Anna Clark and her daughter Huguette inherited a huge fortune in money and real estate from William Andrews Clark.  After the death of her mother, Huguette maintained opulent residences in several states, but she spent virtually none of her later life outside her luxury apartment in New York City.  This inspired the book Empty Mansions, a biography of Huguette’s long and strange life as a wealthy heiress.

An interesting fact about Bellosguardo is that between 1936 and 1953, Huguette and her mother Anna never spent more than one month out of the year at the Santa Barbara, California mansion.  After 1953, over the last 50-plus years of her life, Huguette never returned to Bellosguardo, but also refused to sell or give up the mansion.

Huguette married Bill Gower in 1928 at Bellosguardo in a private ceremony.  While they were together, the couple lived in New York rather than Bellosguardo.  Unfortunately, marriage was unsuitable for Huguette and she divorced Gower within two years.  Huguette would not marry again, choosing instead to live with her mother Anna.

Huguette and Anna engaged in social activities with close friends, but they avoided extravagant nights on the town and throwing gaudy parties at Bellosguardo.   Mother and daughter were content to enjoy quiet activities in their spacious, comfortable mansion.  For Huguette, one passion was painting.  She had been trained in New York by the famous Polish painter Tade Styka.  In the Bellosguardo mansion she had an immense art studio that included a kitchenette and a private stairway leading to her upstairs bedroom.  Huguette also took pleasure in photography, reading and collecting dolls. Spending much time in her childhood living and traveling in Europe, Huguette developed a fascination with European and Japanese royalty, and it occupied a good deal of her reading and traveling.

 Anna and Huguette were both accomplished musicians and the mansion included a spectacular music room furnished with two grand pianos.  Besides the piano, Huguette also played an exquisite Stradivarius violin and Anna played a gilded harp.  The two also enjoyed hosting intimate musical performances at the mansion. 

Because it was empty most of the time, except for servants, the interior of the Bellosguardo mansion has been preserved in its original state since its completion and furnishing in the 1930s.  Although Anna and Huguette spent very little time at the mansion, they made sure that the grounds and the furnishings were meticulously maintained.  In the later years of her life when she was in failing health and had no intention of returning to Bellosguardo, Huguette continued to insist that everything be kept just as it was on her last visit.

To see the Bellosguardo mansion today in Santa Barbara, California, you must sign up and pay for a small group tour arranged by the Bellosguardo Foundation (www.bellosguardo.org).   The Foundation unfortunately was not funded by Huguette’s estate but is operated by local staff and volunteers who work to raise the funds necessary to maintain Bellosguardo as Huguette would have wanted.  The grounds of Bellosguardo can be rented for events and occasional music concerts are held there.

While on the tour, visitors are allowed to take photos outside the mansion but are forbidden from photographing any of the interior.  The furniture, carpeting and household equipment such as telephones have indeed been well-preserved.  It in some ways reminds one of a museum.  The many painted portraits in the halls and rooms resemble a small art gallery.  It is notable that the subjects of the art reflect what was most important to William Andrews Clark: himself, his wife Anna and his two youngest daughters. 

William Andrews Clark and his second family (Anna & Huguette) never lived in or had direct influence on the Arizona town that bears his name, but much of Clarkdale’s history is a product of Clark’s wealth and ambition.  In a similar way, Huguette Clark’s fortune and personality has shaped the scenic estate of Bellosguardo on the California coast into a small but interesting piece of history.

submitted by Nathan Porter

for comments or questions contact info@clarkdalemuseum.org

On some of their visits to the California coast, William Andrews Clark, his wife Anna and their daughter Huguette rented a mansion in Santa Barbara for temporary stays.  In 1923, when Clark learned that the owner of the mansion was struggling financially, he made an offer to buy the mansion for the bargain price of $300,000. 

The previous owner had given the mansion and grounds the name ‘Bellosguardo’ to the property, which, roughly translated to English means ‘beautiful view.’  Unfortunately, Clark had little chance to enjoy his property, as he died in 1925 at the age of 86. 

