Sundown towns are all white cities, towns or neighborhoods that still practice racial segregation by excluding non-white people, usually through extreme violence or intimidation. Sundown Town History Coalition for an Anti-Racist Glendale After being stopped by a sheriff while on vacation with his family, the sheriff asked Rons dad where he got the car. Scottish investors financed the building of a narrow gauge railway from Clifton to Lordsburg, New Mexico. The public schools are innovative and have won national awards. In 1881 and 1882, when the Arizona Copper Company was formed at Clifton-Morenci, an influx of Scottish capital financed the building of a narrow-gauge railway from Clifton to Lordsburg, New Mexico, to meet the Southern Pacific line. In 1913, Duncan was described by a map book as a place where almost every level acre is under cultivation, thickets of cottonwood trees shelter old farmhouses and ranches, and cattle and horses seem to outnumber people. Its all still true. But though that message went out to all Americans, it was really meant only for white Americans. Arizona north of the Gila River was taken by the United States under the terms of the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo at the end of the war. As a result, black soldiers made good use of the Mother Road. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 91.3 males. The Simpson Hotel has a wooden toy pony in a first-floor window. The website is also a very good source for knowledge about the region. Living in Safford offers residents a sparse suburban feel and most residents own their homes. California cities grapple with racist history of sundown towns Angie Crouch reports for NBC4 News at 5 p.m. on Oct. 12, 2020. The most accessible viewing station, at Bonita Creek, is a lovely 55-mile drive from Duncan. Location of Duncan in Greenlee County, Arizona, Last edited on 10 February 2023, at 23:59, "Geographic Identifiers: 2010 Demographic Profile Data (G001): Duncan town, Arizona", "US Gazetteer files: 2010, 2000, and 1990", National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Duncan,_Arizona&oldid=1138676476, Source: National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, This page was last edited on 10 February 2023, at 23:59. It was assumed the West was more liberated than the South, but thanks to the enormity of the American Wests expanses, it in some ways was even more dangerous. Town Hall A chauffeurs hat. Alan Hjorth drops in to visit; he and his wife moved from Utah because her family is from here, and now, they love their town. Some faced actual instances of violence or were arrested by local police, according to Farley. After 16 hours, at least 300 people had died, 35 blocks of the Greenwood District had burned to the ground, and more than 10,000 black residents had been left homeless. Peoples of the Upper Gila River from Pre-History to the Present. Report to the President: Japanese-American Internment Sites Preservation. So he never turned away any customerseven those who couldnt afford to pay. Today, Route 66 has surrendered to a series of bypasses, causeways, and highways, but the path it traced is still troubled: American Owned signs line the old Route 66; they are code for Not Owned by Immigrants. In Noel, Missouri, Somali immigrants say they are not welcome at Kathys Kountry Kitchen, where even now servers wear T-shirts reading, I got caught eating at the KKK. Stories like these are why the rosy hue of Route 66 nostalgia leaves a bitter chill in the souls of black people. Gila Box Riparian National Conservation Area. A city at the center of several natural attractions, Safford is a haven for outdoor exploration and activities. [4] U.S. Route 70 passes through downtown, leading west 39 miles (63km) to Safford, Arizona, and southeast 35 miles (56km) to Lordsburg, New Mexico, and Interstate 10. History and Social Justice Website Copyright 2023, Using Lies My Teacher Told Me and Teaching What Really Happened, Resources for Teaching with Lies My Teacher Told Me, Teachers Corner: Teaching with Lies My Teacher Told Me, Contact Jim Loewen to Speak to Your Group, Causing Change With Lies My Teacher Told Me, Works Inspired or Influenced by Lies My Teacher Told Me, Useful Quotations about History and Social Justice, Native American Issues, Including the Explorers, Teaching Slavery, the Civil War, and Reconstruction, Civil Rights Movement to Modern Times: c. 1945 Now, Alphabetical Map of Sundown Towns by State, How to Research and Teach About Sundown Towns, Using Research Information to Help a Sundown Town Overcome Its Past, Loewens Work on Standardized