Editing Jerome, Arizona (section)

==History==

===Early===
The [[Hohokam]] were the first people known to have lived and farmed near Jerome from 700 to 1125 [[Common Era|CE]].<ref name="town history">{{cite web|title=Town History|url=http://www.jerome.az.gov/Town_History.html|publisher=Town of Jerome|year=2017|access-date=May 4, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180410135127/http://www.jerome.az.gov/Town_History.html|archive-date=April 10, 2018|url-status=dead}}</ref> Later, long before the arrival of Europeans, it is likely that other native peoples mined the United Verde ore body for the colorful copper-bearing minerals [[malachite]] and [[azurite]]. The top of the ore body was accessible because it was visible on the surface.{{sfn|Abbott|Cook|2007|pp=233–247}}

The first Europeans to arrive in the area were the Spanish [[conquistador]]s. At the time the area was part of "New Mexico", and the Spaniards often organized silver and gold prospecting expeditions in the area. In 1585, Spanish explorers made note of the ore{{sfn|Abbott|Cook|2007|pp=233–247}} but did not mine it because their government had sent them to find gold and silver, not copper.<ref name="town history" />
[[File:Jerome SW01.jpg|thumb|upright|Old horizontal mine shaft]]

===19th century===
The area became part of [[Mexico]] when Mexico gained its independence from Spain in 1821,<ref>{{cite news|title=Diez y Seis Salutes Mexican Heritage|url=https://www.newspapers.com/image/13270699/?terms=mexico%2Bindependence|newspaper=The Seguin Gazette-Enterprise|date=September 8, 1994|via=Newspapers.com|url-access=subscription|access-date=May 15, 2018}}</ref> and part of the United States by terms of the [[1848 Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo]], which concluded the [[Mexican–American War]]. The war's major consequence was the [[Mexican Cession]] of the northern territories of [[Alta California]] and [[Santa Fe de Nuevo México]] to the United States.<ref>{{cite web|title=Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo; February 2, 1848|url=http://avalon.law.yale.edu/19th_century/guadhida.asp|work=The Avalon Project|publisher=Lillian Goldman Law Library, Yale University|date=2008|access-date=May 15, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171120101721/http://avalon.law.yale.edu/19th_century/guadhida.asp|archive-date=November 20, 2017|url-status=live}}</ref>

[[File:Waclark.jpg|thumb|upright 0.75|William A. Clark, {{Circa|1899}}. In 1888, he bought the United Verde properties, which remained with the Clark family until 1935.|alt=Left-looking half-length portrait of a bearded man of about 60]]
Angus McKinnon and Morris A. Ruffner filed the first copper mining claims at this location in 1876.{{sfn|Steuber|2008|p=10}} In 1880, [[Frederick Augustus Tritle|Frederick A. Tritle]], the governor of the [[Arizona Territory]], and Frederick F. Thomas, a mining engineer from [[San Francisco]], bought these claims from the original owners. In 1883, with the aid of eastern financiers including James A. MacDonald and Eugene Jerome of [[New York City]], they created the [[United Verde mine|United Verde Copper Company]]. The small adjacent mining camp on Cleopatra Hill was named ''Jerome'' in honor of Eugene Jerome, who became the company secretary.{{efn|Jerome was a cousin of [[Winston Churchill]]'s mother, [[Jennie Jerome]].{{sfn|Steuber|2008|p=10}}}} United Verde built a small [[smelter]] at Jerome and constructed wagon roads from it to Prescott, the Verde Valley, and the [[Atlantic and Pacific Railroad]] depot at [[Ash Fork, Arizona|Ash Fork]]. However, transport by wagon was expensive, and in late 1884 after the price of copper had fallen by 50{{spaces}}percent, the company ceased all operations at the site.{{sfn|Clements|2003|pp=45–47}}

Four years later, [[William A. Clark]], who had made a fortune in mining and commercial ventures in [[Montana]], bought the United Verde properties and, among other improvements, enlarged the smelter.{{sfn|Clements|2003|pp=45–47}} He ordered construction of a [[narrow-gauge railway]], the [[United Verde & Pacific Railway|United Verde & Pacific]], to [[Jerome Junction, Arizona|Jerome Junction]], a railway transfer point {{convert|27|mi|km}} to the west.{{sfn|Steuber|2008|p=48}} As mining of the ore expanded, Jerome's population grew from 250 in 1890 to more than 2,500 by 1900. By then the United Verde Mine had become the leading copper producer in the Arizona Territory, employing about 800 men,{{sfn|Clements|2003|pp=45–47}} and was one of the largest mines in the world.<ref>{{cite web|last=Alenius |first=E.M.J. |title=A Brief History of the United Verde Open Pit: Bulletin 178 |publisher=The Arizona Bureau of Mines |url=http://repository.azgs.az.gov/sites/default/files/dlio/files/nid1194/bull_178_united_verde_open_pit_ocr.pdf |year=1968 |page=iii |access-date=April 21, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170209181625/http://repository.azgs.az.gov/sites/default/files/dlio/files/nid1194/bull_178_united_verde_open_pit_ocr.pdf |archive-date=February 9, 2017 |url-status=live }}</ref> Over its 77-year life (1876 to 1953), this mine produced nearly 33{{spaces}}million tons of copper, gold, silver, lead and zinc ore.{{sfn|Abbott|Cook|2007|pp=233–247}} The metals produced by United Verde and UVX, the other big mine in Jerome, were said to be worth more than $1{{spaces}}billion.{{sfn|Steuber|2008|p=7}}{{efn|Historian Eric Clements suggests that the billion-dollar claim stemmed partly from [[boosterism]] and that "actual production never justified such a boast."{{sfn|Clements|2003|p=2}} Geologists Lon Abbott and Terri Cook reckon the value of the metals from United Verde and UVX would have risen to $4{{spaces}}billion in "today's market" (2007), $3{{spaces}}billion from copper alone and $1{{spaces}}billion total from the other four metals.{{sfn|Abbott|Cook|2007|p=235}}}} According to geologists Lon Abbott and Terri Cook, the combined copper deposits of Jerome were among the richest ever found.{{sfn|Abbott|Cook|2007|p=235}}