The original Bellosguardo mansion was a 25,000 square foot Italian-style marble-decorated villa.  It sat on a seaside hilltop in Santa Barbara, California with spectacular views of the Pacific Ocean and 1,000 feet of beach front below.  In 1925, the same year that Clark died, Santa Barbara suffered a severe earthquake which caused significant damage to the mansion.  Anna and Huguette remained and made repairs, but the event motivated Anna  to demolish the old residence and rebuild the mansion in her style and with a structure and materials that would make it earthquake-proof.  She worked with renowned architect Reginald Johnson to design a sturdy, 18th-century French style mansion of 22,000 square feet and 27 rooms, with thick limestone and reinforced concrete walls in muted gray and tan exterior colors.

The grounds outside the mansion include a decorative ‘entrance court,’ which is a mosaic of gray and white beach stones formed into a flower pattern.  It is connected to the paved parking area, but no vehicles are allowed on its delicate surface.  Many large cypress, palm and pine trees stand on the edge of the hill, blocking the ocean view, but also providing significant privacy for the residents of the mansion.  Any views of the structure are completely obscured from the streets or beach below.  To the side and rear of the house is an enormous grassy hillside and a rose garden formed into concentric circles with a marble fountain in the center.  The rear side of the house has a reflecting pool with walkways on either side lined with orange trees.

There are exquisite photographs of the mansion and grounds of Bellosguardo at www.bellosguardo.org/visit

Very few photographs are available of the interior of the mansion.  For the story of how Anna and Huguette enjoyed the mansion and an explanation as to why there are so few photographs, stay tuned for part II of this article.

Submitted by Nathan Porter

for questions or comments contact info@clarkdalemuseum.org

Did you know that TAPCO (The Arizona Power Company) was considered a town?  According to a small announcement in the February, 1917 issue of Yavapai Magazine, TAPCO was home to several hundred employees.

Their main customer? William Andrews Clark's United Verde Copper Company. California crude oil was brought by rail where it was burned in four boilers and a 4,600 ft. concrete gravity flume brought water from the Verde River to cool the condenser.  Eventually a 450 ft. pedestrian swinging suspension was built across the Verde to help deal with occasional flooding. Senator Clark had quickly realized the advantage of cheaper hydroelectric power over the coal and oil he was having to import 1,500 miles over harsh terrain and signed a contract for more than a third of the generating capacity of distant Fossil Creek. By the end of 1909, of the 2,700 horsepower produced, 1,600 of that was delivered to the United Verde Copper Company still located in Jerome.  With both the Irving and Childs (Fossil Creek) plants producing power, it was evident once again that additional power would be needed. Construction was started on a modern steam plant called TAPCO in 1917, about three miles north of Clarkdale on a large bend in the river. The new plant created another 10,000 horsepower, more than doubling Childs and Irving hydro plants. In 1920, a transmission line was extended south and supplied 70% of the power needs of the Phoenix area. By 1932, it had expanded to provide power to the mines and towns of Wickenburg, Seligman, Ashfork, and Flagstaff. After the closures of the United Verde Extension mine in 1938 and the United Verde Copper Company in 1953, the TAPCO steam plant was at the end of its production life by June 1950 and was finally retired in September 1958.

Questions or comments? contact info@clarkdalemuseum.org

Submitted by Cindy Emmett from "How Water Changed the Face of Power in Central Arizona", by Tim Coons, Presented at The Arizona Centennial Conference at The Pointe Hilton Cliffs Tapatio Resort, Phoenix, Arizona; April 20, 2012.

A little-known episode in the Apache era took place very close to Clarkdale in Sycamore Canyon in 1867.  A party of railroad surveyors, accompanied by a cavalry escort, was making its way down the bed of the canyon toward the Verde Valley when it was attacked by Yavapai-Apache warriors.

