Arizona Humanities Topics 2024-2025
The Colorado River and its Wonders
The Colorado River is a critical source of the West’s water supply, supporting 40 million people, nearly 6 million acres of agriculture, and tribes across seven states and portions of Mexico. At 1,450 miles long the Colorado River is the sixth longest river in the United States. The river flows through seven states and covers 244,000 square miles, about 1/12th of the United States. Known for its dramatic canyons, whitewater rapids, and eleven U.S. National Parks, the Colorado River and its tributaries are a vital source of water. An extensive system of dams, reservoirs, and aqueducts divert almost its flow for agricultural irrigation and urban water supply. Its large flow and steep gradient (10,184 ft above sea level to 58 feet in the Mexicali Valley) are used to generate hydroelectric power to several western states and Nebraska. This presentation discusses the geology, geography, exploration, national parks, and the state of the river today with its natural beauty, current difficulties, and solutions.
Arizona Colonists, Pioneers & Immigrants
Arizona's past goes far beyond Hollywood’s Wild West stereotypes of gunslinging cowboys, lawmen, and outlaws. In addition to miners, merchants, and ranchers faith-based farmers, health seekers, and women entrepreneurs of many creeds and cultures braved the West’s harshest and most treacherous territory, working together to forge lasting communities. This presentation describes Arizona history’s notables and notorious characters from common folk to public heroes including U.S. Colonel Sarah Bowman, war hero and inn keeper, and Hi Jolly the Greco-Syrian camel driver.
Presentation Topics
1. The Golden Age of TV Westerns 1950s – 1970s
2. Arizona Goes to the Movies – One Hundred Years of Arizona Filmmaking
3. The Colorado River and its Wonders: A Study in Water Use and Conservation
4. Four Corners USA (from my book)
5. Ancient Southwest – Prehistoric Cultures and Cliff Dwellings
6. Arizona Colonists, Pioneers, and Immigrants
7. In My Merry Oldsmobile: America Loves Cars
8. Apache History and Culture – Once We Rode Like the Wind
9. The Navajo Code Talker Manual: How it was written and how it works
10. Hopi Indian History and Culture
11. Native Roads: A Complete Motoring Guide to the Navajo and Hopi Nations
12. History of Mining in Arizona
13. Artists and Photographers of the Grand Canyon
14. Life in the Old Pueblo: Tucson History from 2,100 B.C. to 1912
15. Get Your Kicks on Route 66 in Arizona
16. Hohokam – Ancient Art, Culture, and Prehistoric Irrigation
17. Navajo Code Talkers
18. Shadow Catchers: 150 Years of Arizona Photography
19. The Captivity of the Oatman Girls
20. The Coronado Expedition: For God, Gold, and Glory
21. The Harvey Girls: Women Who Tamed the West
22. Tombstone: The Town to Tough to Die
23. Strike it Rich: Arizona Gold Mining
24. Turquoise: Mining, History, and Folklore
25. A History of Western American Art
26. Westward Ho: Frontier Wagon Roads and Stories
27. Dillinger! Captured in Tucson Without a Shot
28. “Little House on the Desert” Growing up in Arizona Territory
29. Spanish Colonial Arizona 1540-1821
30. Arizona Trading Posts and Native Arts and Crafts
31. Writers of the Purple Sage: A History of Western Literature
32. Phoenix History
33. The Pima Villages: An Oasis at a Cultural Crossroads