Editing Flagstaff, Arizona (section)

===Local culture===
{{see also|Downtown Flagstaff, Arizona#Culture}}
[[File:Downtown Flagstaff lit up for the Holidays.jpg|thumb|Weatherford Hotel with its pine cone and a countdown in December 2010|alt=Festively adorned building]]

Flagstaff has its own New Year's Eve tradition; in the city, people gather around the Weatherford Hotel as a {{convert|70|lb|kg|adj=on}}, {{convert|6|ft|m|adj=on}} tall, metallic [[Conifer cone|pine cone]] is dropped from the roof at midnight. The tradition originated in 1999, when Henry Taylor and Sam Green (owners of the hotel), decorated a garbage can with paint, lights, and pine cones, and dropped it from the roof of their building to mark the new millennium. By 2003 the event had become tradition, and the current metallic pine cone was designed and built by Frank Mayorga of Mayorga Welding in the city.<ref name="pineconedrop">Craven, Scott. "[http://www.azcentral.com/ent/calendar/articles/1228pinecone1229.html Dec. 31: New Year's Eve Block Party and Pinecone Drop] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070121055638/http://www.azcentral.com/ent/calendar/articles/1228pinecone1229.html |date=January 21, 2007 }}." ''[[Arizona Republic]].'' December 28, 2006. Retrieved July 19, 2007.</ref>

Local museums include the [[Museum of Northern Arizona]], which features displays of the biology, archeology, photography, anthropology, and native art of the Colorado Plateau, and the Arboretum at Flagstaff, a {{convert|200|acre|ha|adj=on}} [[arboretum]] containing 2,500 species of drought-tolerant native plants representative of the high desert region.<ref name="mna">"[http://www.musnaz.org/ Museum of Northern Arizona] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070716210808/http://www.musnaz.org/ |date=July 16, 2007 }} (website)." Retrieved on July 14, 2007.</ref><ref name="arboretum">"[http://www.thearb.org/ The Arboretum at Flagstaff] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070716211655/http://www.thearb.org/ |date=July 16, 2007 }} (website)." Retrieved on July 14, 2007.</ref>

A lot of the local culture is also focused on Route 66, which originally ran between Chicago and Los Angeles, greatly increased the accessibility to the area, and enhanced the culture and tourism in Flagstaff.<ref name="roadwanderer">"[http://www.theroadwanderer.net/RT66flagstaff.htm Route 66 in the Flagstaff Area] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070515190923/http://www.theroadwanderer.net/RT66flagstaff.htm |date=May 15, 2007 }}." ''[http://www.theroadwanderer.net/ theroadwnaderer.net] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070403090327/http://www.theroadwanderer.net/ |date=April 3, 2007 }}.'' 2003. Retrieved April 11, 2007.</ref> Route 66 remains a historic route, passing through the city between [[Barstow, California]], and [[Albuquerque, New Mexico]]. In early September, the city hosts an annual event, Route 66 Days, to highlight its connection to the famous highway.<ref name="rt66days">"[http://www.flagstaffroute66days.com/ Flagstaff Route 66 Days] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070627132020/http://www.flagstaffroute66days.com/ |date=June 27, 2007 }} (website)." Retrieved on July 14, 2007.</ref>