For several hours, arrows, bullets and boulders rained down on the men from both canyon rims.  The soldiers and surveyors climbed the steep walls and took cover in the brush, but large boulders were rolled down on them forcing them to keep moving. The Indians began to fire from the east rim.  "How we got up, God knows; I only remember hearing shots from above and below. Tumbling boulders and Indian yells as the boulders crashed around us," said General Palmer. Then all was quiet as death, the Indians had disappeared. Both sides suffered injuries, but the troopers continued toward the mouth of the canyon, following the Verde River to Chino Valley and on to Ft. Whipple.  In 1862, Congress had authorized construction of the first transcontinental railroad from Omaha to Sacramento. While it was being built, promoters began to envision a second railroad through the southwestern states to southern California to be named the Kansas Pacific Railway. By the summer of 1867, topographical engineers along with 2 generals went into the field to survey possible routes from western Kansas through Colorado, New Mexico and Arizona to the Pacific Ocean. The men assembled at Salina, Kansas, then marched west to Ft. Wallace where a fierce battle ensued with the Cheyenne. With fear guiding the party, they headed to Ft. Lyon in eastern Colorado. Twenty-five African American soldiers joined them. The crews regrouped in southern Colorado and headed to Santa Fe and on to Albuquerque.  One group insisted on following the 35th Parallel which brought them through the rugged mountains of northern Arizona and the San Francisco Peaks.  A second challenge facing the survey party was the constant threat of Indian attack.  Exploring the canyons south of the San Francisco Peaks descending into Sycamore Canyon, their sense of danger increased. Even so, the surveyors were determined to push on to the mouth of it as it emptied into the Verde River. Reaching it, the party joined another general and his escort and traveled on to FT. Whipple and safety. Surprisingly a meeting was held which resulted in the unanimous passage of a resolution urging Congress to grant a charter and money to build the Kansas Pacific. However, the project did not gain the support and was not built. Still, the survey produced valuable information about the topography, natural resources and inhabitants of post Civil War northern Arizona and gave the American public a glimpse of life in the frontier Southwest.

Submitted by Cindy Emmett  contact info@clarkdalemuseum.org with questions or comments

From "Skirmish in Sycamore Canyon: Notes on a Battle Between the Yavapai-Apache and the U. S. Cavalry" written by James E. Babbitt, 

Presented at the Arizona History Convention, Prescott, Arizona; April 23-26, 2009

Can anyone identify this historic Clarkdale building? It was the first hospital in our town and centrally located.

It soon became too small for the growing town's needs. According to one of Clarkdale's past residents, it then became a "maternity only" hospital for a very short time until another hospital was built in Jerome.

This building eventually became the Smelter Superintendent's residence. Dr. Jim Byrkit's parents moved to Clarkdale in 1924 where his father was Smelter Superintendent. Jim was born in 1931 and was raised in this home, was born in the United Verde Copper Company hospital in Jerome, grew up in Clarkdale and graduated from Clarkdale High School in 1949. He joined the US Army and served during the Korean War. He earned his Ph.D. and became a Professor Emeritus of Interdisciplinary Studies at Northern Arizona University from 1973 to 1996.He was one of the Verde River's staunchest advocates, a consummate historian and frequent teller of its tales. For Byrkit, the Verde River was his sweetheart, his lifelong passion and his playground. He was self taught in many respects and had a brilliant mind. He wrote extensively about the Verde but also about the state's mining history. Long before it was fashionable to advocate for sensible growth and protection of its flow, Byrkit was there lecturing at length to anyone who might listen or not. The body of work Byrkit leavesbehind is currently housed at the Cline LIbrary at NAU.

CHSM has many of his articles in our reference collection. He wrote the widely respected "Forging the Copper Collar" in 1982, and a comprehensive account of the Bisbee Deportation, the illegal kidnapping and deportation of about 1,300 striking mine workers, their supporters, and citizen bystanders by 2,000 members of a deputized posse ordered by Phelps Dodge in 1917.

Have you guessed the identity of the building in the photograph? Please send your guess to: info@clarkdalemuseum.org

submitted by Cindy Emmett 

for questions and comments contact info@clarkdalemuseum.org

From "Voice of the Verde Historical Society", Volume 22, Issue 1 and theobituary of James Ward Byrkit, "Verde Independent," 'Byrkit Passes;The Verde Sheds A Tear,' by Steve Ayers October 2, 2011.

