Warren, Arizona
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Bisbee is a city in and the
county seat A county seat is an administrative center, seat of government, or capital city of a county or civil parish. The term is in use in Canada, China, Hungary, Romania, Taiwan, and the United States. The equivalent term shire town is used in the US st ...
of
Cochise County Cochise County () is a county in the southeastern corner of the U.S. state of Arizona. It is named after the Native American chief Cochise. The population was 125,447 at the 2020 census. The county seat is Bisbee and the most populous city is ...
in southeastern
Arizona Arizona ( ; nv, Hoozdo Hahoodzo ; ood, Alĭ ṣonak ) is a state in the Southwestern United States. It is the 6th largest and the 14th most populous of the 50 states. Its capital and largest city is Phoenix. Arizona is part of the Fou ...
, United States. It is southeast of
Tucson , "(at the) base of the black ill , nicknames = "The Old Pueblo", "Optics Valley", "America's biggest small town" , image_map = , mapsize = 260px , map_caption = Interactive map ...
and north of the Mexican border. According to the 2020 census, the population of the town was 4,923, down from 5,575 in the 2010 census.


History

Bisbee was founded as a
copper Copper is a chemical element with the symbol Cu (from la, cuprum) and atomic number 29. It is a soft, malleable, and ductile metal with very high thermal and electrical conductivity. A freshly exposed surface of pure copper has a pinkis ...
,
gold Gold is a chemical element with the symbol Au (from la, aurum) and atomic number 79. This makes it one of the higher atomic number elements that occur naturally. It is a bright, slightly orange-yellow, dense, soft, malleable, and ductile me ...
, and
silver Silver is a chemical element with the symbol Ag (from the Latin ', derived from the Proto-Indo-European ''h₂erǵ'': "shiny" or "white") and atomic number 47. A soft, white, lustrous transition metal, it exhibits the highest electrical ...
mining town in 1880, and named in honor of Judge DeWitt Bisbee, one of the financial backers of the adjacent
Copper Queen Mine The Copper Queen Mine was a copper mine in Cochise County, Arizona, United States. Its development led to the growth of the surrounding town of Bisbee in the 1880s. Its orebody ran 23% copper, an extraordinarily high grade. It was acquired by Ph ...
. The town was the site of the
Bisbee Riot The Bisbee Riot, or the Battle of Brewery Gulch, occurred on July 3, 1919, between the black Buffalo Soldiers of the 10th Cavalry and members of local police forces in Bisbee, Arizona. Following a confrontation between a military policeman ...
in 1919. In 1929, the county seat was moved from Tombstone to Bisbee, where it remains.


Mining industry

Mining Mining is the extraction of valuable minerals or other geological materials from the Earth, usually from an ore body, lode, vein, seam, reef, or placer deposit. The exploitation of these deposits for raw material is based on the economic ...
in the
Mule Mountains The Mule Mountains are a north/south running mountain range located in the south-central area of Cochise County, Arizona. The highest peak, Mount Ballard, rises to . Prior to mining operations commencing there, the mountains were heavily fo ...
proved quite successful: in the early 20th century the population of Bisbee soared. Incorporated in 1902, by 1910 its population had swelled to 9,019, and it sported a constellation of suburbs, including Warren, Lowell, and San Jose, some of which had been founded on their own (ultimately less successful) mines. In 1917,
open-pit mining Open-pit mining, also known as open-cast or open-cut mining and in larger contexts mega-mining, is a surface mining technique of extracting rock or minerals from the earth from an open-air pit, sometimes known as a borrow. This form of mini ...
was successfully introduced to meet the copper demand during
World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
. A high quality
turquoise Turquoise is an opaque, blue-to-green mineral that is a hydrated phosphate of copper and aluminium, with the chemical formula . It is rare and valuable in finer grades and has been prized as a gemstone and ornamental stone for thousands of year ...
promoted as ''
Bisbee Blue 275px, Bisbee turquoise commonly has a hard chocolate brown colored matrix. Bisbee Blue or Bisbee turquoise refers to the turquoise that comes from copper mines located in the vicinity of Bisbee, Arizona. Bisbee turquoise can be found in many di ...
'' was a by-product of the copper mining. Many high-quality mineral specimens have come from Bisbee area mines and are to be found in museum collections worldwide. Some of these minerals include
cuprite Cuprite is an oxide mineral composed of copper(I) oxide Cu2O, and is a minor ore of copper. Its dark crystals with red internal reflections are in the isometric system hexoctahedral class, appearing as cubic, octahedral, or dodecahedral forms, ...
,
aragonite Aragonite is a carbonate mineral, one of the three most common naturally occurring crystal forms of calcium carbonate, (the other forms being the minerals calcite and vaterite). It is formed by biological and physical processes, including pre ...
,
wulfenite Wulfenite is a lead molybdate mineral with the formula Pb Mo O4. It can be most often found as thin tabular crystals with a bright orange-red to yellow-orange color, sometimes brown, although the color can be highly variable. In its yellow form ...
,
malachite Malachite is a copper carbonate hydroxide mineral, with the formula Cu2CO3(OH)2. This opaque, green-banded mineral crystallizes in the monoclinic crystal system, and most often forms botryoidal, fibrous, or stalagmitic masses, in fracture ...
,
azurite Azurite is a soft, deep-blue copper mineral produced by weathering of copper ore deposits. During the early 19th century, it was also known as chessylite, after the type locality at Chessy-les-Mines near Lyon, France. The mineral, a basic carb ...
, and galena.


