Yuma celebrates its rich history at the crossroads of the Southwest every February, but with the whole state of Arizona also getting set to light the candles for its 100th birthday in 2012, Yuma Crossing Day and Redondo Days will definitely be special this year.
A full day of fun, free activities, Yuma Crossing Day take places from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 11, along historic Madison Avenue in downtown Yuma. The original track alignment for the Southern Pacific Railroad when it entered Arizona in 1877, Madison Avenue still boasts some of Yuma's oldest buildings, including the historic Sanguinetti House, now a museum operated by the Rio Colorado chapter of the Arizona Historical Society.
Along with historical re-enactors dressed in authentic period costume, Yuma Crossing Day will feature demonstrations of piņata making, tamale cooking and adobe brick making, along with displays of antique tractors and cars. Entertainment will feature mariachi bands and folklorico dancers, along with games authentic to the period. To add extra spice to the day, there will be a jalapeņo eating contest, along with vendors of vittles and drinks.
Daytime activities are free and open to the public; admission to the Sanguinetti House Museum is also free that day. Author Gerald Ahnert will autograph his newly published book, The Butterfield Trail and Overland Mail Company in Arizona, 1858-1861.
But the fun doesn't end when the sun goes down, as the Yuma County Historical Society is hosting a Redondo Days fundraising dinner at 6:30 p.m. to benefit the Sanguinetti House museum.
Jose Maria Redondo was Yuma's first mayor and a pioneer of agriculture in the Yuma area, as well as a founder of Redondo Beach, Calif. Singer Linda Ronstadt is among the Arizonans whose family trees include Redondo roots.
To be held in the gardens of the Molina Block, an original adobe structure that was one of Yuma's first commercial buildings, tickets for the fundraiser are available now for $50 per person or, or to ensure families, friends or business associates are seated together, $500 for a table of eight.
Along with other entertainment, the fundraiser will feature an auction of art, antiques and such unique experiences as dinner at the Redondo hacienda ruins hosted and served by descendents of Jose Maria Redondo; dinner in the Sanguinetti House gardens hosted and served by descendants of the family; dinner at the site of the Wilson Boarding House hosted and served by descendants of the Mercedes Mendoza Wilson family; a guided tour of the Devil's Highway with lunch and a guided hike on the Butterfield Trail led by author Gerald Ahnert, and a boxed, numbered, uncut pages edition of the book, Game in the Desert, by Jack O'Connor (retail value $1500).
For more information about any of the day's events or to purchase tickets for the Redondo Days fundraising dinner, contact the Yuma County Historical Society at 928-782-1841.
