Tohono Chul Park
Encyclopedia
Tohono Chul Park is a 49 acres (198,296.1 m²) nature preserve in Casas Adobes
, a suburb of Tucson, Arizona
, United States.
to the property that would become Tohono Chul Park. Groves of citrus trees remained even after Samuel W. Seaney subdivided the area in 1931, calling it Catalina Citrus Estates.
Maurice Reid, acting as realtor for Seaney, sold the future site of Tohono Chul Park to John T. deBlois Wack in 1937. Mr. Wack was an avid polo player from Santa Barbara
and a friend of the Reverend George Ferguson, pastor of the newly consecrated St. Philip’s in the Foothills Episcopal Church. Following an afternoon spent drinking mint julep
s, the Fergusons and young Gene Reid (future namesake of Tucson’s Reid Park Zoo
) escorted the Wacks around the property. The Wacks purchased an 80 acres (323,748.8 m²) parcel for $16,000 – or $200 an acre (4,000 m²).
Later in 1937, a Santa Fe style house was constructed. The house still stands today as the Exhibit House.
The Wacks actually spent little time in Tucson. Gene Reid and Mr. Wack’s father, Henry Wellington Wack, founder and first editor of Field and Stream, acted as house-sitters. By the end of World War II the home had exchanged hands several times. Clifford Goldsmith, creator of the old-time radio series Henry Aldrich
, rented the home at one point.
The son of a Texas oilman, Richard Wilson is a geologist, trained at Yale
and Stanford. With his wife Jean, he came to Tucson in 1962 to teach at the University of Arizona
. The Wilsons never occupied the Wacks' old home, but instead offered it to a succession of non-profit organizations as a halfway house or youth residence. It was during the 1970s that the couple was approached several times by developers seeking to purchase the land for commercial development. The couple always refused. In fact, when Pima County condemned a strip along the southern boundary of the property in order to widen Ina Road, Richard Wilson demanded that the county move every saguaro
and replant it on their adjacent property.
In 1979 Jean Wilson opened the Haunted Bookshop on Northern Avenue along the eastern edge of the site. Once the bookshop was up and running, the Wilsons began planning trails behind the building and marking the names of the native Sonoran Desert
plants with tags. In 1980 they received a citation from the Tucson Audubon Society for saving the desert greenspace and opening it to the public.
The Wilsons then established the non-profit Foundation for the Preservation of Natural Areas in the early 1980s. The purpose of the organization was to promote the conservation of desert regions and to educate the public about arid lands and responsible water use. Over time, demonstration gardens, a re-circulating stream, a geological re-creation of the Santa Catalina Mountains, ramadas and areas with special plantings of arid-adapted vegetation were developed. The Wacks’ original 1937 stuccoed adobe house was carefully renovated in 1984 to provide space for changing art exhibits, a museum shop and administrative offices.
Tohono Chul Park was formally dedicated as a 37 acres (149,733.8 m²) desert preserve on April 19, 1985. The Wilsons deeded the property to the non-profit foundation, Tohono Chul Park, Inc., in 1988. An 11 acres (44,515.5 m²) parcel abutting the property on the north was slated for higher density rezoning and offered for sale. With the help of longtime park members, Tohono Chul was able to acquire the property. The final acre (4,000 m²) was added in 1997 with the Haunted Bookshop closed and the land it occupied was donated to Tohono Chul Park.
Casas Adobes, Arizona
Casas Adobes is a census-designated place located in the northern metropolitan area of Tucson, Arizona . The population was 54,011 at the 2000 census...
, a suburb of Tucson, Arizona
Tucson, Arizona
Tucson is a city in and the county seat of Pima County, Arizona, United States. The city is located 118 miles southeast of Phoenix and 60 miles north of the U.S.-Mexico border. The 2010 United States Census puts the city's population at 520,116 with a metropolitan area population at 1,020,200...
, United States.
Park History
In the 1920s, the entire northwest section of Tucson was considered ideal for growing frost-sensitive citrus and date palms. Maurice Reid owned property from Orange Grove Road to Ina Road and planted it with groves of citrus trees. He introduced black date palms and grapefruitGrapefruit
The grapefruit , is a subtropical citrus tree known for its sour fruit, an 18th-century hybrid first bred in Barbados. When found, it was named the "forbidden fruit"; it has also been misidentified with the pomelo or shaddock , one of the parents of this hybrid, the other being sweet orange The...
to the property that would become Tohono Chul Park. Groves of citrus trees remained even after Samuel W. Seaney subdivided the area in 1931, calling it Catalina Citrus Estates.