Perkinsville is named for Marion Alexander Perkins, who established a cattle ranch there in 1900. It is located 16 miles northwest of Jerome, 20 miles east of Chino Valley, and 33 miles south of Williams.

Today it is an abandoned train station on the Arizona Central Railroad. On November 1, 1900, Marion and his wife Annie and their six children set eyes on the countryside that was to bear their family name.  Marion had traveled by train to Williams from Holbrook, then by horseback to the Campbell 76 Ranch, today known as Perkinsville. At first, the Perkins ranch sold beef to feed the miners and smelter workers in Jerome and later would send cattle to Ash Fork or Del Rio Springs for transportation.  The ranch consists of 214.39 acres of deeded land, which according to the owner, approximately 45 acres are historically irrigated, and 60 acres of riparian lands, with the remainder in native rangeland.  Perkinsville was the site of the filming of "Santa Fe" in 1951 starring Randolph Scott. In 1964, Perkinsville played the role of Gold City in "How The West Was Won." Indian ruins on the deeded land give evidence the Perkins were not the first inhabitants. In 1936, the Perkinsville Bridge was built with the help of the New Deal. At that time, Perkinsville was the site of a quarry that shipped lime to the cement plant in Clarkdale. The bridge was built by the Arizona Highways Department using relief workers from homeless camps along the Verde River. 

True to his pioneer progressive spirit, Marion Perkins was one of the original founders of the Arizona Cattle Growers in 1903, in Tucson. In 1904, he was elected to the Territorial Legislature of Arizona. He also served twice as a Representative in the Arizona State Legislature. On June 30, 1927, Marion passed away, but he left a family devoted to the ideals he had pursued. The ranch on the Verde River has remained in possession of some of the Perkins family since the days of 1900. The children and grandchildren have been continuously in the cattle business for the past 125 years. 

submitted by Cindy Emmett from ECHOES OF THE PAST-TALES OF OLD YAVAPAI IN ARIZONA, published by Yavapai CowBelles, copyrighted in 1955 and reprinted in 1996 with permission by Reliable Productions, Tempe, Az.

contact info@clarkdalemuseum,org with questions or comments

Another building still present in the smelter yard is the smelter superintendent's house, built in 1915. The photo shows the residence in 1916.

In 1949, when a survey was completed by Phelps-Dodge, "the former Smelter Superintendent's House No. 50...has no sale value for occupancy unless the smelter plant is disposed of for industrial purposes."  The two-story residence was originally built at a cost of $7,416 to house the smelter superintendent and his family.  Later improvements of $10,000 were added. With occupancy, it is listed as having a value of $1500. (1949).  It sat adjacent to the smelter which comprised 196 acres all fenced. The slag pile covered  32 acres. 

The story of the United Verde Smelters would be incomplete without mention of Thomas Taylor, who is credited with the great success of United Verde Copper Company [UVCC]. In 1930 he was the general smelter superintendent, having worked his way from furnace foreman to general smelter superintendent over a career of 33 years.  Early photos of Wm. A. Clark, inspecting the proposed smelter site in 1910, identify him as one of the 5 men accompanying Clark. In 1935, United Verde Copper Company was purchased by Phelps Dodge [PD] Corporation at a cost of $20.8 million including assets of the local utilities and the Verde Tunnel and Smelter Railroad. It is estimated PD made about $40 million in profits between 1935 and 1953. PD brought some of their own executives in as managers:  William Saben 1935-1940, Charles R. Kuzell 1940-1944, Morris G. Fowler 1942-1943, John Pullen 1943-1948, and Carl Mills 1948-1950.  The current Clarkdale Police Station (originally a hospital) was numbered as House No. 49. It was built in 1921 and at  some point became the new Smelter Superintendent's House until the smelter closed in 1953. Then it became a private residence.

submitted by Cindy Emmett

contact info@clarkdalemuseum.org with comments or questions

The Hopewell Townsite was a neighborhood built around a tunnel which provided a critical part of the ore transportation to the smelter. Very little is left of this early townsite today located approximately 1.25 miles north of Jerome and 1/5-mile northeast of the open pit in Jerome. 

