What
is this place called Quartzsite, AZ?
Located
in the South West corner of Arizona, surrounded by open desert and magnificient
mountains. Quartzsite has long been a crossroad for an array of people.
The number of winter visitors & tourists swell to a MILLION & more.
There
are World Famous Gem Shows, the Largest Swap Meet in the World, RV Trailer
Parks with full hookups or dry camping and thousands of acres of BLM areas
to accomodate the RV'er, Prospector & ATV enthusiast.
Established
as a stage stop on the site of old Fort Tyson in 1866, Quartzsite is now
internationally famous for it's annual Rock & Mineral shows. Quartzsite
Improvement association started it all 39 years ago with the first "POW
WOW" rock & gem show helping to build Quartzsite to it's status of
"World Famous Rock & Gem shows." Today they have over 10 themed shows
with a variety of venders that attract over 1 million visitors each winter.
Some stay for a few days, others a few months! Quartzsite's history is
rich with prospecting & mining form 1880's to early 1900's. Even today's
modern miners and prospectors are drawn to "try their luck" ...many find
nugget's, gold dust & specimen quality gold bearing quartz.
In the
town the Hi Jolly Monument honors the camel driver, Hadji Ali, who took
part in an unsuccessful 1850's experiment to use camels as beasts of burden
in the desert. To the south rise the Kofa Mountains. Historic and scenic
areas include, Crystal Hill, Tyson tanks, and Tyson wells stage station
museum. South in the Kofa Mtns. is Palm canyon, a tight gorge and home
of Arizona's only native Palms!
Looking
east from I-10 down on the Quartzsite area.
Photo by AUDC
Local
Newspapers
Quartzsite
Times and Palo Verde Times
Quartzsite
Museum
Tyson's
Well Stage Station- Museum
Operated
by the Quartzsite Historical Society Inc.
The original
adobe stage station was built in 1866 by Charley Tyson at its present location.
It was an important way station on the California - Arizona line because
of excellent water and grass for the horses. Miners and freighters, hauling
mining equipment and military supplies from the river port at Ehrenberg,
AZ also stopped here.
The Quartzsite
Historical Society opened Tyson's Well Museum in February 1980, after extensive
restoration work. The original structurally sound walls were retained and
others were rebuilt. A shell of stabilized adobe brick was built around
the original walls to protect them.
Quartzsite
Improvement Association
The QIA
is a non-profit organization dedicated to the betterment of the Quartzsite
community. It is open from October to April and operates with all volunteer
help. They are the original community center of Quartzsite.They are the
meeting place for many organizations. Their world famous Pow Wow Gem &
Mineral Show in January is their main fund raising activity.
Quartzsite
Business Chamber of Commerce
Bouse
Chamber of Commerce
Willpower
Inc. is a non-profit organization in Quartzsite, Arizona, created to support
culture - fine arts, education and the humanities - for children, adults
and seniors; and to support prevention of cruelty to children and animals.
http://www.willpowerinc.org
Town
of Quartzsite Official Website
The
Quartzsite Gem and Mineral Club.org
The worlds largest gem and
rock club. See what they have to offer.
Hitchitch.com
sponsors this site.
Virtual
Guidebook to Cactus Country - Quartzsite, AZ
Pan around
and look at the sites.
Quartzsite
Public Library
Quartzsite
Local Information
Huge
list of everything you might want to know about the area from the Q shows
web site.
Boondocking
Guide
Bureau
of Land Management Camping Sites near Quartzsite, Ariz.
Dex
Yellow Pages for Quartzsite, AZ
Quartzsite,
AZ Weather
http://kbuxradio.tripod.com/index.htm
RVLogon.com
Broadband
Wireless Internet in Quartzsite & Brenda
Shows
and Events
http://www.riceranch.biz/
The Quartzsite Sports,
Vacation & RV Show
http://www.quartzsitervshow.com/index.htm
http://www.tysonwells.com
Have
a link we missed email it
to us.
See
our Adventures this year in Q on our personal site Fulltime.HitchItch
Living
in the BLM, off the grid, howand why, we do that, and what we are finding
about life there. |
