We took several day trips to the region between Tucson and the Mexican Border at Nogales. One day we went all the way to Nogales, Arizona, and did some exploring. We especially enjoyed the Pimeria Alta Historical Society Museum, a small museum with fascinating displays about the history of Nogales and the border region. The docent, a Nogales native, was around 70 years old so she had lots of stories about Nogales and its past; she was very interesting. Believe it or not, a hundred years ago or so the sister cities of Nogales Arizona and Sonora were separated only by a dirt street, and people crossed the border at will. That’s a far cry from the big wall that separates the two cities now. The museum had a special exhibit of items from Bracker’s department store, a favorite of wealthy Mexicans who would cross the border to shop. Founded in 1924, Bracker’s went out of business just a year or so ago. After the peso was devalued most Mexicans could no longer afford to shop there.
The twin cities of Nogales were founded in the 1800s as a location to connect the US and Mexican railroad systems. Today Nogales is a major transportation point for commerce between the US and Mexico. The north side of Nogales hosts dozens of truck depots. Trucks bring their loads from Mexico, mostly Mexican produce, and their loads are inspected and then loaded onto US trucks to go to US markets. Shipping is the backbone of the economy in Nogales, Arizona.
We found a great little Mexican seafood restaurant on a back road in Nogales, Arizona. Never would have found it without a Google Maps search for restaurants!
On another day we visited Tumacacori National Historical Park, north of Nogales. The park consists of the ruins and grounds of one of the old Spanish missions. Father Kino, who came to be beloved by the indigenous people, founded as string of missions in what is now Arizona and Sonora. There is a small museum associated with the park.
We also made a stop at nearby Tubac, an artist colony with lots of galleries showcasing southwestern art. We had been to Tubac several times on previous visits to Arizona. We ate at an interesting restaurant, Elvira’s, which served a unique take on Mexican food.
Our final visit to the border region was unexpectedly interesting, the Titan Missle Museum. During the Cold War, beginning in the 1960s, there was a network of missle silos in Arizona, Arkansas, and Kansas. They housed Titan II missles equipped with nuclear warheads, ready to be launched if needed. Most were decommissioned in the 1980s but one silo, near Tucson, was retained for historical purposes (the nuclear warhead was removed, of course). We were able to tour the underground silo and view the missle as well as the control room. Our tour guide had worked at the silo himself so he was able to provide interesting insights.