Bisbee deportation

Miners attempted to organize to gain better working conditions and wages. In 1917, the
Phelps Dodge Corporation Phelps Dodge Corporation was an American mining company founded in 1834 as an import-export firm by Anson Greene Phelps and his two sons-in-law William Earle Dodge, Sr. and Daniel James. The latter two ran Phelps, James & Co., the part of the o ...
, using private police and deputized sheriffs in conjunction with
Cochise County Cochise County () is a county in the southeastern corner of the U.S. state of Arizona. It is named after the Native American chief Cochise. The population was 125,447 at the 2020 census. The county seat is Bisbee and the most populous city is ...
Sheriff Harry C. Wheeler, transported at gunpoint over 1,000 striking miners out of town to Hermanas, New Mexico, due to allegations that they were members of the
Industrial Workers of the World The Industrial Workers of the World (IWW), members of which are commonly termed "Wobblies", is an international labor union that was founded in Chicago in 1905. The origin of the nickname "Wobblies" is uncertain. IWW ideology combines general ...
(IWW); the company wanted to prevent unionization. Earlier that year, industry police conducted the Jerome Deportation, similarly intended to expel striking miners.


Mining decline and tourism

Continued underground work enabled the town to survive the changes in mining that caused mines in neighboring towns to close, leading to a resulting dramatic loss of population. But the population of Bisbee had dropped nearly 60%, from a high of 9,205 in 1920 down to 3,801 by 1950. In 1975 the Phelps Dodge Corporation halted its Bisbee copper-mining operations. Bisbee Mayor Chuck Eads, with the cooperation of Phelps Dodge, implemented development of a mine tour and historic interpretation of a portion of the
Copper Queen Mine The Copper Queen Mine was a copper mine in Cochise County, Arizona, United States. Its development led to the growth of the surrounding town of Bisbee in the 1880s. Its orebody ran 23% copper, an extraordinarily high grade. It was acquired by Ph ...
as part of an effort to create
heritage tourism Cultural heritage tourism (or just heritage tourism) is a branch of tourism oriented towards the cultural heritage of the location where tourism is occurring. The National Trust for Historic Preservation in the United States defines heritage t ...
as another economic base to compensate for the financial loss due to the end of the mining industry. Community volunteers cleared tons of fallen rock and re-timbered the old workings. Eventually, this local effort came to the attention of the federal
Economic Development Administration The U.S. Economic Development Administration (EDA) is an agency in the United States Department of Commerce that provides grants and technical assistance to economically distressed communities in order to generate new employment, help retain exist ...
. It approved a large grant to the City of Bisbee to help the mine tour project and other improvements in downtown Bisbee; these were designed to meet tourist business needs. The Queen Mine Tour was officially opened to visitors on February 1, 1976. More than a million visitors have taken the underground mine tour train.


