Cave Creek Museum Re-opens for Season on Wed., Oct. 1

Posted By Les Conklin on Sep 27, 2014

CAVE CREEK (August 8, 2014) – Cave Creek Museum re-opens for the season on Wed., Oct. 1. Located at 6140 Skyline Drive, the Museum features an extensive collection of prehistoric and historic artifacts that describe the lives of Native Americans, miners, ranchers and pioneers. The museum hours are Wed., Thurs., Sat. and Sun. from 1 p.m. to 4:30 p.m., and Fri. from 10 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Entrance fees are $5 for adults; $3 for seniors; and $2 for students. Children 12 and under are free.

One of the biggest highlights of the season will be monthly demonstrations of the Museum’s historic “Golden Reef” Stamp Mill which dates back to 1880 and was used to crush hard rock ore so that gold could be separated and saved. There have not been any operational Stamp Mills in Maricopa County since the closure of the Arizona Mining and Mineral Museum in 2011, and Cave Creek Museum’s Stamp Mill is the only operational 10-Stamp Mill in the state. The schedule of monthly demonstrations will be announced on Oct. 1.

Shield and War Club

Another new exhibit will be “Saddle Up,” a colorful display of horse saddles dating from 1890 to 1950, including one that was made for a professional baseball player. In addition, the Museum will unveil a new “Arizona’s Greatest Battle” exhibit that features history about what is considered to be the greatest recorded battle ever fought in Arizona. The 1857 battle was the last in a series of skirmishes in which the O’Odham (Pima) and Piipaash (Maricopa) fought their adversaries to the west. The exhibit will include a replica war shield, a war club, sandals and more on loan from the Salt River Pima-Maricopa Indian Community.

Lifestyle will also be highlighted in a new bola tie and “Dirty Laundry” washing machine exhibit.

“The washing machine was revolutionary because it changed a woman’s life dramatically,” said Evelyn Johnson, executive director of Cave Creek Museum. “We’ll show the evolution of this household task from 1870 through 1940.”

The museum will host several new children’s programs throughout the year and bring back popular annual events, including “A Miner’s Dinner” in November, “Antiques Appraisal Day” in January, “Authors’ Month” in February and its biggest fundraiser of the year, “Homes Through Time” home tour in March.

For information, call (480) 488-2764 or visit www.cavecreekmuseum.org.