Flagstaff Festival of Science Events, RSVP For more info: www.scifest.org (Program is Free. Reservations are recommended due to limited availability.)
Saturday, Sept 27 4:00pm
“Peachy” Breckenridge from Beale Wagon Road survey and building teams (Living History Presentation) in the front courtyard of historic Riordan Mansion On the Beale Road with Peachy G. Breckinridge, 1857-1859
P. Gilmer Breckinridge, as he engraved his name at El Moro, N.M., was a member of Lt. Beale’s Wagon Road Survey and road construction crew from Fort Smith Arkansas to California. In a living history presentation, Peachy will tell us about experiences on the road including how they kept track of their positions using the sextant and chronometer for latitude and longitude. Nineteenth century sextant and chronometer will be present for viewing.
Saturday, Sept 27 7:00p.m.
Apollo Missions in Flagstaff
Dr. Gerald G. Schaber, Astrogeologist
In the decade from 1963 to 1973, a group of young geoscientists working for the USGS Branch of Astrogeology in Flagstaff –and led by the visionary geologist Eugene Shoemaker–played a major role in one of mankind’s greatest achievements– the six Apollo expeditions to the Moon. Shoemaker had strongly weighed the fact that Flagstaff was centrally located near a number of natural landmarks which would be well-suited for training NASA’s astronauts in general field procedures. The region provided an unsurpassed first-hand study of landforms resulting from volcanism as well as impact cratering. Man’s greatest adventure was an amazing feat, not only to engineer the massive and technologically complex space vehicles, but to prepare men both scientifically and emotionally to explore the surface of the Moon. Twelve men explored six areas of the lunar surface during the Apollo Era, and Flagstaff’s role in their training is now part of history.
The presentation by Dr. Gerald G. Schaber will chronicle the Apollo-related research and geologic training of the Apollo astronauts training in Flagstaff which contributed significantly to the historic and remarkable Manned Apollo Moon missions. July 20, 2009, will mark the 40th anniversary of that remarkable day when astronauts Neil Armstrong and “Buzz” Aldrin landed their spacecraft “Eagle” on the surface of the Moon in the Sea of Tranquillity.
Sunday, Sept 28 7:00 p.m.
Fort Valley Experimental Forest at 100 Years Susan Olberding, Historian Presentation regarding evolution of photography used to document forest ecology at Ft. Valley Experimental Forest. Accompanied by exhibit of hand tinted glass slides in West House which will be open 6-7pm.
Friday, Oct 3 7:00p.m. Protecting, Preserving and Interpreting the 1892-1900 Grand Canyon-Flagstaff Stage Coach Line Historic Landscape Richard and Sherry Mangum, Flagstaff Historians and Neil Weintraub, South Kaibab Zone Archaeologist, Kaibab National Forest Come learn about the efforts of multiple partners who are currently working on preservation and interpretation plans for the stage coach that once brought tourists from Flagstaff to the Grand Canyon between 1892 and 1900. The Mangums will present the Stage Coach’s history, and Neil Weintraub, as a result of his relocation of historic photographic points, will compare and contrast how the landscape has changed along the route, and how today you can go visit these places that appear much as they did more than 100 years ago!
Saturday, Oct 4 7:00p.m.
The 1917-1918 Flu Epidemic in Flagstaff
Bee Valvo, Special Collections and Archives, Cline Library, NAU
An ominous note was made on September 30, 1918 in the Milton Hospital patient register, “Epidemic at Normal School started today- numerous boys and girls seen today.” The worldwide influenza outbreak would eventually kill at least 200 people in Flagstaff and as many as 100 million people around the world. No culture, gender, or economic class was spared. Through Michael Riordan’s letters, Coconino County Public Health Department records, and the oral histories of those who lived through the epidemic, we will explore how the citizens of Flagstaff faced the epidemic and rose above its wrath.
Sunday, Oct 5 7:00p.m.
Little Colorado River Valley NHA: How the Landscape of the Little Colorado River Valley Shaped Human Activities Linda Marie Golier, Center for Desert Archaeology Have you ever really thought about how our lives are shaped by our land? Come think and learn about Hopi farming and specialized varieties of crops developed for dry farming, how Navajo-Churro sheep became adapted to this environment and then contributed to a major part of Navajo culture, how the terrain and climate made the 35th parallel ideal for a railroad route and, in turn, how that affected future development and settlement, including the logging and livestock industries. The proposed Little Colorado River Valley National Heritage Area seeks to promote these and other aspects of our region’s heritage. Forty other National Heritage Areas across the country are already doing so in their respective communities and the possibility to do the same exists here.
Flagstaff Publisher’s Corner