Modern Bisbee

From 1950 to 1960, the sharp population decline happening over the previous few decades changed course and the number of residents of Bisbee increased by nearly 160 percent when open-pit mining was undertaken and the city annexed nearby areas. The peak population was in 1960, at 9,914. In the following decade, there was a decline in jobs and population, although not as severe as from 1930 to 1950. But, the economic volatility resulted in a crash in housing prices. Coupled with an attractive climate and picturesque scenery, Bisbee became a destination in the 1960s for artists and hippies of the counter culture. Artist Stephen Hutchison and his wife Marcia purchased the Copper Queen Hotel, the town's anchor business and architectural gem, from the Phelps-Dodge mining company in 1970. The company had tried to find a local buyer, offering the deed to any local resident for the sum of $1, but there were no takers. The property needed renovation for continued use. Hutchison purchased and renovated the hotel, as well as other buildings in the downtown area. One held the early 20th-century Brewery and Stock Exchange. Hutchison began to market Bisbee as a destination of the "authentic," old Southwest. His work attracted the developer Ed Smart. Among the many guests at the hotel have been celebrities from nearby California. Actor John Wayne was a frequent visitor to Bisbee and the Copper Queen. He befriended Hutchison and eventually partnered with Smart in his real estate ventures. This period of Bisbee's history is well documented in contemporary articles in ''
The New Yorker ''The New Yorker'' is an American weekly magazine featuring journalism, commentary, criticism, essays, fiction, satire, cartoons, and poetry. Founded as a weekly in 1925, the magazine is published 47 times annually, with five of these issues ...
'' and in an article by Cynthia Buchanan in ''
The Cornell Review ''The Cornell Review'' is an independent newspaper published by students of Cornell University in Ithaca, New York. With the motto, "We Do Not Apologize," the ''Review'' has a history in conservative journalism and was once one of the leading c ...
''. It was at this time that Bisbee became a haven for artists and hippies fleeing the larger cities of Arizona and California. Later it attracted people priced out by gentrification of places such as
Aspen, Colorado Aspen is a home rule municipality that is the county seat and the most populous municipality of Pitkin County, Colorado, United States. The city population was 7,004 at the 2020 United States Census. Aspen is in a remote area of the Rocky Moun ...
. In the 1990s, additional people were attracted to Bisbee, leading it to develop such amenities as coffee shops and live theatre. Many of the old houses have been renovated, and property values in Bisbee now greatly exceed those of other southeastern Arizona cities. Today, the historic city of Bisbee is known as "Old Bisbee" and is home to a thriving downtown cultural scene. This area is noted for its architecture, including Victorian-style houses and an elegant
Art Deco Art Deco, short for the French ''Arts Décoratifs'', and sometimes just called Deco, is a style of visual arts, architecture, and product design, that first appeared in France in the 1910s (just before World War I), and flourished in the Unite ...
county courthouse. Because its plan was laid out to a pedestrian scale before the automobile, Old Bisbee is compact and walkable. The town's hilly terrain is exemplified by the old four-story high school; each floor has a ground-level entrance.


Suburbs

The city of Bisbee now includes the satellite communities of Warren, Lowell, and San Jose. The Lowell and Warren townsites were consolidated into Bisbee proper during the early part of the twentieth century. There are also smaller neighborhoods interspersed between these larger boroughs, including Galena, Bakerville, Tintown, South Bisbee, Briggs, and Saginaw. Warren was Arizona's first
planned community A planned community, planned city, planned town, or planned settlement is any community that was carefully planned from its inception and is typically constructed on previously undeveloped land. This contrasts with settlements that evolve ...
. It was designed as a
bedroom community A commuter town is a populated area that is primarily residential rather than commercial or industrial. Routine travel from home to work and back is called commuting, which is where the term comes from. A commuter town may be called by many o ...
for the more affluent citizens of the mining district. Warren has a fine collection of Arts and Crafts style bungalow houses. Many have been recognized as historic places, and the city has an annual home tour during which a varying selection are offered for tours. Since the end of mining in the 1970s, Warren has seen a steady decline in its standard of living. The residential district still houses a significant portion of the population, and includes City Hall, Greenway Elementary School, Bisbee High School, and the historic
Warren Ballpark Warren Ballpark is a baseball stadium located in Bisbee, Arizona. The ballpark was recently home to the Tucson Saguaros of the Pecos League and the Bisbee-Douglas Copper Kings of the independent Arizona–Mexico League The Stadium was built in ...
. Lowell was at one time a sizable mining town located just to the southeast of Old Bisbee. The majority of the original townsite was consumed by the excavation of the Lavender Pit mine during the 1950s. All that is left today is a small portion of Erie Street, along with Evergreen Cemetery, Saginaw subdivision and Lowell Middle School. These days Lowell is considered by most of the local residents to be more of a place name than an operating community. San Jose, on the southern side of the
Mule Mountains The Mule Mountains are a north/south running mountain range located in the south-central area of Cochise County, Arizona. The highest peak, Mount Ballard, rises to . Prior to mining operations commencing there, the mountains were heavily fo ...
, is the most modern of the city's subdivisions. As it is not restricted by mountains, it has had the most new growth since the late 1990s. Named after a nearby Mexican mountain peak, it is the location of many newer county government buildings, the Huachuca Terrace Elementary School, and a large shopping center.