Testing Used by Others, Embarrassing Questions about Standardized Tests. If you were black and didnt have this information, how would you know where to go? High Desert RV Park, High Street, 928-359-3030 Nine Rail RV Camp, Highway 75, 928-359-9107 Stephens RV Park, Madison Street off Highway 70, 928-359-2113. Duncan is a fine rural setting for retirement, starting a small business or raising a family. A small donation would help us keep this available to all. Plus, the desolation of Route 66s stretches left black motorists particularly exposed. In his book, Loewen profiles three Indiana towns; Elwood, Huntington and Martinsville. Duncan belongs to the Gila, the storied river of the west, the ageless natural highway whose passage through the mountain and desert southwest has served humankind since At that time, the town was located on the north bank of the Gila. Minden's "sundowner" siren under scrutiny again In a country that desperately, fitfully, tries to be color-blind, even the first black president has not been able to stop the bleeding, let alone heal the old and deep wounds of white supremacy and systemic racism. Sadly, today theres no physical evidence that Murrays Dude Ranch ever existed. The community is home for members of both the Akimel Oodham (Pima) and the Pee-Posh (Maricopa) tribes. Courtesy Gilpin County Historical Society. Duncan Valley Rural Fire District Call 911 for emergencies. JAVASCRIPT IS DISABLED. Arizona Highways 2039 W Lewis Ave, Phoenix, AZ 85009 602.712.2200. Acreage is also planted to kenaf, an alternative fiber for making paper, and vernonia, an oilseed. "Marcos de Niza". He remembers Martinsville, Indiana as an unfriendly place. Sundown Town Resolutions have three key elements: a city must acknowledge . Take, for example, one violent night in 1906 in Springfield, Missouri, which would soon become the birthplace of Route 66; though the road starts out in Chicago, the route was officially designated as 66 in Springfield. DUNCAN, Ariz. - Evacuations are underway in a town in eastern Arizona after heavy rain flooded a river. Budgets, Annual Financial Statements and Independent Auditors Report, Residential/Business Water and Sewer Service, Irrigation, Livestock and Construction Water. My friend Julie and I walk into Hildas Kitchen & Meat Market, where Hilda Goekings smile is as wide as a rainbow. Click HERE to see some of the interesting places not far from Duncan. The Gila River crested at a record-breaking 30.28 feet on Sunday night near Virden, New Mexico, a town just 7 miles from Duncan, Arizona. Given this mass denial, its not surprising that Route 66 is weighted down with nostalgia, suffocating from an idealized past that never was. The term "sundown town" goes back to segregation-era signs that said "colored people" had to leave by sundown. Mining for gold and silver began in 1864, followed by copper in 1872. According to AP News, these towns are inhabited by a majority of white people who insist that "Black and white residents get along really well." The name derives from the posted and verbal warnings issued to Blacks that although they might be allowed to work or travel in a community . sundown. Just down the street is the Henrie Brothers Bakery, with a classic round clock on an ornate pole surrounded by bright blooms, like Mayberry at its best. A sundown town is not just a place where something racist happened. It was not uncommon for Black motorists passing through these communities to be followed by police or local residents to the city limits. In 1999, Dr. Loewen began a public database of sundown towns identified through research by himself and other contributors, a project he continued to grow until his death in the summer of 2021. The rise of sundown towns made it difficult and dangerous for Blacks to travel long distances by car. Willcox is home to the Cowboy Hall of Fame, the Chiricahua Regional Museum and Research Center, and the Rex Allen Museum. Between the 1890s and the 1940s, Sundown Towns became a popular trend in Northern states. Gila River Indian Reservation was established in 1859, and the Gila River Indian Community formally established by Congress in 1939. Sundown Towns Black People Should Be Aware Of - Black America Web Duncan - History and Social Justice Home Arizona Duncan James W. Loewen (1942-2021) We mourn the loss of our friend and colleague and remain committed to the work he began. You can also look for cities 4 hours from Duncan, SC (or 3 hours or 2 hours or 1 hour) or just search in general for all of the cities close to Duncan, SC. Cambridge University Press. Guests include Jim Hunt, president