Wickenburg, about 60 miles northwest of downtown Phoenix, is the oldest town in Arizona north of Tucson, being founded in the early 1860s, beating Phoenix by about five years. It owed its founding and initial growth to the discovery of gold and the presence of the Hassayampa River.
It had continued prosperity in the first part of the 20th century due to its location on the road from Phoenix to both Prescott and Los Angeles, losing that advantage in the 1970s, when I-10 from Phoenix to LA was located to the south and I-17 provided a faster route to Prescott, while avoiding Wickenburg.
Today we visited the Desert Caballeros Western Museum in the town, which proved to be a little gem of a museum. The Caballeros museum is in the small downtown area and there are several restaurants within a block. On its ground level floor the museum features interesting western art and exhibits on the history of Wickenburg, but it is when you descend into the basement that you find the real treasure - recreated stores and houses of 1912 Wickenburg along with well-done and fascinating dioramas of different aspects of the town and region's history. A great way to spend an hour and a half, and kids would love that downstairs area, just as we did.
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