Current state of mining industry

In 2007, Freeport-McMoRan Copper & Gold bought Phelps-Dodge company. Freeport has invested in Bisbee by remediating soil contaminated in previous mining operations, donations to the school system, and other civic activities.


Geography

Arizona State Route 80 State Route 80 (SR 80) is a roughly arc-shaped highway lying in southeastern Arizona that, with New Mexico's State Road 80, is a relic of the old U.S. Route 80, now truncated from San Diego to Dallas. This segment of old US 80 was not closely p ...
runs through the city, leading northwest to Tombstone and to Benson, and east to
Douglas Douglas may refer to: People * Douglas (given name) * Douglas (surname) Animals * Douglas (parrot), macaw that starred as the parrot ''Rosalinda'' in Pippi Longstocking *Douglas the camel, a camel in the Confederate Army in the American Civi ...
. The Mexican border at Naco is south of the center of Bisbee. According to the
United States Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau (USCB), officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the U.S. Federal Statistical System, responsible for producing data about the American people and economy. The Census Bureau is part of t ...
, the city has a total area of , all land. Natural vegetation around Bisbee has a semi-desert appearance with shrubby acacia,
oak An oak is a tree or shrub in the genus ''Quercus'' (; Latin "oak tree") of the beech family, Fagaceae. There are approximately 500 extant species of oaks. The common name "oak" also appears in the names of species in related genera, notably ''L ...
and the like, along with cacti,
grass Poaceae () or Gramineae () is a large and nearly ubiquitous family of monocotyledonous flowering plants commonly known as grasses. It includes the cereal grasses, bamboos and the grasses of natural grassland and species cultivated in lawns a ...
,
ocotillo ''Fouquieria splendens'' (commonly known as ocotillo (), but also referred to as buggywhip, coachwhip, candlewood, slimwood, desert coral, Jacob's staff, Jacob cactus, and vine cactus) is a plant indigenous to the Sonoran Desert and Chihuahuan ...
and
yucca ''Yucca'' is a genus of perennial plant, perennial shrubs and trees in the family (biology), family Asparagaceae, subfamily Agavoideae. Its 40–50 species are notable for their Rosette (botany), rosettes of evergreen, tough, sword-shaped Leaf, ...
. The town itself is much more luxuriant with large trees such as native cypress,
sycamore Sycamore is a name which has been applied to several types of trees, but with somewhat similar leaf forms. The name derives from the ancient Greek ' (''sūkomoros'') meaning "fig-mulberry". Species of trees known as sycamore: * ''Acer pseudoplata ...
and cottonwood plus the introduced ailanthus and Old World
cypresses Cypress is a common name for various coniferous trees or shrubs of northern temperate regions that belong to the family Cupressaceae. The word ''cypress'' is derived from Old French ''cipres'', which was imported from Latin ''cypressus'', the la ...
, cedars and
pines A pine is any conifer tree or shrub in the genus ''Pinus'' () of the family (biology), family Pinaceae. ''Pinus'' is the sole genus in the subfamily Pinoideae. The World Flora Online created by the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew and Missouri Botanic ...
. Palms are capable of growing tall, but are not reliably hardy. At least one mature
blue spruce The blue spruce (''Picea pungens''), also commonly known as green spruce, Colorado spruce, or Colorado blue spruce, is a species of spruce tree. It is native to North America, and is found in USDA growing zones 1 through 7. It is found naturall ...
may be seen.


Climate

Bisbee is a typical
semi-arid climate A semi-arid climate, semi-desert climate, or steppe climate is a dry climate sub-type. It is located on regions that receive precipitation below potential evapotranspiration, but not as low as a desert climate. There are different kinds of sem ...
(
Köppen Köppen is a German surname. Notable people with the surname include: * Bernd Köppen (born 1951), German pianist and composer * Carl Köppen (1833-1907), German military advisor in Meiji era Japan * Edlef Köppen (1893–1939), German author and ...
''BSk'') of the upland Mountain West. Summer days are warm to hot and dry before the
monsoon A monsoon () is traditionally a seasonal reversing wind accompanied by corresponding changes in precipitation but is now used to describe seasonal changes in atmospheric circulation and precipitation associated with annual latitudinal osci ...
brings the wettest season from July to September with of Bisbee's total annual rainfall of , often with severe thunderstorms. During the winter, frontal cloudbands may bring occasional rainfall or even snowfall, though average maxima in the winter are typically very mild and sometimes even warm.


