#MediaMonday – Territorial News
This #MediaMonday, we are going back to the Wild West.
It had been more than a decade since I had last seen Arizona’s Grand Canyon National Park, and this past month I finally made it back. The views of one of the Seven Natural Wonders of the World were just as majestic as I remembered, and to make the experience even more memorable, I decided to travel the old-fashioned way by taking the historic train from Williams, Ariz., to the Grand Canyon.
The two and a half hour journey was full of live music, facts, and scenic views, but as a public relations professional, one detail really stood out the moment I sat down: the newspaper waiting at every seat.
Each passenger received a copy of Territorial News, a nostalgic publication known as “Your Connection to the Old West” that transports readers to the lore of the times.
Published twice monthly most of the year, and monthly during the summer, Territorial News brought the Wild West to life with stories about its characters and happenings in history.
One article profiled John Gibbon, a U.S. Army officer who led troops in pivotal Civil War battles but is also remembered for his influential writings on artillery and his wartime experiences. Gibbon fought in the Mexican-American War and the Civil War, where he rose to brigadier general and sided with the Union despite his southern ties, leading the Iron Brigade and fighting at key battles like Antietam, Gettysburg, and Fredericksburg.
Another article profiled Augustine Chacón, an infamous outlaw known for a string of brutal murders and robberies across Arizona and Mexico in the late 1800s. After his escape and years of evading capture, he was arrested in Mexico, brought back across the border, and executed in 1902 in Solomonville, Ariz.
Short stories offer a snapshot of frontier life, sharing moments that shaped the region—some tragic, some fascinating. One story recounts a prediction from a blind Navajo prophet in 1849, who warned his people of the devastation that would follow the federal government’s claim on their land. His prophecy came true in 1864, when a U.S. Army-civilian force invaded Navajo territory, seizing livestock, destroying crops, and selling captives into slavery.
Another story covered an oddly memorable camel sighting near the Tuba City Navajo Reservation in 1902. (After the Civil War, many camels were released into the wild to fend for themselves.)
There were also details about John Young, who supervised a railroad crew living in northern Arizona in a fortified camp near what is now Flagstaff, Ariz. Also, in 1915, the music-loving owner of a Globe saloon kept a violin on top of the piano for any thirsty fiddler who came by and wanted to play.
Reading Territorial News almost felt like stepping into a time machine and was an experience so notable that I had to share it this #MediaMonday.
