[Source: Emily Seftel, Arizona Republic] --If Congress had had its way 100 years ago, we might be living in New Mexizona today. But author and editor Sharlot Hall had something to say about that. Appalled by a congressional proposal to admit Arizona and New Mexico into the Union as one state, the Prescott woman wrote an epic poem, Arizona, making fun of the idea and explaining why the territory deserved individual statehood. The poem ran in a number of publications and was delivered to each member of Congress in 1906. No one knows how much impact the poem had, but later that year, Congress changed the proposal. Unless you're an Arizona history buff, Sharlot Hall's name probably doesn't spark any glimmers of recognition, but she is one of the most important Arizona women you've never heard of.
After years of writing stories and poems for Out West magazine, Hall was appointed territorial historian in 1909, making her the first woman to hold public office in the state, no small feat in an era in which women couldn't vote. The museum that bears her name is just as interesting as the woman. It places her life in the larger context of the time and region in which she she lived. The Sharlot Hall Museum, just a few streets away from Court- house Square, is a perfect size, large enough to make the trip worthwhile, small enough that you can linger over exhibits without worrying that you won't have time to see the entire place. When you walk into the museum center, you're greeted by a small exhibit about Sharlot Hall. A short movie in the theater next door gives you some of Prescott's history. But the real gems of the museum lie in the buildings scattered around the grounds; many date to the 19th century (a rarity in a state that has seen its population more than double in only the last two decades). [Note: To read the full article, click here.]
