Most Interesting Town in America

Pound for Pound

I realize what I am about to claim is going to seem ludicrous at first, but bear with me. On a recent trip to the southern Arizona desert, I found the most interesting town in America. Surprisingly, it’s Bisbee, Arizona. How can this be? Surely, cities like New York, NY, are far more interesting than this very small desert town in the middle of nowhere Arizona. Perhaps NY is more interesting in absolute numbers, but I am talking pound for pound. Bisbee is an isolated mountain town in southern Arizona where a couple thousand people call home. Further, you can walk from one end of Bisbee to the other in about 20 minutes. But, in that 20 minute walk, you will discover a hippie party-town, the Lavender Pit, and the post-apocalyptic Erie Street. Trust me, you would find Bisbee a fascinating walk.

Historic Bisbee

Bisbee is a mile high in elevation and located about 11 miles north of the Mexican border in the Mule Mountains. Bisbee’s history is all about copper mining. In the early 1900s, the Copper Queen Mine funded the boom of this area. By 1920, the vibrant Bisbee hosted nearly 30,000 residents. Furthermore, the city’s history is rich in wild west stories, union riots, and other boom town fun. But, as tends to happens, the copper business collapsed over the next few decades. By the 1970’s, the mine and most of the people were gone. Bisbee was on its way to becoming yet another Arizona ghost town. But, fear not, along came the hippies…

Bisbee is a town built in a divot on a mountain. The surrounding scenery is beautiful. The buildings are old and the homes stick out of the side of the mountain. Furthermore, after the mines left, the real estate values plunged to the basement. So,…a rich history + beautiful mountain setting + old and unique architecture + cheap real estate = the perfect habitat for hippie invasion. The hippies took over the town and created a great tourist town. The town is now full of old time taverns, wine shops, art galleries, museums, antique shops and other hippie staples. The new locals host lots of festivals and the streets of often littered with street performers. Consequently, it’s a great place to visit and spend a day. But, pictures are better than words.

The Lavender Pit

So, if artsy-fartsy, wine tasting and antiquing are not your thing, just walk out the south end of downtown. When you get to the overlook of the Lavender Pit, check out the big hole…

It’s impossible to show proper scale in these photographs. But trust me, with a mile wide diameter and a depth of 850 feet, this is a HUGE hole. The hole is what is left of the open pit copper mining operation. The sheer size and mineral colors make this a true highlight of walking around Bisbee. You can not walk down into the pit. However, Bisbee does offer a guided tour of the underground mines of the Queen City Copper Mine.

By the way, it’s not called the Lavender Pit due to color. The pit was named after Harrison Lavender who is credited with bringing the copper mine to all its glory in Bisbee. Actually, the entire area is orange due to the combination of minerals from the mine.

Post-Apocalyptic Erie Street

I have saved the weirdest for last. There used to be a town south of Bisbee called Lowell. However, Lowell went belly up in the early 1900s. So, Bisbee incorporated Lowell into their town. Much of Lowell was demolished to make room for the open pit mine. However, the residents decided to save a portion of Lowell at Erie Street. Furthermore, they decided to freeze Erie Street in time, sometime in the 1950s. I am not lying…

There! I told you. The town is frozen in the 1950’s, including all the parked cars. Furthermore, with the exception of one breakfast club, none of the business are functional. They are all abandoned. That is where the post-apocalyptic (or zombie destruction) atmosphere comes from. Also, when I was there, other than the breakfast club, there was not a person to be seen. It was fascinating in a creepy kind of way.

For full transparency, the Erie Street attraction is actually a local passion called the Americana Project. I am not sure why they do it, nor who funds it. But, the Americana Project is yet another reason to visit Bisbee.

Wrap It Up

The hippie party-town, the Lavender Pit, and the post-apocalyptic Erie Street can all be found in the very small mountain town of Bisbee. I stand by my claim of…pound for pound…the most interesting town in America. The time to see all attractions in Bisbee is only about 3 hours plus the time you want to allow for drinking and eating. If Bisbee is not enough for you, the wild west town of Tombstone is only 25 minutes up the road. If you ever find yourself south of Tucson, Arizona, do the road trip to Bisbee, Arizona…the most interesting town in America. Have a wonderful day. PT

I hope you have enjoyed “Most Interesting Town in America” on Traveling with PugsleyTonks.

Here’s another road trip worthy of consideration https://travelingwithpt.com/country-music-it-is/

If you want to plan you road trip to Bisbee, start here https://www.discoverbisbee.com/