City information
Welcome to Tucson, growing urban oasis in the Sonoran desert, city of diverse cultures, where hi-tech astronomy merges with ancient Native American rites, quiet retirement living with boisterous Mexican fiestas, and the sun shines 350 days of the year.
Restaraunts / Bars
With restaurants operating today that have existed since the 1920s, Tucson’s cuisine can’t help but be inextricably intertwined with its history and culture.
El Charro, opened in 1922, is the oldest continually family-run Mexican restaurant in the United States, and a must-dine when visiting the Tucson area. This local landmark, in the historic El Presidio District, is now run by Carlotta Flores, grand-niece of founder and trailblazer Monica Flin. Once the family residence, built by Monica’s father in 1896, the colorful, classically Southwestern cafe serves the most authentically Tucsonan cuisine available. Every plate is a piece of Old Pueblo history!
Likewise, John Jacob’s El Parador, established in 1946, boasts a history and a family legacy even spicier than their salsa. Tales of Lebanese ancestors who, following the collapse of Ottoman empire, came to Tucson by way of Mexico are peppered with life-is-stranger-than-fiction accounts of a grandmother who was shot by Pancho Villa and a produce company that, while in the desert, used river barges to transport its wares to Mexico. One of the most visually captivating dining spaces in Tucson, El Parador is about as close as you’ll come to a repast in a rainforest without traveling to Brazil.
In 1965, The Tack Room opened to the public as Arizona’s first fine dining restaurant. Built in 1940 by Robinson Carr Locke, overlooking his Moltacqua Racetrack, The Tack Room became Arizona’s first Mobil Travel Guide Four Star Award-winning restaurant in 1973, earned its fifth star in 1977 and has become the “West’s Most Highly Awarded Restaurant.”
The Scordato family emigrated from New Jersey in 1972 and opened their eponymous Evangelos Scordato’s, followed by Daniel’s, and Vivace. Over the past quarter-of-a-century the family name has become synonymous with fine Italian dining in Tucson.
On Halloween of 1983, Janos Wilder and his wife, Rebecca, opened Janos in a National Historic Landmark-registered home on the grounds of the Tucson Museum of Art. Blending classic French techniques with indigenous Southern Arizona ingredients, Chef Wilder quickly gained local and national attention and has been cited by Travel & Leisure magazine as “one of the finest cooks in America.” Several years ago, the restaurant relocated to a spectacular space at the Westin La Paloma Resort.
When Donna Nordin made a three-day stopover in Tucson while on a cross-country teaching tour in 1983, the foundation was laid for one of the city’s most popular nationally-recognized restaurants, Cafe Terra Cotta, which recently relocated from St. Philip’s Plaza into the Foothills without losing any of its upscale Southwestern ambience. She opened the highly acclaimed cafe in 1986 and has since come to be considered one of the pioneers of modern Southwestern cuisine. In 1993, Chef Nordin was named the James Beard Foundation’s “Best Chef Southwest.”
For more than a decade another female chef, Suzana Davila, has tantalized Tucson tastebuds with her energized interpretations of classic Southern Mexican dishes at Cafe Poca Cosa in the historic Hotel Santa Rita (now the Clarion Santa Rita). Chef Davila’s vibrant flavors and bold presentations expand diner’s culinary horizons beyond the boundaries of Sonoran cuisine.
A restaurant known affectionately as “The Cork” (formerly the Cork & Cleaver) has been a local tradition for more than 30 years. In 1994, Chef Jonathan Landeen took the reins of what is officially called Jonathan’s Tucson Cork, bringing his gold-medal-winning culinary style to the area. Having trained with world-renowned Chef Paul Prudhomme at Commander’s Palace in New Orleans, Chef Landeen continues to dazzle diners with his Southwestern specialties.
Other notable Tucson dining destinations, scattered throughout the metro area, include:
Anthony’s in the Catalinas, a Triple-A Four Diamond and DiRoNa award-winning bastion of Continental cuisine, delights diners with breathtaking views of the Santa Catalina Mountains.
Kingfisher, a highly acclaimed fresh seafood grill, has been dubbed Tucson’s Best Restaurant by the Arizona Republic and has received Wine Spectator magazine’s Award of Excellence.
Wildflower features the culinary stylings of Chef Christopher Cristiano (formerly of Wolfgang Puck’s Spago) in an ultra-attractive atmosphere.
Le Bistro, with its impressionist Paris street scene facade, brings the flavors of France to desert diners, and has been voted one of Tucson’s Top Ten Restaurants by the Tucson Citizen for seven consecutive years. Recently, more award-winning French cuisine has become available at Stone Ashley, an upscale restaurant set in a rugged old stone mansion with a definitely 21st-century interior.
