Canyon Diablo, Arizona
Encyclopedia
Canyon Diablo is a ghost town
on the Navajo Reservation in Coconino County
, Arizona
, United States
on the edge of the arroyo
Canyon Diablo
.
was the closest community to the crater when portions of the meteorite were removed. Consequently, the meteorite that struck the crater is officially called the "Canyon Diablo Meteorite."
The town originated about 1882, due to construction delays attributed to the Atlantic and Pacific Railroad
ordering the wrong span length railroad bridge across the canyon. The bridge story is that the original bridge when ordered was not of sufficient length to span Canyon Diablo, and this fact was only discovered once the bridge arrived on site from the manufacturer. Consequently for six months the transcontinental railroad ended at the lip of Canyon Diablo while another bridge was manufactured and shipped to the work site.
The original pillars the bridge was mounted on were excavated from the surrounding Kaibab limestone and shaped on site by Italian stonemasons. The ruins of the lodgings of the railroad workmen are on the west end of the bridge site. Despite the railroad ending at the edge of the canyon, work on the railroad route still progressed. Crews were sent ahead to survey the route, prepare the grade and bed, cut and prestage railroad ties and other supplies in advance of the iron rails that would accompany the trains once the canyon was spanned with the arrival of the new bridge. Work quickly progressed until the A&P crew linked up with the Southern Pacific Railroad crews at Needles, CA on August 9, 1883.
Originally a small mobile business community catering to the needs of railroad men, once the railroad stopped at the edge of the canyon this community quickly produced numerous saloons, brothel
s, dance hall
s, and gambling
houses, all of which remained open 24 hours a day. No lawmen
were employed by the community initially, so it quickly became a very dangerous place. Its population was mostly made up of railroad workers along with passing outlaw
s, gamblers, and prostitutes. The town was designed with two lines of buildings facing one another across the rock bed main street. The center street, however, was not named Main Street, but "Hell Street". It consisted of fourteen saloons, ten gambling houses, four brothels and two dance halls. Also located on this street were two eating counters, one grocery store
, and one dry goods store. Scattered about in the vicinity of downtown were large numbers of tents, shotgun house
s, and hastily thrown up shacks that served as local residences.
Within a short time the town boasted a population of 2,000 residents. A regular stagecoach
route from Flagstaff
to Canyon Diablo began running and was often the victim of robberies. Within its first year, the town received its first marshal
. He was sworn in at 3:00pm, and was being buried at 8:00pm that same night. Five more town marshals would follow, the longest lasting one month, and all were killed in the line of duty. A "Boot Hill
" cemetery sprouted up at the end of town, which in less than a decade had 35 graves, all of whom had been killed by way of violent death. The 36th grave was that of former trading post owner Herman Wolf, who died in 1899, the only one to have died a nonviolent death.
Herman Wolfe's trading post was located at "Wolfe's Crossing" on the Little Colorado River about 12 miles north of Leuppe, AZ and near a place called Tolchaco. Herman Wolfe died there and his body was transported to Canyon Diablo for burial. Currently Wolfe's grave is heavily monumented and the story is that after World War II a relative from Germany located his grave an installed the headstone and other improvements on the grave site.
Upon completion of the railroad bridge, the town quickly died. By 1903, the only thing remaining in the town was a Navajo
trading post
. Later on in the 20th century, when Route 66
passed within several miles of the town, a gas station and roadhouse called Two Guns sprang up, but it too was short-lived. What remains today at Canyon Diablo are a few building foundations, the grave marker and grave of Herman Wolf, and the ruins of the trading post.
Ghost town
A ghost town is an abandoned town or city. A town often becomes a ghost town because the economic activity that supported it has failed, or due to natural or human-caused disasters such as floods, government actions, uncontrolled lawlessness, war, or nuclear disasters...
on the Navajo Reservation in Coconino County
Coconino County, Arizona
-2010:Whereas according to the 2010 U.S. Census Bureau:*61.7% White*1.2% Black*27.3% Native American*1.4% Asian*0.1% Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander*3.1% Two or more races*5.2% Other races*13.5% Hispanic or Latino -2000:...
