Oklahoma, Arizona?
The Rodgers & Hammerstein musical “Oklahoma!” was so popular, it was made into a movie. But guess where the 1955 blockbuster was filmed? Not, as we might expect, in the Sooner State, but rather in the beautiful, wide-open spaces of southern Arizona’s San Rafael Valley. Mostly shot in and around Nogales, the musical’s famous opening number, as well as the song “Surrey with the Fringe on Top,” were filmed at the historic Canoa Ranch in Green Valley.
Yippee-ki-yay, Arizona!
How about the oldest rodeo in the country? Right smack-dab in Prescott, pard-ner. July 4, 1888, marks the birthday of professional rodeo in the U.S., when a group of Prescott merchants and professional businessmen organized the first formalized “cowboy tournament” and offered cash prizes. The tradition grew to many other Arizona cities and towns. In fact, when Payson hosts its annual rodeo this August, it will extend its record as the World’s Oldest Continuous Rodeo. Steeped in tradition, the Payson event has been dubbed one of the “best small-town rodeos in the world.”
Madame Governors
When it comes to the number of women who have served as governors in the U.S., Arizona can claim bragging rights above all the other states—it’s had five. Beginning with the election of Rose Mofford in 1988, the state has since placed in office four other women governors: Jane Dee Hull in 1997, Janet Napolitano in 2003, Jan Brewer in 2009, and Arizona’s current governor Katie Hobbs, who was elected to office just this past January.
Yabba-dabba-do!
Williams happens to be home to one of the quirkiest recreational theme parks in the country. Bedrock City pays homage to the 1960s and ’70s hit animated cartoon, “The Flintstones.” Over many decades, the 30-acre site became a campy draw for locals and visitors looking for a quirkier, more offbeat destination.
Replete with ersatz, carved stone dwellings, a jail, a post office and Fred’s Diner, which served up such campy fare as Brontosaurus Burgers and a Chickasaurus dinner, the site remained a popular draw until its sale in 2019. Today, under new ownership and incorporated into the nearby Raptor Ranch, Bedrock City is once again attracting Fred and Barney aficionados from around the globe.
The MacDrive
Nowadays, drive-through everything is the order of retail business, and we take it for granted. But in 1975, it so happens that the first-ever McDonald’s drive-through opened its car service lane in Sierra Vista. According to a McDonald’s Corporation spokesperson, regulations at nearby U.S. Army Fort Huachuca wouldn’t allow soldiers to go into a restaurant off-post while wearing their fatigues. But they could drive through. So on January 24, 1975, David Rich opened the first McDonald’s of its kind, with a menu board, Ronald McDonald statue with a speaker and microphone, and a sliding glass window. Here’s the kicker: The fast-food joint is located on Fry Boulevard!
It’s monumental
Arizona is distinguished by the fact that it’s home to 18 U.S. national monuments, tied with California for the most in the country. As outlined by the National Park Service, Arizona offers a remarkable set of sites that contain objects of historic, prehistoric or scientific interest. Ancient cliff dwellings, archeological ruins and natural areas with unusual landscapes and rock formations are just a few of the wonders awaiting exploration.
Suffragette
Arizona is often regarded as one of the most conservative states in the union, but it may surprise some to learn that Arizona women won state suffrage eight years earlier than the rest of the country. In 1912, when the territory became a state, the Arizona suffrage movement wasted no time in pursuing voting rights for women. Just a few short months later, on November 5, 1912, women’s suffrage passed in the state. And, the following year, the voter registration books were opened to women.
