the city. The population density was 318.4 inhabitants per square mile (122.9/km
2
). There were 1,906 housing units at an average density of 123.4 per square mile (47.6/km
2
). The
racial makeup
of the city was 59.3% White, 24.0% Native American, 2.4% Black or African American, 1.0% Asian, 8.4% from other races, and 4.9% from two or more races. 23.4% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.
There were 1,626 households, out of which 40.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 52.3% were
married couples
living together, 16.4% had a female householder with no husband present, and 26.5% were non-families. Of all households 22.6% were made up of individuals, and 6.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.93 and the average family size was 3.47.
In the city, the population was spread out, with 35.7% under the age of 18, 9.3% from 18 to 24, 26.5% from 25 to 44, 19.8% from 45 to 64, and 8.7% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 30 years. For every 100 females, there were 90.2 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 87.7 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $31,746, and the median income for a family was $36,349. Males had a median income of $30,797 versus $24,088 for females. The
per capita income
for the city was $13,912. About 16.6% of families and 20.1% of the population were below the
poverty line
, including 25.7% of those under age 18 and 3.2% of those age 65 or over.
Points of interest
[
edit
]
Education
[
edit
]
- Primary and secondary schools
The city is served by the
Holbrook Unified School District
and serves 2324 students.
Three elementary schools: Park Elementary School (K?2) and Hulet Elementary School (3?5) serve the city and Indian Wells Elementary (K?6) serves the northern parts of the school district.
Holbrook Junior High School (6?8) and
Holbrook High School
(9?12) serve the city.
A portion of Holbrook's land is in the
Joseph City Unified School District
.
[12]
- Colleges and universities
One of the four main campuses of
Northland Pioneer College
community college is located in Holbrook. The other three main campuses are in
Show Low
,
Snowflake
, and
Winslow
, all in Navajo County, Arizona.
- Public libraries
The Holbrook Public Library is located in Holbrook.
[13]
Transportation
[
edit
]
Greyhound Lines
serves Holbrook on its Los Angeles-New York line. White Mountain Connection, operated by the
City of Show Low
connects Holbrook with Show Low.
Holbrook is a junction between
Interstate 40
,
U.S. Route 180
, and
Arizona State Route 77
.
Arizona State Route 377
meets Arizona State Route 77 at the southern edge of Holbrook.
Notable people
[
edit
]
Nearest cities and towns
[
edit
]
See also
[
edit
]
References
[
edit
]
- ^
"2020 U.S. Gazetteer Files"
. United States Census Bureau
. Retrieved
October 29,
2021
.
- ^
a
b
U.S. Geological Survey Geographic Names Information System: Holbrook, Arizona
- ^
"U.S. Census website"
.
United States Census Bureau
. Retrieved
August 23,
2014
.
- ^
"Find a County"
. National Association of Counties. Archived from
the original
on May 31, 2011
. Retrieved
June 7,
2011
.
- ^
"404"
(PDF)
. Archived from
the original
(PDF)
on October 25, 2020
. Retrieved
August 9,
2008
.
- ^
Weir, David.
"Holbrook"
.
Meteorite Studies
.
- ^
"U.S. Climate Normals Quick Access ? Station: Holbrook, AZ"
. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
. Retrieved
December 30,
2022
.
- ^
"NOAA Online Weather Data ? NWS Flagstaff"
. National Weather Service
. Retrieved
December 30,
2022
.
- ^
"Census of Population and Housing"
. Census.gov
. Retrieved
June 4,
2016
.
- ^
"U.S. Census website"
.
United States Census Bureau
. Retrieved
January 31,
2008
.
- ^
See the entry for September 19 on Ben Scott,
Schott's Miscellany Calendar 2009
(New York: Workman Publishing Company, 2008).
- ^
"2020 CENSUS - SCHOOL DISTRICT REFERENCE MAP: Navajo County, AZ"
(PDF)
.
U.S. Census Bureau
. p. 2 (PDF p. 3/4)
. Retrieved
March 18,
2023
.
- ^
"
Member Libraries
Archived
October 18, 2010, at the
Wayback Machine
."
Navajo County Public Library District
. Retrieved on January 21, 2011.
Further reading
[
edit
]
- Ellis, Catherine H. (2007).
Holbrook and The Petrified Forest
. Arcadia Publishing, Charleston, SC.
ISBN
978-0-7385-4885-2
.
- Lyle Johnston, editor,
Centennial Memories: A history of Holbrook, Az. 1881?1981
, privately printed, 1992.
External links
[
edit
]
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International
| |
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National
| |
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Other
| |
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