, Arizona
Arizona
Arizona ; is a state located in the southwestern region of the United States. It is also part of the western United States and the mountain west. The capital and largest city is Phoenix...
, United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
on the edge of the arroyo
Arroyo (creek)
An arroyo , a Spanish word translated as brook, and also called a wash is usually a dry creek or stream bed—gulch that temporarily or seasonally fills and flows after sufficient rain. Wadi is a similar term in Africa. In Spain, a rambla has a similar meaning to arroyo.-Types and processes:Arroyos...
Canyon Diablo
Canyon Diablo (canyon)
Canyon Diablo is a canyon north of Two Guns in Northern Arizona. It is located in the Navajo Indian Reservation.The canyon passes three miles west of Meteor Crater. The community of Canyon Diablo, Arizona on the edge of the canyon about 12 miles northwest of the crater was the closest community...
.
History
The town which is about 12 miles northwest of Meteor CraterMeteor Crater
Meteor Crater is a meteorite impact crater located approximately east of Flagstaff, near Winslow in the northern Arizona desert of the United States. Because the US Department of the Interior Division of Names commonly recognizes names of natural features derived from the nearest post office, the...
was the closest community to the crater when portions of the meteorite were removed. Consequently, the meteorite that struck the crater is officially called the "Canyon Diablo Meteorite."
The town originated about 1882, due to construction delays attributed to the Atlantic and Pacific Railroad
Atlantic and Pacific Railroad
The Atlantic and Pacific Railroad was a U.S. railroad that owned or operated two disjoint segments, one connecting St. Louis, Missouri with Tulsa, Oklahoma, and the other connecting Albuquerque, New Mexico with Southern California. It was incorporated by the U.S. Congress in 1866 as a...
ordering the wrong span length railroad bridge across the canyon. The bridge story is that the original bridge when ordered was not of sufficient length to span Canyon Diablo, and this fact was only discovered once the bridge arrived on site from the manufacturer. Consequently for six months the transcontinental railroad ended at the lip of Canyon Diablo while another bridge was manufactured and shipped to the work site.
The original pillars the bridge was mounted on were excavated from the surrounding Kaibab limestone and shaped on site by Italian stonemasons. The ruins of the lodgings of the railroad workmen are on the west end of the bridge site. Despite the railroad ending at the edge of the canyon, work on the railroad route still progressed. Crews were sent ahead to survey the route, prepare the grade and bed, cut and prestage railroad ties and other supplies in advance of the iron rails that would accompany the trains once the canyon was spanned with the arrival of the new bridge. Work quickly progressed until the A&P crew linked up with the Southern Pacific Railroad crews at Needles, CA on August 9, 1883.
Originally a small mobile business community catering to the needs of railroad men, once the railroad stopped at the edge of the canyon this community quickly produced numerous saloons, brothel
Brothel
Brothels are business establishments where patrons can engage in sexual activities with prostitutes. Brothels are known under a variety of names, including bordello, cathouse, knocking shop, whorehouse, strumpet house, sporting house, house of ill repute, house of prostitution, and bawdy house...
s, dance hall
Dance hall
Dance hall in its general meaning is a hall for dancing. From the earliest years of the twentieth century until the early 1960s, the dance hall was the popular forerunner of the discothèque or nightclub...
s, and gambling
Gambling
Gambling is the wagering of money or something of material value on an event with an uncertain outcome with the primary intent of winning additional money and/or material goods...
houses, all of which remained open 24 hours a day. No lawmen
Police officer
A police officer is a warranted employee of a police force...