Jerome had a post office by 1883. It added a schoolhouse in 1884 and a public library in 1889. After four major fires between 1894 and 1898 destroyed much of the business district and half of the community's homes, Jerome was [[Municipal corporation|incorporated]] as a town in 1899.{{sfn|Steuber|2008|p=82}} Incorporation made it possible to collect taxes to build a formal fire-fighting system and to establish building codes that prohibited tents and other fire hazards within the town limits.{{sfn|Steuber|2008|p=101}} Local merchant and rancher William Munds was the first mayor.{{sfn|Steuber|2008|p=17}}

By 1900, Jerome had churches, fraternal organizations, and a downtown with brick buildings, telephone service, and electric lights.{{sfn|Clements|2003|pp=45–47}} Among the thriving businesses were those associated with alcohol, gambling, and [[prostitution]] serving a population that was 78{{spaces}}percent male.{{sfn|Steuber|2008|p=63}} In 1903, New York's ''[[The Sun (New York City)|The Sun]]'' proclaimed Jerome "the wickedest town in the West".<ref>{{cite web|last=Price|first=Michael|title=Jerome: A Ghost Town That Never Gave Up the Ghost|url=http://www.geotimes.org/jan07/Travels0107.html|work=Geotimes|publisher=American Geological Institute|date=January 17, 2007|access-date=October 8, 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130412144103/http://www.geotimes.org/jan07/Travels0107.html|archive-date=April 12, 2013|url-status=dead}}</ref>

===Mexican-American community===  
During Jerome’s copper boom in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, the town attracted a large number of Mexican and Mexican American workers who were recruited by the United Verde Copper Company (UVCC) to fill dangerous and physically demanding positions in the mines and smelters. These workers were often assigned the most hazardous jobs, such as ore hauling and smelting, for significantly lower wages than their white counterparts.<ref name="Gonzalez1980">Gonzalez, Mario R. ''Mexican Workers in the Arizona Copper Industry, 1900-1940.'' University of Arizona Press, 1980.</ref>  

Due to segregation policies enforced by the mining companies and local authorities, Mexican workers and their families were forced to live in Mexican Town, a segregated neighborhood located on the lower slopes of Cleopatra Hill, near the smelters and away from the more affluent areas where white miners and company officials resided.<ref name="Ortiz2004">Ortiz, Leonard. ''Jerome and the Copper Camps of Arizona: A Cultural History.'' Arcadia Publishing, 2004.</ref> Mexican Town was characterized by small, poorly constructed homes, inadequate sanitation, and a lack of access to basic amenities.  

Mexican children were also subjected to segregation in Jerome’s education system. They attended separate, inferior schools that were poorly funded and lacked resources. Teachers often had minimal training, and the curriculum was designed to provide only basic education, preparing Mexican children for low-skilled labor rather than higher education or professional careers.<ref name="Monroy1990">Monroy, Douglas. ''Rebirth: Mexican Los Angeles from the Great Migration to the Great Depression.'' University of California Press, 1990.</ref> In many cases, Mexican students were discouraged from speaking Spanish, and corporal punishment was sometimes used to enforce compliance with English-only policies.<ref name="Ruiz1998">Ruiz, Vicki L. ''From Out of the Shadows: Mexican Women in Twentieth-Century America.'' Oxford University Press, 1998.</ref> Despite these challenges, Mexican families emphasized the importance of education and community cohesion. Parents encouraged their children to attend school and maintain a connection to their heritage and language, ensuring that cultural traditions were preserved within the community.<ref name="Acuña1988">Acuña, Rodolfo. ''Occupied America: A History of Chicanos.'' HarperCollins, 1988.</ref>

Mexican workers endured harsh treatment both in and out of the workplace. They were given the most dangerous and least desirable jobs in the mines, such as smelting and ore hauling, and were paid significantly lower wages than their white counterparts.<ref name="Gonzalez1980" /> They worked long hours in hazardous conditions with little regard for their safety. Housing in Mexican Town reflected the discriminatory policies of the time, as families lived in overcrowded, poorly maintained structures that lacked running water and adequate sanitation.<ref name="Ortiz2004" />

Despite the discrimination they faced, Mexican Town developed into a vibrant cultural hub where residents preserved their customs, language, and traditions. Families established small stores, built schools, and created churches that served as the heart of the community. Religious and cultural celebrations, including '''fiestas''' and '''festivals''', brought the community together and reinforced a sense of identity and resilience.<ref name="Ruiz1998" />

The Mexican Pool, a public swimming pool built for the community, provided a rare recreational outlet for Mexican families during a time when public facilities were segregated.<ref name="JHS2023">''Jerome Historical Society Archives.'' "Mexican Pool and Social Life in Jerome." Available at: [https://www.jeromehistoricalsociety.com](https://www.jeromehistoricalsociety.com)</ref>

As copper production in Jerome declined in the 1930s and the population dwindled, Mexican Town gradually faded away. Many families left to seek better opportunities elsewhere, while others were displaced as Jerome’s fortunes waned. Today, little remains of Mexican Town, but its history highlights the significant contributions of Mexican and Mexican American workers to Jerome’s economy and culture.<ref name="Lopez1995">López, Phillip. ''Mexican Communities in Arizona Mining Towns.'' Arizona Historical Review, Vol. 12, 1995.</ref>