Demographics

Bisbee first appeared on the 1890 U.S. Census as an unincorporated village. It did not appear on the 1900 census, despite having a population of thousands (many unincorporated communities were not reported). In 1902, it incorporated as a city and has appeared on every census since 1910. On September 10, 1959, it incorporated the adjacent unincorporated villages of Lowell-South Bisbee (1950 pop. 1,136) and Warren (pop. 2,610). As of the census of 2000, there were 6,090 people, 2,810 households, and 1,503 families residing in the city. The population density was . As of the 2020 U.S. Census Redistricting Data there were 3,138 housing units (21.5% of which were vacant or possibly secondary homes) at an average density of . The racial and ethnic makeup of the city (where race/ethnicity of residents was known) was 65.2% non-Hispanic White, 29.2% of the population were
Hispanic The term ''Hispanic'' ( es, hispano) refers to people, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or Hispanidad. The term commonly applies to countries with a cultural and historical link to Spain and to viceroyalties forme ...
or
Latino Latino or Latinos most often refers to: * Latino (demonym), a term used in the United States for people with cultural ties to Latin America * Hispanic and Latino Americans in the United States * The people or cultures of Latin America; ** Latin A ...
of any race, 0.7% Non-Hispanic Black or
African American African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ens ...
, 0.6% Non-Hispanic Native American, 0.5% Non-Hispanic Asian, 0.1% Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander, 0.5% from
other races Other often refers to: * Other (philosophy), a concept in psychology and philosophy Other or The Other may also refer to: Film and television * ''The Other'' (1913 film), a German silent film directed by Max Mack * ''The Other'' (1930 film), a ...
, and 3.3% from two or more races. There were 2,810 households, out of which 21.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 36.8% were married couples living together, 12.8% had a female householder with no husband present, and 46.5% were non-families. 39.1% of all households were made up of individuals, and 14.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.15 and the average family size was 2.90. An analysis of United States Census Bureau data by researchers at The
Williams Institute The Williams Institute on Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity Law and Public Policy, usually shortened to Williams Institute, is a public policy research institute based at the UCLA School of Law focused on sexual orientation and gender ident ...
at the
UCLA School of Law The UCLA School of Law is one of 12 professional schools at the University of California, Los Angeles. UCLA Law has been consistently ranked by '' U.S. News & World Report'' as one of the top 20 law schools in the United States since the inception ...
found that, on a proportional basis, Bisbee had more gay couples living together than anywhere else in the state. The ratio was 20.9 for every 1,000 households. In the city, the age distribution of the population shows 21.6% under the age of 18, 6.8% from 18 to 24, 24.1% from 25 to 44, 27.8% from 45 to 64, and 19.6% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 43 years. For every 100 females, there were 90.6 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 85.1 males. The median income for a household in the city was $27,942, and the median income for a family was $36,685. Males had a median income of $29,573 versus $23,269 for females. The
per capita income Per capita income (PCI) or total income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. It is calculated by dividing the area's total income by its total population. Per capita i ...
for the city was $17,129. About 12.9% of families and 17.5% of the population were below the
poverty line The poverty threshold, poverty limit, poverty line or breadline is the minimum level of income deemed adequate in a particular country. The poverty line is usually calculated by estimating the total cost of one year's worth of necessities for t ...
, including 23.2% of those under age 18 and 9.0% of those age 65 or over.


Arts and culture

The Bisbee 1000 Stair Climb is a five-kilometer run through the city that traverses 1,034 stairs. Billed as "the most unique physical fitness challenge in the USA!" by the organizers, the Climb includes runners being serenaded by musicians at various locations among the stairs. The event has grown to include the Ice Man Competition, designed to honor the history of men delivering blocks of ice by hand before the advent of refrigeration. In the Ice Man Competition, entrants race up 155 steps carrying a ten-pound block of ice with antique ice tongs. Bisbee hosts an annual Blues festival, occurring in 2015 during the second week of September. The festival effectively lengthens the tourist season, and provides a large amount of business to local bars and breweries.