The Metro Restaurant Group has created, in a sense, its own global culinary tour with its eight established restaurants (and more in the works)– Firecracker Asian-American Bistro offers an explosion of tantalizing Pacific Rim tastes and aromas–look for the flames shooting from the roof (no, not from the food, from the torches!). City Grill has been feted as the Best Grill and Best Business Lunch by Tucson Lifestyle magazine. City Grill’s counterparts in Tucson’s other neighborhoods are Metropolitan Grill and Keaton’s Arizona Grill, both also multiple award-winners. Backstage is just plain fun–and plenty of it–with dancing, games, sports and casual, contemporary cuisine. And then there’s McMahon’s Prime Steakhouse, voted Tucson Lifestyle’s Best Steak Restaurant and Best New Restaurant of 1999. In Green Valley, south of Tucson, Metro Restaurants operates San Ignacio Country Club and Coyote Grill, offering contemporary regional cuisine. Their newest addition, Old Pueblo Grill, is also sure to be a popular spot in the neighborhood just south of the University of Arizona.
The city has come a long way from the days when steaks and tacos were all the culinary delights that come to mind when thinking about the Southwest. During the past five to ten years, many great chefs have contributed to elevating Tucson’s cuisine to a more cosmopolitan level than ever before. Dining in Tucson can now be as exciting an adventure as your palate permits. So go out, explore…eat your way through the area, from the Tortolitas to the Santa Catalinas; the Rincons to the Santa Ritas and Tucsons. Drink in the history and the culture as expressed in our regional culinary style, When you’ve tasted Tucson, you’ve savored the essence of the Southwest.
Happy Dining!
Barbara Rothschild
Recommended tours
Downtown Walking Tour
Downtown is about the only district in Tucson that can be explored on foot because most attractions here are within easy walking distance. The rest of the city sprawls across the valley covering distances too vast to overcome without wheels.
A good place to start your walk is the Metropolitan Tucson Convention and Visitors Bureau where you can pick up some maps and brochures to guide your exploration. Your first stop on your self-guided tour of the Old Pueblo should be St. Augustine Cathedral with its magnificent sandstone facade, just around the corner from the Visitors Center. Inspired by the architecture of Mexican churches, St. Augustine is a good introduction to the must-see Barrio Historico a few blocks south. This historic Spanish-Mexican-American district has been nicely restored to its original Hispanic appeal. From there, turn back north on Granada Avenue, past the Tucson Convention Center and the historic Sosa-Carrillo-Fremont House. Cross Congress Street and head towards the Tucson Museum of Art, home to the city’s main exhibition of art including collections of Pre-Columbian, Hispanic and contemporary works. As you’re now close to Old Town Artisans on North Meyer Avenue, you might as well walk over there, stroll around in that old saguaro-ribbed adobe building turned artisans’ market and explore its numerous galleries and craft shops. After getting your souvenir shopping done, turn east past the decorated facade and tiled Moorish dome of the Pima County Courthouse, and stop at the site of the original Spanish fortress at El Presidio Park. You might now be ready for a lunch break. Continue east on Alameda Street, then turn south on Sixth Avenue to reach one of the various (and affordable) eateries on Congress Street that are currently considered hip, such as the Cup Cafe.
Walking around downtown, you may have noticed that the underlying theme here is art, thanks to the continuing efforts of the Tucson Arts District to revive this once-decaying part of town. In case you want to explore the many galleries and studios here more systematically, join the docent-led ArtWalk on Thursday nights, and meet the artists in person. And if you enjoy organized tours anyway, you’ll easily find plenty of tour operators to serve your needs, such as Old Pueblo Tours, an operator that will take you by van to downtown Tucson and beyond.
Go south…exploring the history of Tucson No stay in Tucson would be complete without a visit to Mission San Xavier del Bac, the “White Dove of the Desert” acclaimed as the finest example of Spanish mission architecture in the United States. The church has recently undergone major restoration, some of it by experts who restored the Sistine Chapel in Rome. A working Catholic parish located about 10 miles south of downtown Tucson on the Tohono O’odham reservation, its graceful Baroque structure can be seen from afar. Just seeing the intricately painted interior will be worth the trip.
Driving 30 miles further south on I-19 will take you to Tubac, Arizona’s oldest town from the European era, with the remnants of the old Spanish fort still visible. Today, it has evolved into an artists’ colony featuring more than 100 galleries, restaurants and craft shops. Just a few miles south, you’ll find Tumacacori National Historic Park containing the ruins of an 18th-century Franciscan mission with displays detailing the life of the natives under the priests’ supervision in colonial times.