were employed by the community initially, so it quickly became a very dangerous place. Its population was mostly made up of railroad workers along with passing outlaw
Outlaw
In historical legal systems, an outlaw is declared as outside the protection of the law. In pre-modern societies, this takes the burden of active prosecution of a criminal from the authorities. Instead, the criminal is withdrawn all legal protection, so that anyone is legally empowered to persecute...
s, gamblers, and prostitutes. The town was designed with two lines of buildings facing one another across the rock bed main street. The center street, however, was not named Main Street, but "Hell Street". It consisted of fourteen saloons, ten gambling houses, four brothels and two dance halls. Also located on this street were two eating counters, one grocery store
Grocery store
A grocery store is a store that retails food. A grocer, the owner of a grocery store, stocks different kinds of foods from assorted places and cultures, and sells these "groceries" to customers. Large grocery stores that stock products other than food, such as clothing or household items, are...
, and one dry goods store. Scattered about in the vicinity of downtown were large numbers of tents, shotgun house
Shotgun house
The shotgun house is a narrow rectangular domestic residence, usually no more than 12 feet wide, with doors at each end. It was the most popular style of house in the Southern United States from the end of the American Civil War , through the 1920s. Alternate names include shotgun shack,...
s, and hastily thrown up shacks that served as local residences.
Within a short time the town boasted a population of 2,000 residents. A regular stagecoach
Stagecoach
A stagecoach is a type of covered wagon for passengers and goods, strongly sprung and drawn by four horses, usually four-in-hand. Widely used before the introduction of railway transport, it made regular trips between stages or stations, which were places of rest provided for stagecoach travelers...
route from Flagstaff
Flagstaff, Arizona
Flagstaff is a city located in northern Arizona, in the southwestern United States. In 2010, the city's population was 65,870. The population of the Metropolitan Statistical Area was at 134,421 in 2010. It is the county seat of Coconino County...
to Canyon Diablo began running and was often the victim of robberies. Within its first year, the town received its first marshal
Marshal
Marshal , is a word used in several official titles of various branches of society. The word is an ancient loan word from Old French, cf...
. He was sworn in at 3:00pm, and was being buried at 8:00pm that same night. Five more town marshals would follow, the longest lasting one month, and all were killed in the line of duty. A "Boot Hill
Boot Hill
Boot Hill is the name for any number of cemeteries, chiefly in the American West. During the 19th century it was a common name for the burial grounds of gunfighters, or those who "died with their boots on" ....
" cemetery sprouted up at the end of town, which in less than a decade had 35 graves, all of whom had been killed by way of violent death. The 36th grave was that of former trading post owner Herman Wolf, who died in 1899, the only one to have died a nonviolent death.
Herman Wolfe's trading post was located at "Wolfe's Crossing" on the Little Colorado River about 12 miles north of Leuppe, AZ and near a place called Tolchaco. Herman Wolfe died there and his body was transported to Canyon Diablo for burial. Currently Wolfe's grave is heavily monumented and the story is that after World War II a relative from Germany located his grave an installed the headstone and other improvements on the grave site.
Upon completion of the railroad bridge, the town quickly died. By 1903, the only thing remaining in the town was a Navajo
Navajo people
The Navajo of the Southwestern United States are the largest single federally recognized tribe of the United States of America. The Navajo Nation has 300,048 enrolled tribal members. The Navajo Nation constitutes an independent governmental body which manages the Navajo Indian reservation in the...
trading post
Trading post
A trading post was a place or establishment in historic Northern America where the trading of goods took place. The preferred travel route to a trading post or between trading posts, was known as a trade route....
. Later on in the 20th century, when Route 66
U.S. Route 66
U.S. Route 66 was a highway within the U.S. Highway System. One of the original U.S. highways, Route 66 was established on November 11, 1926 -- with road signs erected the following year...
passed within several miles of the town, a gas station and roadhouse called Two Guns sprang up, but it too was short-lived. What remains today at Canyon Diablo are a few building foundations, the grave marker and grave of Herman Wolf, and the ruins of the trading post.