The term "townsite" was used by United Verde Copper Company [UVCC] to designate company neighborhoods at Hopewell, the 500 ft. level, the 300 ft. level, and Sunshine Hill.  A vital link in the mining operation of UVCC during the first half of the 20th century was Hopewell. Its importance was derived from the fact that it served as a transfer point for the shipment of ore from mine to smelter from 1915 to 1953, replacing the early cumbersome ore wagons. It began when the company started excavating a drain tunnel to remove water from underground mining in December 1906. Tunnel construction began at the 1,000 ft. level to extend more than a mile in an easterly direction, terminating on a hillside overlooking the Verde River. The termination point would eventually become Hopewell. Excavation began from each end of the tunnel. Crews met at the junction to complete the tunnel in September 1908. The mining engineer, Septembere Hopkins took satisfaction in the fact that the junction was near perfect, varying by only 3/8 of an inch, and no one had been seriously injured during the project. Census records do not indicate anyone living there in 1910, but by 1920, census taker Edith Whitaker recorded 122 persons living in the Hopewell Tunnel District.

Eighty-nine of them resided in 29 households (1-10 persons). The other 33 individuals resided at the bunkhouse (also called the providing house). Twenty-eight of the 29 households rented their homes, with one owner-occupied. The Hopewell bunkhouse was predominantly Hispanic when the census was taken in 1920. Two men oversaw the bunkhouse.  All but three adult males were employed in a wide variety of occupations in 1920.  The little community suffered a setback in 1923 when UVCC closed the ore-crushing mill where many Hopewell residents were employed. The Hopewell crusher could not keep pace with the Clarkdale Smelter. However, Hopewell continued to be an important site for ore haulage, storage, and transfer; low-grade ore leaching, and mine waste disposal. Jobs associated with these provided a means to sustain the community.  By 1925, Hopewell had experienced a revival. There was now a commissary/store and the original bunkhouse. After a general cleanup, the Verde Copper News in March 1925 agreed it was now "quite a nice place to live".

This information was found in the manuscript entitled "United Verde Mine (2008-050-001) written by Pat Stein of the Arizona Preservation Consultants. Reprinted in the "Jerome Chronicle" by the The Jerome Historical Society, September 2008, Ron Roope, Editor.

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Part 2

In 1914 workmen widened the tunnel to 13 feet and added height to 9 feet and lengthened it another 600 feet. A bunkhouse, a half dozen cottages for families, a store, two corrals, company buildings and even a school completed the settlement.  Children at an early age were cautious of runaway ore cars when crossing a spur.  The ore cars were brought to Hopewell by electric locomotives. The Verde Tunnel and Smelter railroad took it to the smelter. It was sometimes known as the "Clarkdale & Jerome Elevator" because of the steep grade. It was also referred to as the "Very Tired and Slow (Sleepy)” railroad. The VT&S had nearly 186 curves in 10.87 miles. The trip took 45 minutes including a stop at MacDonald (another mine close by). The sharp curvature and steep (4% grades) seemed to invite accidents, despite the meticulous operating practices, which in turn disrupted the flow of copper ore to the smelter.  Heavy rains in 1916 derailed one of the locomotives. With other unplanned events happening, only one locomotive was available.  In 1917, five cars jumped the rails. One locomotive took it upon itself to roll unstoppably down the hill. One time a dump car (filled with rock debris) overturned on a curve and covered a small boy with gravel while playing in his own yard. He recovered from his injuries but was badly frightened. The population of Hopewell declined markedly during the Great Depression. By the end of 1931, of the 11 company-built houses built at Hopewell, only 2 remained occupied.  By 1939, only three houses received electricity services.  A foreman at the United Verde, Elmer E. Axford, stayed until 1942. When he retired, a new foreman took over. He stayed until 1946. One resident stayed at Hopewell in the 1950's and earned a living hauling groceries from Clarkdale to Jerome. This family, the Giustis may have been the last family to live at Hopewell. 