Go North, East, South and West…..Exploring the Sonoran Desert
The best introduction to the desert and mountains surrounding Tucson is actually a walk in Tohono Chul Park on the northwest side. A real piece of desert inside the city, here you can take a close look the plant and bird life of the Sonoran Desert in a comfortable setting (there are drinking fountains scattered all over the park, even a cafe serving tea and scones). Next, a tram ride up and down Sabino Canyon is recommended to experience the scenic beauty of the Catalina Mountains with a knowledgeable tour guide. If you’re more adventurous, a trip to Catalina State Park including a hike or horseback ride into the rugged canyons and cliffs of the Catalinas will certainly provide the great outdoors experience you might be looking for.
Now that you’ve acquired a taste of the desert, take the scenic drive past Gates Pass into Sahuaro National Park west of the city, and don’t forget to stop and visit the world-famous Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum to see the wildlife of the region at close hand. This trip will probably take the entire day, and you should plan accordingly. The museum opens at 7:30 a.m. in the summer, while it’s still nice and cool outside. Bring a hat, water and wear sunscreen.
Another great way to escape from the blazing summer heat would be a visit to underground attractions such as Colossal Cave or Kartchner Caverns State Park, a living cave that has only recently been opened to the public.
Finally, to get a sense of the scientific advances happening in and around Tucson, drive a little further west on Highway 86 to the top of Quinlan Mountain. Here you can visit the world’s largest collection of astronomical telescopes at Kitt Peak National Observatory, the place that helped Tucson to become the “Astronomy Capital of the World.” And, speaking about science places of world renown: you don’t want to miss a tour of Columbia University’s Biosphere 2 north of the city where scientists are investigating enclosed ecosystems that may help us live on Mars–some day.
Klaus Gehrmann
Where to stay
Tucson offers a good variety of accommodations for any budget. Whether you’re an executive in need of state-of-the-art business facilities, a vacationer seeking to be pampered in a luxury spa, or a backpacker looking for an affordable room, you’ll find it here. Just keep in mind that room rates in Tucson may vary widely according to season, being generally higher during mild winter month, when snowbirds and conventioneers crowd into the city and hotel rooms are in high demand. Also be aware that hotels fill up weeks in advance for the Gem and Mineral Show, the biggest event in town, which takes place in the beginning of February every year. On the other hand, if you are comfortable in 100+ degree heat, you can find real deals here during the sizzling summer months, when resorts try to fill their vacancies.
Downtown
If you’re in Tucson to attend a convention, your most convenient location will be downtown. Apart from staying within walking distance from a variety of dining and entertainment venues, you’ll also be near the Tucson Convention Center.
Several hotels here cater to the needs of busy conventioneers and those leisure travelers who enjoy the hustle and bustle of the inner city. One of your top choices might be the Santa Rita Hotel, an historic place that has offered style and elegance to its clients since 1904, including entertainment and dining with a distinctly Mexican flavor. If you want to be really close to the business and convention crowd, though, try the Presidio Plaza hotel, just steps away fom the Convention Center, and within minutes from the downtown arts district.
You don’t need a large budget to stay in downtown Tucson, either. The historic Hotel Congress offers interesting decor at affordable prices, plus retro ambience mixed in with some Southwestern chic. It is definitely hip here, as you will discover by observing the crowd of businessmen and bohemians mingling at the hotel cafe.
A definite advantage of staying downtown is easy accessibility to public transportation, which, in Tucson, is the exception rather than the rule. The Ronstadt Transit Center, the main bus terminal in the city, sits right smack in the middle of the business district, and from there, the SunTran buses will take you all over the city.
University and North Central
The area north of the University of Arizona campus (east of downtown) is another good choice if you’re a visiting scholar or business traveler. From there, you will have easy access to all the academic facilities, libraries and museums on campus, as well as the ethnic restaurants and shops centered around the hip Fourth Avenue business district. Located right at the busy UofA main gate, the modern Marriott University offers rooms especially designed for business folks, including a full business center and secretarial services. If you prefer a quieter setting, book a room at the historic Arizona Inn, just a few minutes from the university. Built in 1930, this beautiful adobe-style inn features antique furniture and courtyard dining. It is a popular place for weddings.
