The Mission Trail, part 3

Part of the Tubac Presidio still stands--underground!! The 13 acre state park is dominated by a large mound in the center of the park. This mound is the melted adobe walls of the presidio. However, there are some stairs that lead down into the mound to an underground exhibit. The lower parts of the presidio's walls, plus the foundation and floor are on display. The ruined walls are protected behind glass partitions. There are some interesting items inside the walls, such as pieces of pottery and even some chicken bones. It has been speculated that the chicken bones are the remains of a construction worker's lunch. The lower parts of the presidio's walls were uncovered in an archaeological dig in 1976. Above ground, there are some ruined adobe walls surrounding the edge of the mound and some wall outlines barely protruding above the ground.
Next to the Visitors Center is a one room schoolhouse that dates from 1885, after the presidio was abandoned. Some of the wooden desks inside are originals, some are recreated. The chalkboards on the walls are originals. There are six of them, one for each grade. Behind the teacher's desk is a stage where school productions were put on.
On the east side of the state park, across the mound from the school, is a long, narrow house that I believe was the presidio commandant's house. Now it is a fascinating museum that has a wide variety of displays ranging from women's dresses from the 1700s and 1800s, Spanish military uniforms and weapons from the same era, antique household appliances and knickknacks, antique mining equipment and exhibits about Spanish missionary and civilian life plus American civilian life from the same time frame. There are also displays about Pima, Apache and Tohono O'odham
Indians. The museum also has a room that is furnished like a newspaper office from the 1800s and it has all kinds of newspaper equipment from that era, including the printing press from 1859 that Charles Poston used to start Arizona's first newspaper. Outside the house is an arrastra, which is a horizontal, wheel-like device that was used in mining operations to crush rock. A mule would be tied to the arrastra and walk around in a circle repeatedly. This process would crush the rock underneath the arrastra.
On the south side of the park is Otero Hall, which is a Depression-era school that replaced the one room school nearby. It has wooden plank floors on the inside like the older school and consists of three rooms plus bathrooms. Today, these bathrooms serve as visitor bathrooms for the park. Otero Hall is rented out by the state park for things such as family reunions and barbecues.
Just to the east is an adobe house that was bequeathed to the park upon the death of its owners in 2003. It is furnished with household items ranging in date from the early 1900s to modern times. In front of the adobe house is a picnic area. This area was the 3 acre expansion that the park underwent in 2003 when it took possession of the adobe house. The picnic area has alot of trees that look like they have been planted recently.
Burruel Street used to make a 90 degree turn next to the school (Otero Hall) and
dead end in front of the house. Now it is barricaded in front of Otero Hall and, beyond the barricade, I saw the asphalt still in place, but now it is becoming overgrown with grass and weeds. The curbs are still there, too.
Tubac Presidio State Historic Park is a great place for history buffs and it is one of the jewels of Arizona's state park system.