Information used for this article was taken from RAILROADS OF ARIZONA, Volume 6 JEROME and the NORTHERN ROADS, by David F. Myrick, 2010, and THE JEROME CHRONICLE, published by the Jerome Historical Society, March 2009.

article submitted by Cindy Emmett

contact info@clarkdalemuseum.org with comments or questions

The community of Centerville was originally not on land owned by the United Verde Copper Company. However, running water and electricity were provided by the town. In the past it has sometimes been referred to as "Romita", according to one resident, Gloria Herrera.

It was founded by Mexican miners and smelter workers before World War I and later fell within the incorporated boundaries of Clarkdale (1957). At one point many years ago, some enterprising soul put up a wooden post with a plaque on top. He placed it in a dusty wash in Centerville, declaring the spot as the exact center of Arizona. But Marshall Trimble, our long-time state historian, disagrees completely. " I think those people need to go back to math class," said Trimble. The discussion doesn't end there and this article will only hold to the fact that the exact center is somewhere in Yavapai county. But Centerville's claim to fame is no laughing matter to locals. The history of Centerville is sketchy at best. During the 1920's, a Mr. Brown, who had purchased the community, sold the land to the Orrantia family. They are shown as residents in the 1920 census. Luis Orrantia was the first to get elected in Romita and his father was responsible for getting water diverted from the overflow of a reservoir. Manuel Varela owned a store in Centerville which provided groceries to its citizens. "Don" Manuel's son Marcelino went house to house taking orders, then would deliver them.  We know a resident Vicente Tomallo owned pigs, cows, chickens and made tamales. When the smelter closed, Jesus Carillo, from Jerome declared himself "Mayor of Centerville". He also worked for the town of Clarkdale. He decided to change the original street numbers to his friends' last names. This explains the familiar names of Calle Rosas, Calle Medina, Calle Tomallo, Calle Figueroa, Avenida Macias (see photo), Calle Carillo, Calle Padilla and others. Official street signs were added during the 1980's.

Information for this article was taken from an interview with Jesus Valdez, May 2, 2018, and from a special edition of "The Arizona Republic" entitled "Arizona Daily", July 2, 2000, and "The Oral History of Mary Rosas Ontiveros", recorded on DVD by Jim Gemmill on March 1, 2014.   

submitted by Cindy Emmett

for questions or comments contact info@clarkdalemuseum.org

In the early days of mining, the saloon was the working man's club. The opportunity for outdoor sports was limited.  Through a $100,000 bequest made by William Andrews Clark, Clarkdale has a beautiful clubhouse. Which was dedicated to the employees and their families in appreciation for long years of faithful service.

There were no dues or membership fees, with the exception of the bowling alley, soda fountain, and the pool and billiards tables. Because Clark recognized the relative isolation of the area, he wished to give his employees facilities enjoyed in larger more metropolitan areas, from which many of them came.  Clark was generous to his company town and its employees; he was the first to introduce the eight-hour day in Montana's mines and claimed to have played an important role in passing a territorial law mandating the eight-hour day in Arizona's mines. (Some might argue it was the result of a successful strike for a reduced workday at the United Verde Mine in 1907.) To many young boys born and raised in Clarkdale, such as Jerry Wombacher  "...... we would roam the alleys looking for pop or beer bottles worth 1 or 2 cents when we took them back to the cigar store. Other jobs were caddying at the golf course or swimming in Peck's Lake to retrieve golf balls, which we cleaned and sold back to the golfers.  Setting pins at the bowling alley was one of the most sought-after jobs because the pin boys like me, got to play pool for free, before the bowlers arrived each night.  On a league night, we would make about $3.00 for working 6:00 to 10:30. We thought we were rich! We got 25 cents per game!"   Jerry's dad Dan Wombacher (in photo) purchased the Texaco Station after the mine and smelter closed, where Jerry worked pumping gas on weekends going to college.

submitted by Cindy Emmett from CHSM collection of oral histories

contact info@clarkdaelmuseum.org with comments or questions