The Foothills
Most of Tucson’s famous resort hotels are located in the foothills of the Catalina Mountains to the north. The Westin la Paloma on Sunrise Drive is a favorite among business travelers, due to its state-of-the-art business facilities and abundance of meeting rooms. A few miles to the west, the hacienda-style Westward Look Resort offers spectacular views of the Santa Catalina Mountains, which you can explore on guided horseback tours offered by the stables located next to the resort complex.
The Omni Tucson National Golf Resort and Spa on the northwest side of town is world-renowned for its 27-hole PGA championship golf course. It’s a full-service spa featuring different types of accomodation ranging from single rooms to haciendas. Located off Oracle Road, the Hilton El Conquistador Resort and Country Club affords breathtaking views of the rugged western flank of the Catalinas, while pampering guests to the max. Luxury also abounds at the Miraval Resort several miles further up north, where you can select from a list of custom-made spa packages according to your taste and budget.
On the northeast side, just minutes from scenic Sabino Canyon, Loews Ventana Canyon Resort has gained fame for its spectacular golf course at the mouth of a gaping canyon. Loews features a full service spa and caters to the entire family; children stay free and enjoy special services here.
The foothills hotels and resorts are situated in beautiful natural surroundings quite a ways from the city center, but presumably, you will never really have to leave your resort, since all your daily needs are taken care of right on site.
The East Side
Accommodation on the east side of town is generally more affordable than in the Catalina foothills, and still within reasonable range from the city’s major shopping and entertainment venues. Several hotels are clustered around the Park Mall and Williams Centre business areas, such as the Courtyard by Marriott-Williams Centre, which attracts many business clients. Other moderately priced accommodations in the area are available at the La Quinta Inn East and the Hilton Tucson East. Several hotels in this neighborhood are close to Tucson’s renowned restaurant row, where you can sample food from more than 60 restaurants, should you find the fare offered at your hotel to be either unsatisfactory or non-existent.
The West, and Far West
If you are attracted to the charm and comfort of bed-and-breakfast accommodations in natural settings, you should focus your search on the area west of Oracle Road, Tucson’s great north-south divide, all the way up to the Tucson Mountains. Other than downtown, there are more bed and breakfasts here than in any other part of town. The Casa Tierra Adobe Bed and Breakfast Inn is situated in the middle of an amazing saguaro cactus forest in Saguaro National Park West, a paradise for birders, hikers, and stargazers, and so secluded that the only noises you are likely to hear are those of coyotes howling at the moon and javelinas rustling in the bushes.
Airport accommodations
Most of the hotels clustered around Tucson International Airport on the south side of town cater to the business traveler, offering plenty of business and conference facilities, fitness centers, full-service restaurants, swimming pools, and free airport shuttle services . Some of them, like the Clarion Hotel Tucson Airport and the tastefully landscaped Courtyard by Marriott Tucson Airport, also have computer facilities and Internet access. If reasonable rates are more important to you than the latest in hi-tech telecommunication, however, you might prefer to check into the Holiday Inn Express-Tucson Airport, just a mile north of the airport, and relax in the outdoor jacuzzi under those persistently clear Arizona desert skies.
Klaus Gehrmann
Getting there
Getting There:
By Air:
Tucson International Airport ( +1 520 573 8100/ http://www.tucsonairport.org ), located approximately 10 miles from the center of town, provides nonstop service to 18 cities and connections to over 120 destinations from the following airlines:
AeroCalifornia ( +1 800 237 6225 )
Aerolitoral ( +1 800 237 6639/ http://www.aerolitoral.com )
Alaska Airlines ( +1 800 426 0333/ http://www.alaskaair.com )
America West ( +1 800 235 9292/ http://www.americawest.com )
American ( +1 800 433 7300/ http://www.aa.com )
British Airways ( +1 800 247 9297/ http://www.britishairways.com )
Continental ( +1 800 525 0280/ http://www.continental.com )
Delta ( +1 800 221 1212/ http://www.delta.com )
Frontier ( +1 800 432 1359/ http://www.frontierairlines.com )
KLM ( +1 800 225 2525/ http://www.klm.com )
Lufthansa ( +1 800 241 6522/ http://www.lufthansa-usa.com )
Northwest ( +1 800 225 2525/ http://www.nwa.com )
Skywest ( +1 800 221 1212/ http://www.skywest.com )
Southwest ( +1 800 435 9792/ http://www.southwest.com )
United ( +1 800 241 6522/ http://www.ual.com )
Arizona Stagecoach (+1 520 889 1000/ http://www.azstagecoach.com ) provides van service to anywhere in the Tucson area.
Sun Tran ( +1 520 792 9222/ http://www.suntran.com ) offers public bus service to and from the airport every hour.