of the National League of Cities . Not when a struggle for social mobility continues to take a debilitating toll on black Americans. Booker T. Washington called it Black Wall Street, and it was arguably the wealthiest black neighborhood in the South. [2] In 2018 the estimated population was 789. "At approximately 4:30 this morning, the water levels of the Gila River reached a point where water began to spill into portions of Duncan," the Duncan Valley Rural Fire District said. ullstein bild/Getty Images The Chicago suburb of Cicero was one of the most infamous sundown towns to ever exist in Illinois. The Greenwood DistrictBlack Wall Streetwas eventually rebuilt; now the John Hope Franklin Reconciliation Park offers a space for healing, with a 25-foot memorial and three 16-foot granite sculptures honoring the dead. The town of Duncan was actually established in 1883 with the coming of the railroad, but the early settlement here was started in the 1870s along the Gila River on an important stage & freight route. "Arizona is an ideal place for developing heat- and drought- tolerant varieties because of its high daily maximum temperature and low rainfall from late spring to early fall when rice can be planted.". You might get some looks, but Arizona is probably the most laid back state, so it's not prudent to be rude to people out here based on color. It prospered right into the 1970s, when the new Interstate 10 to the south diverted commercial traffic, contributing to a rising trucking industry. Do you put hand warmers for camping inside a camping tent? Duncan, Arizona 85534, Hours: Your email address will not be published. Horses and cattle were owned by a lot of people in Compton. According archeologists the specimens of pottery and stone implements found in the area of Greenlee County, where the town of Duncan is located indicate that the members of the Anasazi were among the first people to inhabit the region. Check your inbox or spam folder to confirm your subscription. A growing community, with old generations and new ones coming together, Budgets, Annual Financial Statements and Independent Auditors Report, Residential/Business Water and Sewer Service, Irrigation, Livestock and Construction Water. document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); This site was created by Matt Cheney, revised by OddBird, copyrighted by James W. Loewen and heirs (Nick Loewen), and is maintained by Phil Huckelberry and Stephen Berrey. There are 10 cities in Arizona that stand out for their crime rates, so let's take a look at them and see which cities you should avoid. Sundown Towns - BlackPast.org Americas favorite highway usually evokes kitschy nostalgia. Still, the property sat empty for more than a decade after that purchase. Today, they still play a critical role in U.S. history, revealing the untold story of black travel. His family quarried the native sandstone on their homestead land to build the filling station, which bordered their property at the intersection of Route 66 and Pottawatomie Road. Safford averages 1 inches of snow per year. "Sundown suburbs" could be even larger, such as Glendale, a suburb of Los Angeles; Levittown, on Long Island; and Warren, a Detroit suburb. The site of contemporary Duncan had its origin sometime in the 1870s. It was indeed all White for a while. From hot springs to sand dunes to rock fields, Safford brings together many features that make Arizona famous in one place, creating the perfect family vacation destination. The means to announce and enforce racial restrictions varied across the country. With more hope than resources, Dust Bowl migrants and others escaping poverty caused by the Great Depression could motor west on Route 66 in search of a better life. At that time, the town was located on the north bank of the Gila. The Negro Motorist Green Book, 1940, Victor Hugo Green. Duncan - History and Social Justice Leafy greens, cabbage, dates, melons, lemons, oranges, apples, potatoes and tomatoes are just some foods harvested from Arizonas nourishing soil. Someone from Petticoat Junction could walk in at any moment. Valley residents are using the day to educate others about the history of African Americans in Arizona. The Duncan Valley Rural Fire District declared the "mass evacuation of flood prone areas in Duncan" early Monday, listing more than a dozen streets in the 712-person town as subject to the order . In response, Victor H. Green, a postal worker from Harlem, compiled the Negro Motorist Green Book, a guide to accommodations that served Black travelers.

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