Doney Park Roundup

Originally published in the Arizona Daily Sun, September 5, 2004
Contact details and event listings reflect the time of original publication.

Brandis farm part of Saturday garden tour

By Gamin Summers

Flagstaff area residents had the opportunity to visit Walter Brandis’ farm when the Arboretum at Flagstaff and the Center for Sustainable Environments co-sponsored the inaugural “Local Small Farms and Edible Gardens Tour,” held on a September Saturday from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m.

The free, self-guided tour allowed participants to explore several small farms and edible gardens within 15 miles of downtown Flagstaff. Growers were on site to share knowledge and answer questions throughout the day.

Brandis noted that he would be planting winter wheat on approximately 30 acres of his land. He employed antique tractors to do the heavy work, including his 1949 Farmall — recently featured in the Beat the Heat Antique Tractor Show.

Maps and directions to participating sites were available at the Arboretum and through the tour's website at the time.

Eastside Rio de Flag Study Group to meet

The Eastside Rio de Flag Study Group planned to meet again Thursday morning in the Jan Stevens Community Room of the Flagstaff Public Library.

Since November, the group had gathered monthly to discuss issues related to the Rio de Flag as it flowed from the City’s Wildcat Hill Wastewater Treatment Facility through Doney Park. Participants included concerned residents and representatives from the City of Flagstaff, Arizona Game and Fish, Coconino County Community Development, and The Audubon Society.

The meeting was scheduled to include a representative from the State Department of Water Resources to address water removal requirements from the Rio de Flag.

(Contact information removed.)

Rabies clinic scheduled for Doney Park

Coconino County Animal Management planned a rabies clinic for area residents on September 18, hosted at Summit Fire Station #32.

Local veterinarians were to volunteer their services, offering rabies vaccinations for $6, along with other canine vaccines. Dog licenses and spay/neuter vouchers were also available.

Arizona State Law requires all dogs to be properly vaccinated and licensed.

(Contact information removed.)

History Corner

Excerpted by permission from “An Historic Glimpse: Benjamin Doney, U.S. Navy & Pioneer; Parts 1 and 2,” articles by Joe Meehan, Arizona Historical Society Pioneers Museum. Originally printed in Flagstaff Weekly, 1993.

“Besides having a house in town, Benjamin Doney also homesteaded a farm northeast of town on what is now Hwy 89 north. The cabin he built there became one of his legacies to the community. During his time on the farm, he came into town either in a red sheepherder’s wagon or one of his racing carts — he loved to race horses.”

“By 1905, he listed his profession as ‘prospector.’ He was convinced that the Lost Mine of the Padres was located somewhere in the hills east of the San Francisco Mountains, and that he could find it if he looked long enough. He filed mining claims on most of the cinder hills on that side of the mountains.”

“He was one of the first to explore what we know today as the Wupatki Ruins. During these explorations he amassed a respectable collection of pottery, much of it intact. The collection was sent to a museum in San Francisco — and, regrettably, was destroyed in the 1906 earthquake.”