The following taxi companies provide service at a contracted fare rate from the airport:
AAA Airport Taxi ( +1 520 207 4790 )
Allstate Cab ( +1 520 881 2227 )
Yellow Cab ( +1 520 624 6611 )
Rental Car companies include:
Alamo ( +1 800 327 9633/ http://www.goalamo.com )
Avis ( +1 800 331 1212/ http://www.avis.com )
Budget ( +1 800 527 0700/ http://www.budget.com )
Dollar ( +1 800 800 4000/ http://www.dollar.com )
Enterprise ( +1 800 736 8222/ http://www.enterprise.com )
Hertz ( +1 800 654 3131/ http://www.hertz.com )
National ( +1 800 227 7368/ http://www.nationalcar.com )
By Train:
Amtrak ( +1 800 872 7245/ http://www.amtrak.com ), located at 400 N Toole Avenue, provides service to Tucson via the Sunset Limited route that goes from Los Angeles to Orlando.
By Bus:
Greyhound ( +1 800 231 2222/ http://www.greyhound.com ) accesses Tucson from major cities around the country. The downtown bus station ( +1 520 792 3475 ), located at 2 S 4th Avenue, is open daily 8:30a-3a.
By Car:
Approach Tucson from the northwest and southeast by Interstate 10 and take Interstate 19 from the south.
Getting Around:
Named “Arizona’s Best Transit” by the Arizona Transit Association, Sun Tran ( +1 520 792 9222/ http://www.suntran.com ) is Tucson’s public transit system, which offers bus routes to several destinations in the Tucson area.
The Old Pueblo Trolley ( +1 520 792 1802/ http://www.oldpueblotrolley.org ) has historic electric streetcars operating between the 4th Avenue business district and the campus of the University of Arizona.
Some of the major cab and limousine companies servicing Tucson include:
Affordable Limo ( +1 520 750 8545 )
Allstate Cab/Bueno Taxi/Abracadabra Limousines ( +1 520 798 1111/ http://allstatecab.com )
Catalina Transportation Services ( +1 800 710 8994/ http://www.catalinatransportation.com )
Foothills Luxury Sedans ( +1 888 563 7346 )
Sierra Limousine ( +1 520 296 2511 )
Sir Lancelot Limos ( +1 888 747 5262/ http://www.sirlancelotlimos.com )
Tucson Cab ( +1 520 256 2561 )
District guide
Like many other Sunbelt cities, Tucson has experienced tremendous growth over the past 20 years, expanding from a mid-size Western town into a metropolitan area of more than 800,000 people and counting. Most of the new development consists of rather non-descript tract homes and shopping plazas, which are hailed as signs of a continuing economic boom by some and cursed by others as environmental destruction. At any rate, as you drive or fly into Tucson, you may perceive it as an urban conglomerate of endless streets laid out in a neat grid system, with a lot of desert mixed in. Take a closer look, however, and you will find plenty of historical and architectural treasures waiting to be explored in the Old Pueblo, as the city is affectionately called by its inhabitants.
Downtown Tucson and the Historic District
Of all the neighborhoods in Tucson, downtown offers the most variety. Century-old adobe homes, Victorian mansions, imposing government buildings, museums and affordable restaurants lie within easy walking distance of each other. The area is bounded by the Santa Cruz River on the west, Park Avenue on the east, St. Mary’s Road on the north and 22nd Street on the south. It’s a favorite destination for artists and art lovers, with numerous galleries and studios situated in and around the Old Town Artisans art marketplace, just a block north from the Tucson Museum of Art. Downtown is also the site of the city’s major performing arts events, with the Tucson Convention Center and the Temple of Music and Art providing the main venues for opera, symphony and dance performances. While it is true that the city still has a long way to go for a complete revival of its once-decrepit downtown district, progress is visible. Projects are currently under way to build a Sonoran Sea aquarium, a science center, a cultural center and an IMAX theater near the Convention Center. Hopefully, in the not too distant future, downtown Tucson will attract the tourist crowds that the city council has envisioned for years.
Renewal has already been quite successful in the Barrio Historico, the now-gentrified Hispanic historic quarter south of the Convention Center, where old Spanish-style homes have been largely restored to their original beauty. Take your time to explore this area on foot after leaving your car in one of the parking garages downtown; try the one across from the Main Library on Pennington Street.
