Take a peek inside and learn the history behind some of these spots in and around Tucson.
- ÃÛÌÒÓ°ÏñAV
The first annual Tucson Meet Yourself welcomed 1,000 people to El Presidio Park in 1974. This year, the annual folklore festival is returning Oct. 13-15 at Jácome Plaza.Â
- Rick Wiley
Since 1939's "Arizona," Old Tucson Studios west of the Tucson Mountains has hosted nearly 300 productions. Nearly 40-percent of the historic wooden buildings burned to the ground in a devastating fire in 1995.
- Rick Wiley
For more than 60 years, Kitt Peak National Observatory has been the crown jewel of observatories in the southern United States, sitting atop the highest peak in the Quinlan Mountains southwest of Tucson.
- Rick Wiley
These archive photos follow transit strikes against Tucson Rapid Transit and Sun Tran in Tucson going back to 1958.
- Rick Wiley
The legendary band performed at the Tucson Community Center in June 1972.Â
- Rick Wiley
Pinal Air Park north of Tucson began its life as a 3.5-acre flight training base in World War II (Marana Army Air Field), to a contract flight school for the U.S. Air Force in the 50s (Marana Air Base) to numerous quasi-government and private air services in the 60s.
An IBM 650 computer (or "electronic brain") was installed in three parts in the University of Arizona Engineering Experiment Station in 1957 to solve research problems submitted by the UA, as well as government and private businesses.
Tucson was rocked by a series of bombings in 1968 at the Tucson homes of organized crime figures and a beauty salon.
In these throwback photos, sorority pledges and members meet during Rush Week at University of Arizona in 1968.
Notable news of past Septembers include: the surrender of Geronimo, the imposing of the draft for military service in the United States, the first Black Miss America and 9/11.
Riding the wave of songs like “Don’t Fear the Reaper†and “Godzilla†and a live album that sold 2 million copies, the group rode into Tucson in August 1979 for a concert at what was then called the Tucson Community Center.Â
These black and white aerial photos from the archives of the ÃÛÌÒÓ°ÏñAV and Tucson Citizen show the Old Pueblo in years past.
If you're a fan of "The Crown" on Netflix, you know of Queen Elizabeth's sister, Princess Margaret. She toured the United States for three weeks in 1965 with her husband, the Earl of Snowdon. An episode in Season 3 highlights the journey.
- Rick Wiley
If you're a fan of "The Crown" on Netflix, you know of Queen Elizabeth's sister, Princess Margaret. She toured the United States for three weeks in 1965 with her husband, the Earl of Snowdon. An episode in Season 3 highlights the journey.
- Johanna Eubank
Around 67,000 people attended the August 1977 concert at Arizona Stadium headlined by the famous rock band. The lineup also included Kenny Loggins, the Marshall Tucker Band and a local band called Arizona.
- Rick Wiley
Another round of photos scanned from the archives of the Tucson Citizen and ÃÛÌÒÓ°ÏñAV, covering Tucson people and places from the 1950s-80s.
- Rick Wiley
The Santa Cruz River was the lifeblood of Tucson for early Native Americans, the Spanish Conquistadores and early American settlers. It languished for years and became dry most of the year as the water table dropped.
- Rick Wiley
Photos of Tucson as far back as the 1870s the archives of the Tucson Citizen and ÃÛÌÒÓ°ÏñAV. Information for many of the photos was handwritten on the back of the prints or taken from stories in both newspapers.
- Rick Wiley
These archive photos follow a group that explored Peppersauce Cave in the Santa Catalina Mountains in Coronado National Forest in 1948.
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- Research by Johanna Eubank ÃÛÌÒÓ°ÏñAV
Big news in past Julys included the Bisbee Deportation, Amelia Earhart's disappearance, the first time men walked on the moon and an explosion at the ÃÛÌÒÓ°ÏñAV.
- Rick Wiley
In 1959, long-haul trucking was dark and dangerous along U.S. 80 and State Route 84, the two-lane highways through Tucson that were replaced by Interstate 10.
These archive photos were captured in Tucson in 1964 and 1965.Â
- Rick Wiley
Sen. Robert F. Kennedy made a stop in Tucson in March, 1968, during his campaign for President of the United States. He spoke to crowds at Tucson International Airport and the University of Arizona.
- Rick Wiley
From Ernest Hemingway to Betty White, here are some times famous people visited Tucson in decades past, with photos from archives of the ÃÛÌÒÓ°ÏñAV and Tucson Citizen.
- Rick Wiley
Nestled in the Rincon Mountains south of Saguaro National Park, Colossal Cave Mountain Park is full of stalactites, stalagmites and flowstone, among other formations. It's a cool 70-degrees all year long.