Flagstaff, Arizona: Difference between revisions

Revision as of 18:57, 19 July 2007

Revision as of 18:58, 19 July 2007

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The first recognized permanent settler arrived in 1876. Thomas F. McMillan built a cabin at the base of [[Mars Hill]] on the west side of town. During the 1880s, Flagstaff began to grow, opening its first post office and attracting the booming [[railroad]] industry. The early economy was primarily involved in [[timber]], [[sheep]] and [[cattle]]. By 1886, Flagstaff was the largest city on the main line between [[Albuquerque]] and the West Coast.<ref name="community_profile"/>

In 1894, [[Massachusetts]] [[astronomy|astronomer]] [[Percival Lowell]] was in search of clearer skies to observe the stars and planets. He hired [[A. E. Douglass]] to scout out an ideal site for the new observatory. After ana intense but colorfulthorough scouting mission in the [[Arizona|Arizona Territory]], Douglass identified Flagstaff as the best ___location for the now famous [[Lowell Observatory]], "other things being equal, the higher we can get the better."<ref name="Lowell_archives">P. Lowell to A. E. Douglass, [[April 16]], [[1894]], Lowell Observatory Archives.</ref> Two years later, the specially-designed 24-inch Clark telescope that Lowell had ordered was installed. Thirty-four years later, [[Pluto]] was discovered using one of the observatory’s telescopes.<ref name="lowell_history">Putnam, William Lowell. "The explorers of Mars Hill : a centennial history of Lowell Observatory, 1894-1994." West Kennebunk, Me. : Published for Lowell Observatory by Phoenix Pub., c1994.</ref> In partial homage to the city's importance in the field of [[astronomy]], [[asteroid]] [[List of asteroids|2118 Flagstaff]] is named for the city and [[List of asteroids|6582 Flagsymphony]] is named for the Flagstaff Symphony Orchestra.

The Northern Arizona Normal School was established in 1899, an institution that later became [[Northern Arizona University]] in 1966.<ref name="community_profile"/> Flagstaff's cultural history got a significant boost on [[April 11]] [[1899]], when the "Flagstaff Symphony" made its concert debut at Babbitt's Opera House, located in what today is the second floor of the Babbitt Building in downtown Flagstaff. The orchestra continues today as the [[Flagstaff Symphony Orchestra]], with its primary venue at Ardrey Auditorium on the campus of Northern Arizona University.<ref name="flagsymphony">"[http://www.flagstaffsymphony.org/about.php History of the FSO]." ''[[Flagstaff Symphony Orchestra]].'' Retrieved on [[April 11]] [[2007]].</ref>