28 November 2018 QUARTZSITE Over 2 Million Visitors a Year! QUARTZSITE, ARIZONA, BARELY 18 MILES EAST OF THE COLORADO RIVER, ON I-10, MAY BE THE RV BOONDOCKING CAPITAL OF THE WORLD. QUARTZITE HAS BECOME A MECCA to visitors and exhibitors for rocks, gems, mineral specimens, and fossils during the town’s famous two-month-long gem show and swap meet every January and February. From its humble beginnings, the now-massive Quartzite show has grown to RV- epic proportions with vendors offering everything under the Quartzite sun. HISTORY In 1856, settler Charles Tyson built a fort at the present site of Quartzsite to protect his water supply from attacks by Native Americans. Fort Tyson soon became a stopover on the Ehrenburg- to-Prescott stagecoach route, eventually becoming known as Tyson's Wells. After the stage stopped running, it became a ghost town. A small mining boom revitalized the town and it became known as Quartzsite in 1897. It remained a mining town until 1965 when the Pow Wow Rock, Gem & Mineral Show initiated the rockhound winter migration to Quartzsite each year. These days, the population can swell to almost a million during January and February as rockhounders, jewelers and vendors, mostly in thousands of RVs, attend the eight major gem and mineral shows. THINGS TO DO Hi Jolly Cemetery Hi Jolly Cemetery is operated and maintained by the Town of Quartzsite for the purposes of providing a cemetery, historic site, and park. The Hi Jolly monument is in the pioneer section of the cemetery where Quartzsite’s pioneer families were and are laid to rest. There is a new section to the cemetery also for those who chose to be interred in Quartzsite. The cemetery sits at the west end of town and has a wonderful desert vista in every direction. There are mountain ranges and foothills to be seen from every viewpoint. The Town is committed to beautifying the cemetery and preserving this historic site. Hi Jolly Monument History Hi Jolly wasn’t his name. The famed camel driver was born Philip Tedro, a Greek born in Syria. He converted to Islam and made a pilgrimage to Mecca, hence his first name, Hadji Ali. The American version of that became Hi Jolly. It was also a better name for a camel driver, which is what he was when he first came to this country as part of a U.S. Cavalry experiment in the 1850's. He is by far the most colorful of the camel drivers because he remained in the desert southwest and became a prospector, scout and was a courier for what was called the Jackass Mail. He was a packer, hauling freight in the area also. Hi Jolly died in December of 1902, in what is now known as Quartzsite, Arizona. In his day the town was called Tyson’s Well, but the history does not stop there. In 1934 the Arizona Department of Transportation erected a monument over his grave. His grave became the beginning of the pioneer cemetery. The monument is a favorite of visitors to Arizona. DRIPPING SPRINGS There are hundreds of petroglyphs here. You will also find the remains of an old stone cabin and an arrastre. Look along the base of the cliff to the left of the stone cabin for the cave where the spring originates. Once you’ve found it, listen and you will hear it dripping from the cave roof, forming a year- round pool of water. A path takes off to the left of the cave, following the edge of the cliff where more petroglyphs can be seen. How to get there: Dripping Springs is one mile down the road from Dos Picachos Mine. The road is steep and rutted. This is a trip for a 4-wheeled drive vehicle. GRINDING HOLES AND PETROGLYPHS On the east side of Tyson Wash a short distance south of Quartzsite, you can see Indian grinding holes and some faint petroglyphs. There is also a natural tank near the cliff which may have water in it if it has rained. This is also the site of the original Quartzsite which was washed away in a flood and subsequently rebuilt on higher ground at its present location. It is said that a safe full of gold lies buried beneath the sand at the bottom of Tyson Wash somewhere near this spot, carried away in the great flood. How to get there: Go South on Highway 95 and turn right into the BLM Long Term Visitor Area, then left on the main road. Turn right at BLM Road 358. Park just before Tyson Wash and look for the petroglyphs on a rocky outcropping where someone has done some mining. Across the wash, on the opposite cliff, you will find grinding holes and caves where Indians once lived.