South Tucson and the South Side
Bordering downtown Tucson on the south, the small municipality of South Tucson has become a largely Hispanic community. For out-of-town visitors, its main attractions are the Mexican restaurants, which, although low profile and inexpensive, offer the best of south-of-the-border food in town. Places like Michas, Mi Nidito and Su Casa might not offer the ultimate experience in service and decor, but when it comes to food quality, there are few others to match them.
Moving further to the south, the Hispanic influence deepens, intermingling with the Native American people living in and around the Tohono O’odham Reservation in Tucson’s far southwest. Many visitors get at least a glimpse of this area going to and from Tucson International Airport, the Desert Diamond Casino on the reservation, or on the road to visit Mission San Xavier del Bac, a national landmark and by far the most attractive site on this side of town.
North-Central, and the Foothills
In Tucson, “north” generally means “north of Broadway,” with Broadway Boulevard as the dividing line between north-south street numbers. Bounded on the north by the natural barriers of the Santa Catalina Mountains and Coronado National Forest, this area includes the University of Arizona campus with its many venues for science and art as well as the city’s main business and shopping areas, with the Tucson Mall and the Foothills Mall considered by many to be the biggest and the best of them. Since most of Tucson’s social life takes place inside air-conditioned malls, at least during hot summer days, these are really the places to meet the locals. Further to the north, the land and the income level slowly rise all the way up to the tony Foothills residential district. This area features beautiful homes with a view, surrounded by stately saguaro cacti and mesquite trees, outside the city limits and well out of reach of Tucson’s tax authorities. Well-heeled residents stroll about upscale shopping malls and adobe-style galleries, while wintertime visitors relax after a game of golf at one of the posh resorts in the area, such as the Westin La Paloma, Westward Look or Loews Ventana Canyon Resort.
The West Side
West essentially means that big chunk of Tucson stretching from Oracle Road, the main north-south artery, and I-19 westward to the base of the Tucson Mountains and the Tohono O’odham Indian Reservation. Bordered on the northwest by the ever-expanding residential and recreational retreat of Oro Valley (more golf courses here), this part of the city offers few visual attractions other than Tohono Chul Park, a very civilized, pleasant desert garden with an artsy touch. Once you’re past I-10, the road starts snaking into the grandeur of Saguaro National Park West, covered by entire forests of the giant cacti that gave the park its name, and the site of several ancient Indian petroglyphs. Don’t miss the Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum on the far side of the Tucson Mountains, and consider stopping at Old Tucson Studios for the sake of the kids.
The East Side
Bounded roughly on the west by Wilmot Road, the Rincon and Catalina Mountains on the east and north, and Interstate 10 on the south, expansion of this district is largely limited by state and federal lands. The most attractive natural feature in the northeast is certainly Sabino Canyon, the most accessible part of the Catalinas, which teems with tourists, trams, hikers and joggers on weekends, while still retaining its serene beauty. If you are an outdoors person, you will also appreciate the vast expanses of Saguaro National Park East. Enjoy the desert and mountain scenery, and try not to disturb the roving of the native scorpions and rattlesnakes.
Klaus Gehrmann
Historical background
In 1698, Jesuit Father Eusebio Francisco Kino, on his way north from what is now Mexico to explore possible sites for building new missions, came across an Indian village called Shuk Shon. During the 70 years of Spanish colonial acquisition that followed his visit into the territory later known as Arizona, the place was renamed San Agustin del Tucson, with the hard “c” in the middle still pronounced. Both the saint’s name and the hard “c” were later dropped by Anglo-Americans, with St. Augustine Cathedral downtown now the only surviving memory of the Spanish name.
When Father Kino arrived, people had already lived in the region for more than 2,000 years. Anasazi, Mogollon, Hohokam and O’odham tribes came and went in successive waves of immigration over the centuries. One of the favorite settlements lay at the base of a big hill of black volcanic rock. Known as Chuk Shon (meaning, roughly, “village of the spring at the foot of the black mountain” in the O’odham language), it is an elevation now officially called Sentinel Peak, and also nicknamed A Mountain for the large whitewashed letter (for University of Arizona) on its eastern side. In any case, it is one of the best lookout points, commanding a view of the entire Tucson basin.
A few miles further to the South, out of a nearby village named Bac, the Jesuits worked to convert the local Pima Indians to the Christian faith. Today, this is the location of Mission San Xavier del Bac, the “White Dove of the Desert,” known for its beauty world-wide.
