A COWBOY TOWN

Prescott Valley, Arizona, where I live, has only been an incorporated town since 1978.  36 is a pretty young age for a town in the Southwest.  For example, there is the much more well known town of Prescott, just up the road.

It will be celebrating its sesquicentennial this year, or 150th birthday. Actually that's stretching it a bit since it wasn't incorporated as a town until 1883, which is a mere 131 years ago.  But who's quibbling.

Back in the day, Prescott was a rough and ready town and it's most famous street was Montezuma, named for a Mexican Indian chief who never came within thousands of miles of it.  It was filled then with dozens of drinking establishments, which gave the street its nickname.

The Earps and Doc Holliday and many others drank and gambled here then.  The gambling has moved to a couple of Native American casinos on the east edge of town now but there are still plenty of places on "the Row" to wet one's whistle.

But if you're not of a mind to sip a potable, there are plenty of other places along the street to relieve you of your money, all with the Old West theme.

I'm not sure about the name on this next store.

A couple of businesses have a stern guardian outside their front doors.

And if all of this sightseeing has given you a sweet tooth attack . . .

You can find the occasional buskers, probably more often on weekends.

Finally just to bring you back to the present day there was this poster for an upcoming event.