Maurice Reid, acting as realtor for Seaney, sold the future site of Tohono Chul Park to John T. deBlois Wack in 1937. Mr. Wack was an avid polo player from Santa Barbara
Santa Barbara, California
Santa Barbara is the county seat of Santa Barbara County, California, United States. Situated on an east-west trending section of coastline, the longest such section on the West Coast of the United States, the city lies between the steeply-rising Santa Ynez Mountains and the Pacific Ocean...
and a friend of the Reverend George Ferguson, pastor of the newly consecrated St. Philip’s in the Foothills Episcopal Church. Following an afternoon spent drinking mint julep
Mint Julep
The mint julep is a mixed alcoholic drink, or cocktail, associated with the cuisine of the Southern United States.- Preparation :A mint julep is traditionally made with four ingredients: mint leaf, bourbon, sugar, and water. Traditionally, spearmint is the mint of choiceused in Southern states, and...
s, the Fergusons and young Gene Reid (future namesake of Tucson’s Reid Park Zoo
Reid Park Zoo
The Reid Park Zoo, founded in 1967, is a city-owned and operated non-profit zoo in Tucson, Arizona. The zoo features more than 500 animals. It was unofficially established in 1965 by Gene Reid, the parks and recreation director at the time.-Exhibits:...
) escorted the Wacks around the property. The Wacks purchased an 80 acres (323,748.8 m²) parcel for $16,000 – or $200 an acre (4,000 m²).
Later in 1937, a Santa Fe style house was constructed. The house still stands today as the Exhibit House.
The Wacks actually spent little time in Tucson. Gene Reid and Mr. Wack’s father, Henry Wellington Wack, founder and first editor of Field and Stream, acted as house-sitters. By the end of World War II the home had exchanged hands several times. Clifford Goldsmith, creator of the old-time radio series Henry Aldrich
Henry Aldrich
Henry Aldrich was an English theologian and philosopher.-Life:Aldrich was educated at Westminster School under Dr Richard Busby. In 1662, he entered Christ Church, Oxford, and in 1689 was made Dean in succession to the Roman Catholic John Massey, who had fled to the Continent. In 1692, he...
, rented the home at one point.
The Foundations of Tohono Chul Park
In 1966, a couple named Richard and Jean Wilson started piecing together patches of the desert that would form the core of Tohono Chul Park, ultimately owning 37 acres (149,733.8 m²) of the Wacks' original 80 acres (323,748.8 m²).The son of a Texas oilman, Richard Wilson is a geologist, trained at Yale
YALE
RapidMiner, formerly YALE , is an environment for machine learning, data mining, text mining, predictive analytics, and business analytics. It is used for research, education, training, rapid prototyping, application development, and industrial applications...
and Stanford. With his wife Jean, he came to Tucson in 1962 to teach at the University of Arizona
University of Arizona
The University of Arizona is a land-grant and space-grant public institution of higher education and research located in Tucson, Arizona, United States. The University of Arizona was the first university in the state of Arizona, founded in 1885...
. The Wilsons never occupied the Wacks' old home, but instead offered it to a succession of non-profit organizations as a halfway house or youth residence. It was during the 1970s that the couple was approached several times by developers seeking to purchase the land for commercial development. The couple always refused. In fact, when Pima County condemned a strip along the southern boundary of the property in order to widen Ina Road, Richard Wilson demanded that the county move every saguaro
Saguaro
The saguaro is a large, tree-sized cactus species in the monotypic genus Carnegiea. It is native to the Sonoran Desert in the U.S. state of Arizona, the Mexican state of Sonora, a small part of Baja California in the San Felipe Desert and an extremely small area of California, U.S...
and replant it on their adjacent property.
Sonoran Desert
The Sonoran Desert is a North American desert which straddles part of the United States-Mexico border and covers large parts of the U.S. states of Arizona and California and the northwest Mexican states of Sonora, Baja California, and Baja California Sur. It is one of the largest and hottest...
plants with tags. In 1980 they received a citation from the Tucson Audubon Society for saving the desert greenspace and opening it to the public.
The Wilsons then established the non-profit Foundation for the Preservation of Natural Areas in the early 1980s. The purpose of the organization was to promote the conservation of desert regions and to educate the public about arid lands and responsible water use. Over time, demonstration gardens, a re-circulating stream, a geological re-creation of the Santa Catalina Mountains, ramadas and areas with special plantings of arid-adapted vegetation were developed. The Wacks’ original 1937 stuccoed adobe house was carefully renovated in 1984 to provide space for changing art exhibits, a museum shop and administrative offices.
Tohono Chul Park was formally dedicated as a 37 acres (149,733.8 m²) desert preserve on April 19, 1985. The Wilsons deeded the property to the non-profit foundation, Tohono Chul Park, Inc., in 1988. An 11 acres (44,515.5 m²) parcel abutting the property on the north was slated for higher density rezoning and offered for sale. With the help of longtime park members, Tohono Chul was able to acquire the property. The final acre (4,000 m²) was added in 1997 with the Haunted Bookshop closed and the land it occupied was donated to Tohono Chul Park.