Though the colonialists from Europe were not exactly considered friends by the Indians of Bac, they seemed the lesser evil compared to the Apache raiders that moved into the Tucson valley, to the extent that the Pima and O’odham asked for Spanish military assistance against the Apaches. The Jesuits, who had to be considered inept in effectively defending the locals, were replaced with Franciscan priests who understood the strategic importance of Tucson. Finally, in 1775, an Irish mercenary in Spanish employ known as Don Hugo O’Connor arrived to establish a presidio, or military fort, here. Though nothing is now left of the structure, El Presidio Park downtown still marks the fort’s original location.
While the village at the foot of Sentinel Peak vanished, a new Mexican village slowly grew up around the Spanish presidio, nicknamed the Old Pueblo, an endearing term still used for the city. After the Gadsden Purchase of 1854, following the Mexican-American War, which gave a large part of Sonoran territory to the United States, the village quickly became a new American frontier town. It even served as the capital of the Arizona Territory from 1867 to 1877. Cattle ranchers moved into the valley, and mining companies began prospecting the mountains for copper and gold. The real boom came with the arrival of the railroad in 1880, allowing goods and raw materials to be transported at drastically reduced costs.
As East Coast entrepreneurs and investors considered Mexican housing primitive, they began replacing the mud-brick adobe buildings, first with imported brick and lumber, and later with concrete and steel, thus drastically changing the look of Tucson. With Anglos pushing into formerly Mexican-American territory, many of the old adobes fell into disrepair and were eventually bulldozed into oblivion. Today, with the adobe style being the rage, many Tucsonans wish that those “primitive” but cool and practical houses were still standing. Luckily, some of the original adobes have been preserved in the Barrio Historico district south of downtown. The uneasy relationship between pioneers, Indians and Mexicans is well documented both at the Arizona Historical Society and the Fort Lowell Museum, while people interested in the more distant past of Arizona and its original inhabitants will find a wealth of material at the Arizona State Museum. Mexican culture is celebrated during the annual Cinco de Mayo celebrations, and the local Tohono O’odham and Yaqui people keep their traditions alive in the Wa:k Powwow and Yaqui Easter Lenten Ceremony.
With the discovery of silver and copper deposits in the nearby towns of Tombstone and Bisbee, minerals became the dominant industry in southern Arizona until copper prices took a nosedive in the 1970s. Many mines were closed at the time, but the effects of decades of strip mining, both in its economically beneficial and environmentally damaging senses, can still be viewed at the Asarco Mineral Discovery Center.
When the mining business went into a slump, aerospace and aircraft industries moved in to pick up the slack, a development extensively documented at the Pima Air and Space Museum. Since the founding of the University of Arizona in 1891, Tucson has gradually shed its image as a rugged Western town filled with cowboys, miners and hard-dinking gamblers and replaced it with marks of intellectual and technological activity. Due to the presence of the university, the city is now home to several hi-tech companies. It is also one of the world centers of astronomy, as certified by the presence of nearby Kitt Peak National Observatory.
Furthermore, Tucson has become the center of a booming health industry. Every year, thousands of visitors from the northern regions, mostly senior citizens, come to stay and enjoy the mild winter sun of southern Arizona, thus securing the financial health of the numerous spas, resorts, real estate agencies and Southwestern souvenir shops in the region.
One of the main issues currently confronting Tucson and many other cities in the west is how to deal with urban sprawl. Since the 1950s, city development has run out of control, spawning tacky strip malls along Tucson’s street grid and nondescript tract homes at the outskirts, while parts of the old barrio downtown were leveled to make room for high-rises and concrete structures such as the Tucson Convention Center. In recent years, however, Tucsonans have learned to consider their architectural and ethnic heritage as more of an asset in helping to attract tourists and conventioneers to the city. By the early 1990s, what remained of the barrio had been restored, and the depressed downtown was revived with some success by the Tucson Arts District. Still, the controversy over urban development continues and, for the foreseeable future, the diverging demands of job security, population growth, water conservation, environmental protection and esthetics promise to dominate the political agenda in the Old Pueblo.
Klaus Gehrmann
Entertainment
Cultural life in Tucson, by and large, reflects the ethnic and social diversity of the city, ranging from the conservative retirement communities at the outskirts to the progressive artist community downtown. To find out what’s happening in the arts and who’s coming to town, read the entertainment pages of the Arizona Daily Star and the Tucson Citizen, especially the “Caliente” section in the Friday edition of the Star, or grab a free copy of the Tucson Weekly.
The Performing Arts–classical music, opera, theater, and dance
Thanks to continuous cultural sponsorship, Tucson has managed to support both an opera and a symphony orchestra for several decades now without without interruption. Both the Arizona Opera and the Tucson Symphony Orchestra usually perform at the Tucson Convention Center Music Hall, the main venue for high culture downtown.