Sites of interest

* Bisbee Municipal Airport * The Central School, built in 1905, was once an elementary school and now functions as an art center. * The
Cochise County Courthouse Tombstone Courthouse State Historic Park is a state park of Arizona in the United States. Located in Tombstone, the park preserves the original Cochise County courthouse. The two-story building, constructed in 1882 in the Victorian style, is la ...
is built in the Art Deco style. * The
Copper Queen Mine The Copper Queen Mine was a copper mine in Cochise County, Arizona, United States. Its development led to the growth of the surrounding town of Bisbee in the 1880s. Its orebody ran 23% copper, an extraordinarily high grade. It was acquired by Ph ...
was once a major copper producer and can be toured daily. * The Phelps Dodge General Office Building, a
National Historic Landmark A National Historic Landmark (NHL) is a building, district, object, site, or structure that is officially recognized by the United States government for its outstanding historical significance. Only some 2,500 (~3%) of over 90,000 places listed ...
, is now the Bisbee Mining & Historical Museum * The Lavender Pit is an inactive open pit mine site in the center of the city. *
Warren Ballpark Warren Ballpark is a baseball stadium located in Bisbee, Arizona. The ballpark was recently home to the Tucson Saguaros of the Pecos League and the Bisbee-Douglas Copper Kings of the independent Arizona–Mexico League The Stadium was built in ...
, a
baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each, taking turns batting and fielding. The game occurs over the course of several plays, with each play generally beginning when a player on the fielding t ...
stadium built in 1909, has housed a number of professional teams and may be baseball's oldest park still in use. File:Cochise_County_courthouse,_Bisbee,_Arizona.jpg, Cochise County Courthouse File:CopperQueenMineTour.jpg, Copper Queen Mine Tour File:BisbeeMiningandHistoricalMuseum.jpg, Bisbee Mining & Historical Museum File:The Lavender Pit, Bisbee, AZ.jpg, The Lavender Pit File:Copper Queen Hotel, Bisbee AZ.jpg, Copper Queen Hotel File:Evergreen Cemetery Bisbee.jpg, Evergreen Cemetery File:Bisbee, Arizona 1990.jpg, Downtown Bisbee, 1990 File:Bisbee SW03.jpg, Copper Man statue File:Bisbee in the snow.jpg, A view of Bisbee, Arizona after a heavy snowfall in February 2021


Sports

Bisbee joined with Clifton in forming a
cricket Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of eleven players on a field at the centre of which is a pitch with a wicket at each end, each comprising two bails balanced on three stumps. The batting side scores runs by str ...
team that travelled to
Santa Monica, California Santa Monica (; Spanish: ''Santa Mónica'') is a city in Los Angeles County, situated along Santa Monica Bay on California's South Coast. Santa Monica's 2020 U.S. Census population was 93,076. Santa Monica is a popular resort town, owing t ...
, in 1908 to play the Santa Monica Cricket Club in two games overlooking the Pacific Ocean on the grounds of the Polo Field. The miners lost both cricket games. ''The Copper Echo'' reported that Bennie, the general manager of the Shannon Company Copper Mine, was the miners' best cricketer. Bisbee was home to a minor league baseball franchise. The
Bisbee Bees The Bisbee Bees were a Minor League Baseball team that represented Bisbee, Arizona from 1928 to 1941. The Bisbee Bees played as members of the Arizona State League (1928–1930) and Arizona–Texas League (1931–1932, 1937–1941). The Bees wer ...
played as members of the
Arizona State League The Arizona State League was a minor league baseball league that existed from 1928 to 1930. It operated as a six–team Class D-level league, and consisted of teams based in Arizona and Texas, evolving into the Arizona-Texas League in 1931. His ...
and Arizona-Texas League.


Government

Bisbee is governed via the mayor-council system. The city council consists of six members who are elected from three wards, each ward elects two members. The mayor is elected in a direct citywide vote. In 2013, the city council received public notoriety when it proposed same-sex
civil union A civil union (also known as a civil partnership) is a legally recognized arrangement similar to marriage, created primarily as a means to provide recognition in law for same-sex couples. Civil unions grant some or all of the rights of marriage ...
s and shortly after became the first municipality in
Arizona Arizona ( ; nv, Hoozdo Hahoodzo ; ood, Alĭ ṣonak ) is a state in the Southwestern United States. It is the 6th largest and the 14th most populous of the 50 states. Its capital and largest city is Phoenix. Arizona is part of the Fou ...
to pass a civil union law. The state's Attorney General,
Tom Horne Thomas Charles Horne (born March 28, 1945) is an American attorney, politician, and Republican activist who served as the 25th Attorney General of Arizona from 2011 to 2015. Horne lost to Mark Brnovich in the Republican primary for Attorney Gene ...
, threatened to sue, but decided against it after Bisbee amended the ordinance; the civil union ordinance came into effect July 5, 2013. "Bisbee was the first in Arizona to approve civil unions, with
Tucson , "(at the) base of the black ill , nicknames = "The Old Pueblo", "Optics Valley", "America's biggest small town" , image_map = , mapsize = 260px , map_caption = Interactive map ...
,
Jerome Jerome (; la, Eusebius Sophronius Hieronymus; grc-gre, Εὐσέβιος Σωφρόνιος Ἱερώνυμος; – 30 September 420), also known as Jerome of Stridon, was a Christian priest, confessor, theologian, and historian; he is co ...
and Clarkdale following."


