Pinal County Historical Museum

Nolan and I visited the Pinal County Historical Museum that I had led a group of residents to a week before. I had told Nolan about it and he wanted to go.

.. Of course the displays of county history started with the pottery from 500 A.D. but we didn't start taking photos until the more current items. These intricately woven baskets were amazing.

Vases made of cholla (pronouced choy-a) cactus skeletons.

Three-legged table made of cholla skeleton.

Bookcase of cholla with stuffed gila monster.

Water fountain from an old school.

The two red boxes on the bottom were interesting. Chill Tonic and Swamp Root.

During Prohibition you could get a prescription for medicinal liquor.

Oh the elusive cure for fatness!

This is a combination high chair, potty chair, stroller and play table.

Read this for a chuckle.

Old office furniture and machines from the old courthouse.

There some very interesting things here. Like this Ediphone, precursor to the Dictaphone.

What wrong with this typewriter?

It has a regular QUERTY keyboard but it has two instead of one. There wasn't a shift key so the upper set is for upper case letters and the lower set is for lower case letters.

Now that's a different arrangement.

Then there were the times when you needed a portable. Just like a laptop today.

Another portable.

Sorry for the glare.

Just like today, if you have a famous name, it gets put on everything.

The museum has an extensive collection of bullets including some wooden ones.

Personal property in a home was taxed and this was one way to hide your radio. The electric cord ran up inside a leg and the speakers faced downward.

Notice the rolls of music.

No this isn't some torture devise. It's a hair curler from a beauty salon.

What this museum is most noted for is its Arizona State Prison Collection.

But before the gas chamber came the hangings. The rope from each hanging was kept and is displayed with a photo of the person hung.

These four guys wanted to be hung with the same rope.

I never saw this in the movies.

This is interesting.

Barbed wire collection.

WW II stories.

Yes POWs were brought to Arizona.