Andy Groseta to Address Cornville Historical Society at its Annual Meeting March 20

The Cornville Historical Society will hold its annual membership meeting from 1:00 pm to 3:00 pm, on Wednesday, March 20, 2019, at the First Southern Baptist Church, 11340 Circle Drive, in Cornville. The program will feature Andy Groseta, discussing “Cattle Ranching in Cornville and the Verde Valley.”  Andy is a third-generation rancher who lives in Cottonwood.

The business meeting will include the annual progress report, financial report, budget approval, and election of board members. Candidates for re-election to two-year terms are Cheryl Chamberlain, Don Godard, Veronica Moody, Cindy Snyder and Muffy Vallely. Continuing board members are Janet Cassagio, Nita Rinehart, Diana Stipek and Don Welcome. Nominations will be welcome at the annual meeting, so please consider volunteering for our Board or for one of our committees.  Refreshments will be served.

The Board members meet five times each year, the 2^nd Wednesday of the month in October, November, January and February and immediately following the annual meeting in March. They take the summer off.  From Fall through Spring, they work on projects like research, publications, post office restoration, fundraisers and community events.  New members are always welcome to join and participate. 

This meeting is free and open to the public. For information, call Muffy Vallely at 639-9558 or go to www.cornville-historical-society.org.  

Holiday Event at the DK Ranch December 9, 2018

The Society held its Annual Holiday Fundraiser Event at the Cracchiolo DK Ranch at 1 pm, Sunday, December 9, 2018. It featured a history presentation by Janet Cassagio, Historical Society researcher and board member. Attendees heard about the many land owners of the ranch property and the surrounding area over time, from 1877 to the present, as well as the history of the DK cattle brand, which dated back to the 1890s and was probably named for early cattlemen Drew and Kelsey.

The event was held in one of the barns on a sunny December afternoon. Refreshments, donated by our members, were provided throughout the program and about 20 gift baskets filled with merchandise, wine and gift certificates were raffled off. The event netted just over $1,400 to support historical society activities. 

Sincere appreciation is extended to University of Arizona, College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, Arizona Experiment Station, current owner of the ranch, Charlie the ranch manager, Mitch McClaran, Debra Pearson and Bopper Cannon, all of whom made this event possible. Also, thank you to the local businesses and individuals who donated items for the gift baskets including: Blazin’ M Ranch, Canyon Mesa Country Club, Coyote Trails Golf Course, Cornville Mercantile, DA Ranch Wines, Farm a Go-Go, Javelina Leap Vineyards & Winery, Oak Creek Winery, Out of Africa Wildlife Park, Page Springs Cellars & Vineyards, Up the Creek Grill, Verde Canyon Railway, Windmill Gardens and Society board members – past and present. The society thanks everyone who helped us make this event a success!

PROGRESS ON POST OFFICE RESTORATION

The Society received grants from the Palatki Questers and the State Questers in 2017 and 2018. These grants were used to purchase wood and other materials to work on the interior and to purchase vintage, period-appropriate items, along with display cases, to represent the original character of the post office.

The Cottonwood-Oak Creek School District donated the piano used in the Oak Creek School two-room schoolhouse. It has been placed on the storage side of the old post office. We've also received donations from our members of period appropriate items and items that actually came from the post office. These have been added to the displays where possible. 

Carpentry is almost complete in the interior and some painting is needed. If you would like to volunteer a few hours to help us get this done, contact Stephen Cassagio at (516) 749-2366 or at st3ph3n@mac.com.

In the fall 2018, we reopened the sale of memorial bricks based on the numerous requests from those who missed our first sale. Contact Cindy Snyder at Windmill Gardens, at 649-9628 or wheelz156@msn.com if you are interested in buying a brick for the pathway.

THANKS AGAIN to all for your support and hard work!

CORNVILLE POSTCARD AVAILABLE

The Cornville Historical Society now has a postcard of the only existing photograph of the “original” Cornville Post Office & Store. The photo was taken sometime between 1909 and 1914 and shows the structure as it looked at its original site on property now occupied by Windmill Gardens.   The historic landmark has now been moved back to the same site and will be restored to its original appearance. Packages of 25 postcards are available for $6.25. To order, send payment to the Cornville Historical Society, P.O. Box 1200, Cornville, AZ 86325.