Infrastructure


Transportation

The City of Bisbee administers the Bisbee Bus System which is in fact operated by the City of Douglas under contract, with regularly scheduled services from Monday through Saturday within Bisbee and to Naco; One-way fare is $1; The City of Douglas also operates the Cochise Connection, with regular shuttle services between
Douglas Douglas may refer to: People * Douglas (given name) * Douglas (surname) Animals * Douglas (parrot), macaw that starred as the parrot ''Rosalinda'' in Pippi Longstocking *Douglas the camel, a camel in the Confederate Army in the American Civi ...
, Bisbee, and
Sierra Vista Sierra Vista is a city in Cochise County, Arizona, United States. According to the 2020 Census, the population of the city is 45,308, and is the 27th most populous city in Arizona. The city is part of the Sierra Vista-Douglas Metropolitan Are ...
; One-way fare is $3–4.


Notable people

*
Buster Adams Elvin Clark "Buster" Adams (June 24, 1915 – September 1, 1990) was a major league outfielder for the St. Louis Cardinals and Philadelphia Phillies in and between and . Early life Adams was born in 1915 in Trinidad, Colorado. He graduated ...
, professional baseball player *
Betty Bays Betty Bays (née Schuller; April 1, 1931 – April 12, 1992) was an outfielder and catcher who played from 1950 to 1951 in the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League. She batted and threw right handed.All-American Girls Professional Baseball League * Ben Chase, NFL player *
Gib Dawson Gilbert Henry "Gib" Dawson (August 27, 1930 – July 30, 2005) was a former halfback at the University of Texas and in the National Football League (NFL). Career Dawson was born in Bisbee, Arizona and become a high school football star in Dougl ...
, NFL player * James Douglas, Canadian metallurgist and founder of the
Copper Queen Mine The Copper Queen Mine was a copper mine in Cochise County, Arizona, United States. Its development led to the growth of the surrounding town of Bisbee in the 1880s. Its orebody ran 23% copper, an extraordinarily high grade. It was acquired by Ph ...
*
Lewis Williams Douglas Lewis Williams Douglas (July 2, 1894March 7, 1974) was an American politician, diplomat, businessman and academic. Early life and education Douglas was the son of James Douglas, Jr., a mining executive employed by the Phelps Dodge Company, and ...
(1894–1974), politician, businessman diplomat and academic * M. J. Frankovich,
UCLA The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) is a public land-grant research university in Los Angeles, California. UCLA's academic roots were established in 1881 as a teachers college then known as the southern branch of the California ...
quarterback, movie producer (''
The Shootist ''The Shootist'' is a 1976 American Western film directed by Don Siegel and based on Glendon Swarthout's 1975 novel of the same name.Swarthout, Glendon (1975). ''The Shootist'', New York, New York: Doubleday. It is John Wayne's final film ro ...
'', '' Cactus Flower)'' * Jess Hartley, author, blogger and game designer for
White Wolf Games White Wolf Publishing was an American roleplaying game and book publisher. The company was founded in 1991 as a merger between Lion Rampant
*
Earl Hindman Earl John Hindman (; October 20, 1942  – December 29, 2003) was an American actor, best known for his role as the kindly unseen neighbor Wilson W. Wilson, Jr. on the television sitcom ''Home Improvement'' (1991–99). Early years Hin ...
, actor, best known for portraying Wilson W. Wilson Jr. on the sitcom ''
Home Improvement The concept of home improvement, home renovation, or remodeling is the process of renovating or making additions to one's home. Home improvement can consist of projects that upgrade an existing home interior (such as electrical and plumbing), ...
'', was born in Bisbee in 1942 * J. A. Jance, author * Jake LaMotta ("The Raging Bull"), former middleweight prizefighting champion, made Bisbee one of his homes in retirement * Clarence Maddern, professional baseball player ca. 1946–1951 * James F. McNulty Jr. (1925–2009), member of the U.S. House of Representatives *
William Milam William Bryant Milam (born July 24, 1936) is an American diplomat, and is Senior Policy Scholar at the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars in Washington, D.C. Life Born in Bisbee, Arizona, Milam grew up in Sacramento, California and ...
, diplomat and former US Ambassador to
Pakistan Pakistan ( ur, ), officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan ( ur, , label=none), is a country in South Asia. It is the world's fifth-most populous country, with a population of almost 243 million people, and has the world's second-lar ...
and
Bangladesh Bangladesh (}, ), officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh, is a country in South Asia. It is the eighth-most populous country in the world, with a population exceeding 165 million people in an area of . Bangladesh is among the mos ...
* Paul Newman, Corporation Commissioner, former state representative, former Cochise County Supervisor * Richard Shelton, author * William P. Sims, Arizona state senator *
Doug Stanhope Doug Stanhope (born March 25, 1967) is an American stand-up comedian, author, political activist and podcast host. His stand-up material favors caustic and often obscene observations of life in the style of Bill Hicks and Bill Burr, which he del ...
, comedian and writer *
Betsy Thornton Betsy Thornton is a contemporary American writer of mystery fiction novels set in the Southwestern United States. Biography Thornton was born in Wilmington, North Carolina, United States, the oldest of four children born to Dr. Mary Elizabet ...
, writer * Dawson Trotman, (1906–1956) Founder of The Navigators Born in Bisbee *
Ken Westerfield Kenneth Ray Westerfield is a pioneering Frisbee disc player. He is a Hall of Fame inductee in freestyle, ultimate and disc golf, and was also voted top men's player in the 1970-75 Decade Awards. Westerfield produced numerous tournaments, wor ...
, disc sports ( Frisbee) pioneer, hall of fame, showman, promoter *
Jack Williamson John Stewart Williamson (April 29, 1908 – November 10, 2006), who wrote as Jack Williamson, was an American science fiction writer, often called the "Dean of Science Fiction". He is also credited with one of the first uses of the term '' gen ...
, science-fiction writer, born 1908, in Bisbee * Peter Young, artist