If you are culturally more in tune with the progressive camp, check out the Borderlands Theatre or the Invisible Theatre for avantgarde political productions and light comedy. For laughs, take yourself and your family to the Gaslight Theatre, Tucson’s only dinner theater, where you can munch on sandwiches and ice cream cones while watching Western dramas with lots of music, slapstick and practical jokes.
Night life–Live music, jazz, blues, rock, folk, and country
The variety of Tucson nightlife defies stereotypes about the kind of entertainment a Western town has to offer. In fact, most clubs offer alternative rock instead of country and western music. The blues is very much alive in Tucson, with local acts taking turns at the Boondocks Lounge, Berky’s Bar, Margarita Bay and various other clubs. Check weekly listings in the papers for details. Venues for live jazz are rarer; try the Cafe Sweetwater on 4th Avenue on Friday and Saturday nights, or the Cascade Lounge at Loews Ventana Canyon Resort for light dinner jazz on Thursday to Sunday afternoons.
While the western section of downtown is dominated by the temples of high art, the eastern part belongs to the “dark” forces of alternative rock, centered around the legendary Club Congress on the ground floor of the equally famous Hotel Congress. It’s featured as “The World’s Darkest Nightclub”, and once you’ve stepped inside, you will see why it deserves that title (if you can see anything at all). Right across the street from the club there is the Rialto Theatre, a vaudeville theater that has been restored to its glorious old past, now featuring big names in blues and rock from out of own.
For the quintessential experience in Mexican music, go to El Mariachi on Drachman Street and check out the restaurant’s house band, International Mariachi America. There are, of course, various places for country and western, but for the most authentic brand, you’ll have to drive to the out-of-the way Li’l Abner’s Steakhouse on a Friday or Saturday night. If you enjoy country dancing, join the up to 3,000 patrons crowding into the dance floor at the New West on Ina Road, an establishment which frequently features famous country and western acts such as Asleep at the Wheel.
Museums and galleries
Tucson’s art scene is very much alive and thriving, particularly on the gallery and studio level. There are plenty of museums and galleries displaying the entire range of artistic styles from realistic paintings of Southwestern scenes to multimedia installations. Although it is still a mainstay of traditional Western art, visitors should be aware that Tucson is slowly becoming a driving force in cutting-edge international contemporary practice, with progressives such as the Dinnerware Contemporary Art Gallery and Elizabeth Cherry Contemporary Art spearheading the movement.
The Tucson Museum of Art, the main exhibitor of contemporary art in the city for more than forty years, has recently been expanded to include both Western Art and contemporary experimental works, as well as a gallery of pre-Columbian pieces. A little further to the east, the University of Arizona Museum of Art offers a good sampling of famous 20th-century sculpture and a collection of Renaissance art. The Center for Creative Photography across the street houses one of the best collections of photographs in the world, including the work of renowned photographer Ansel Adams. Its archives, which are open to the public, contain the works of hundreds of other first-rate photographers.
The city’s real strengths, however, reside in its science and history museums, particularly the on-campus Arizona State Museum with its splendid displays of Native Southwestern art, and the Arizona Historical Society Museum, which is devoted to the local history of Native Americans, Mexicans and pioneers.
Sports and recreation
As a place offering consistently dry and sunny weather throughout the year, Tucson is popular with golfers around the world. Green fees vary from course to course and from season to season, with municipal courses like the Fred Enke Municipal Golf Course offering lower rates than resorts such as the Ventana Canyon Golf Courses in the foothills.
The horse racing season at the recently expanded Rillito Park Racetrack lasts from early February into March, with more races scheduled at the Pima County Fair in April, along with horse shows, gun shows, and various kinds of other diversions. And, of course, no entertainment guide to the Old Pueblo would be complete without the Tucson Rodeo, La Fiesta de los Vaqueros as it is called in Spanish, the largest winter rodeo in the United States. If you’re here in late February, you just simply can’t ignore it.
Kid’s stuff and family fun
Tucson offers a variety of diversions for kids. Proposing to take them to the zoo is usually a sure bet, and while Reid Park Zoo offers a good variety of assorted international animals, the Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum is more unique in presenting creatures of the desert in their natural habitats, with spectacular desert views. Another sure winner is a visit to Old Tucson Studios, a Western theme park and movie location surrounded by giant sahuaro cacti, not too far from the Desert Museum west of the city. Cowboy stunts and gunfights are also available in Trail Dust Town, especially during Trail Dust Days; and you don’t have to be a kid to enjoy it.
Klaus Gehrmann
Fun Facts
