Visitors and neighbors are invited to step back in time to get a glimpse of the rich history of Old Fort Lowell, a neighborhood that was occupied by the Hohokam from 650 C.E. to 1300 C.E. and was later the site of a cavalry fort between 1873-1891. The 44th Fort Lowell Day/La Reunión de El Fuerte will be held on Saturday, March 8, from 11 am to 4 pm. This FREE event will take place in Fort Lowell Park, 2900 N. Craycroft Rd., with a self-guided walking tour along Fort Lowell Road, and at the historic San Pedro Chapel, 5230 E. Fort Lowell Rd. This event is free to the public.
Schedule:
10 am-4 pm Re-enactors, demonstrations and hands-on activities at the Fort Lowell Museum: Flintknapping by Alen Denoyer from Archaeology Southwest and atlatl throwing, mining and panning (keep what you find), pendant making, and toys and games including Traditional Tohono O’odham games.
10:30 am: California Column cannon demonstration
11 am-4 pm: Officers’ Quarters Opens.
11 am-4 pm: Hospital ruins open to the public
11 am: Tour of the Adkins Parcel, Archaeology of the Hardy Site and Officer’s Quarters by Homer Thiel
11 am: 4th Cavalry Band Performance
12 pm: Flag Raising Ceremony
12-2 pm Mariachis playing in El Fuerte and El Callejon
12-4 pm: Bookstore open at San Pedro Chapel selling books written by neighborhood residents and published by the Fort Lowell Historic District. The bookstore also includes historical materials and photos, as well as a Family History Table that details resident “Fuerteños” (residents of the Fort Lowell Neighborhood) from 1900 to 1940.
12:45 pm: Tour of the Adkins Parcel, Archaeology of the Hardy Site and Officer’s Quarters by Homer Thiel
1:15-3:30 pm: Cavalry Drills on the Parade Ground by B Troop, 4th US Cavalry Regiment (Memorial) Fort Huachuca
1:30 -3:30 pm Way Out West performs at the San Pedro Chapel
Other Activities include:
Self-guided walking tours of the Fort Lowell Historic District including 23 sites hosted by the Old Fort Lowell Neighborhood Association
Displays by the Civil War Roundtable, Southern Arizona Transportation Museum, Buffalo Soldiers, 3rd US Artillery, Fort Lowell civilians and ranchers, Fort Lowell quartermaster, a faro dealer and the Fort Lowell Cavalry
Presentations on the cultural significance of Old Fort Lowell and its role in the development of the Southwest
Free admission to the Fort Lowell Museum, which will offer docent tours of the museum
San Pedro Chapel open with activities for all.
The event promises to immerse visitors in the rich heritage of the region. The unique combination of and interrelationships among river-floodplains, native velvet mesquite biological communities and the many native and immigrant peoples with their different subsistence and lifestyles, made this an important place even before the Fort Lowell U.S. Army Post was located here. Today, Fort Lowell Park encompasses the land on which the Army Post was built.
This event is a collaborative effort among the Old Fort Lowell Neighborhood Association, Inc., the Fort Lowell Historic District, the Presidio San Agustín del Tucson Museum, the Fort Lowell Museum and local historians/residents who share the unique history and natural beauty of the area.