In popular culture


Film

* The 2018 documentary ''Bisbee '17'' chronicled the
Bisbee Deportation The Bisbee Deportation was the illegal kidnapping and deportation of about 1,300 striking mine workers, their supporters, and citizen bystanders by 2,000 members of a deputized posse, who arrested them beginning on July 12, 1917, in Bisbee, A ...
on the 100th anniversary of the incident. * In ''3:10 to Yuma'' (1957), the gang stops in Bisbee to meet and mislead the marshal. * In L.A. Confidential, Lynn Bracken (played by
Kim Basinger Kimila Ann Basinger ( ; born December 8, 1953) is an American actress and former fashion model. She has garnered acclaim for her work in film and television, for which she has received various accolades including an Academy Award, a Golden Glo ...
) is from Bisbee, as revealed by the hand-embroidered cushion in her bedroom. * In the 1993 film "Tombstone", a Cowboy watching a man juggle says, "Professor Gillman? Oh, I saw him in Bisbee. He catches stuff." * In season 1 episode 6 of '' Supernatural'', Dean claims to be a detective from Bisbee.


Video Game

* The fictional town of Paradise, Arizona from the 2003 video game
Postal 2 ''Postal 2'' is a 2003 first-person shooter developed by Running with Scissors. It is the sequel to the 1997 game '' Postal'' and was released for Microsoft Windows in April 2003, macOS in April 2004 and Linux in April 2005. ''Postal 2'', as wel ...
is based on Bisbee.


See also

* Arizona Cactus Botanical Garden * Bisbee-Douglas International Airport *
Bisbee Riot The Bisbee Riot, or the Battle of Brewery Gulch, occurred on July 3, 1919, between the black Buffalo Soldiers of the 10th Cavalry and members of local police forces in Bisbee, Arizona. Following a confrontation between a military policeman ...
* List of historic properties in Bisbee, Arizona * Southeastern Arizona Bird Observatory * * Warren–Bisbee Railway


References


Further reading

* Martinelli, Phylis Cancilla. ''Undermining Race: Ethnic Identities in Arizona Copper Camps, 1880–1920'' (Tucson: University of Arizona Press, 2009). xii, 225 pp. * Graeme, R.W., 1987, "Bisbee, Arizona's Dowager Queen of Mining Camps; A Look at Her First 50 Years", in ''History of Mining in Arizona'', vol. 1. Full text


External links

* * {{Authority control Bisbee, Arizona, 1880 establishments in Arizona Territory Artist colonies Cities in Arizona Cities in Cochise County, Arizona Cochise County conflict Company towns in Arizona County seats in Arizona Geological type localities Industrial Workers of the World in Arizona Mining communities in Arizona Populated places established in 1880