Bisbee, Arizona: A Golden

Triangle or Bermuda Triangle?

SWAAG Fall Meeting – Fayetteville, Arkansas

November 11, 2005

Presented By: Bryant Evans,

Houston Community College

Focus Area: Bisbee, Arizona

• Location: Approximately

100 miles southeast of

Tucson, Arizona

• Founded: 1880

• Year 2000 Population:

6,090 (Source: Census)

• Est. 2004 Population:

6,390 (Source: AZ DES)

Bisbee: Then and Now

• “During almost a century of mining, 8 billion pounds of copper” were produced out of Bisbee.

– Source: City of Bisbee

• Bisbee is “now home to an eclectic mix of painters, poets, entrepreneurs, and retirees.”

– Source: Modern Maturity

Source: Bisbee Mining and Historical Museum

The Bisbee Triangle

• Bisbee’s three major districts –

Old Bisbee, Warren, and San

Jose – are geographically

separated from one another,

forming a roughly triangular

shape around Lavender Pit in

the Mule Mountains of Arizona.

• Does Bisbee and its three

primary districts have a past

and future course that more

closely resembles…

• A Golden Triangle?– Full of promise,

prosperity and optimism

– A cohesive, smoothly functioning whole

• The Bermuda Triangle?– A place of mystery,

uncertainty, and loss

– Disrupted and at risk of disappearance

Source:

www.goldenpalace.co.uk

OR

Primary Questions

• How has Bisbee’s community-identity shifted since the mine closures of the 1970’s?– How have the three main districts of Bisbee

transformed since the mine closures?

• What unites and divides Bisbee?– What are the attitudes of residents of Bisbee’s three

primary districts regarding preservation and growth?

– How do attitudes on different issues play out in the community’s overall dynamic?

Framework/Themes of Research

• Place Identity (Milligan, Cuba & Hummon)

• Place History (Massey)

• Perspectives on Bisbee (Schwantes, Price)

• Mining Landscapes (Francaviglia)

• Place Perception (Tuan, Meinig)

Old Bisbee

• Original town site: 1880

• Heart of local Phelps Dodge

operations in mining days

• Home to the county

courthouse

• After mine closures, drew in

many “hippies”

• Today: the primary focus of

tourism within Bisbee

Warren

• Development began in 1907 to

accommodate Bisbee’s growth

• Planned community

• City Beautiful movement

• Home to Warren Ball Park

• Today: quiet, residential

orientation; home to many city

services today

San Jose

• The “youngest” of the three

districts

• Developed rapidly in 1950’s to

accommodate open-pit miners

and their families

• Residential orientation during

the mining years

• Since mine closures, has

become a focal point of local

commerce

Historic Character and Growth

• MEAN RANK VALUE

• Statement Old Bisbee San Jose Warren• “I want for Bisbee to • preserve its historic 4.71 4.44 4.55• character.” • “I want for Bisbee to • promote growth and 2.85 3.68 3.56

development.”• ___________________________________________________________• *Note - Figures are mean values on a five point scale, ranging from • 1 =not at all to 5=very much

Source: 2000 Bisbee Survey

Perceived Degree of Change

• Yes, changed Yes, changed• District a lot somewhat No Total• Old Bisbee 46.2% 38.5% 15.4% 100%

(N=52)• San Jose 26.8% 56.3% 16.9% 100%

(N=71)• Warren 37.3% 56.7% 6.0% 100%

(N=150)_______________________________________________________

• Total 36.3% 53.1% 10.6% 100% (N=273)

Source: 2000 Bisbee Survey

Conclusions• Community-Identity:

More multidimensional, complex than in the past

• Unity and Division:

Different issues facing the three districts, but common

desire to maintain Bisbee’s uniqueness/character

• Golden Triangle or Bermuda Triangle?

To be determined, but Bisbee appears poised to remain a viable community for many years to come