Art & History in Tubac
(Or how Tubac came to be known as the place
Where Art & History Meet!)
Thanks to Mary Bingham at the Tubac Historical Society for the content on this page.
Prehistoric: It is believed that the Tubac area has been inhabited over 11,000 years. First to come were the Elephant Hunters, who hunted in the dense Arizona forests and along numerous lakes and streams for the huge elephant-like mammoth. The Hohokam lived in the area between 300-1500 A.D., followed by the Pima and native O'odham, who greeted the Spanish.
Spanish Colonial: Jesuit missionary Father Francisco Eusebio Kino entered the Santa Cruz Valley in 1691, converting the natives, building missions, ranches and farms. By 1732 Tubac was a visita of Mission Guevavi and a mission farm and ranch by 1738.
The Pima Revolt of 1751, resulting from a half-century of Spanish domination, caused widespread destruction. In 1752, Spanish troops defeated an army of 2,000 Piman warriors and established the Presidio of San Ignacio de Tubac. Garrisoned with fifty troops and officers, it was commanded by Capt. Juan Thomas de Belderrain.
Apaches Indians, recent migrants, preyed upon Tubac and the surrounding area. The Jesuits were expelled from Spanish possessions in 1767 and replaced by the Franciscans. By 1771, the now-friendly Pimans, were moved from Guevavi to Mission Tumacacori for easier protection.
Perhaps Tubac's most famous person was soldier and explorer Capt. Juan Bautista de Anza II. During his tenure at Tubac (1760-1776), Anza built the chapel of Santa Gertrudis, the foundations of which lie beneath today's St. Ann's Church. Anza's second expedition to the Pacific coast departed from Tubac October 23, 1775. It included approximately 300 soldiers and colonists, and culminated with the founding of San Francisco.
When the Tubac Presidio was moved to Tucson in 1776, the Tubac area was left unprotected. Spain reactivated the presidio in 1787, renamed it El Real Presidio de San Rafael, and ironically recruited a company of Pima Indians who served with distinction.
Mexican Colonial: Independence from Spain in 1821, brought Tubac under Mexican rule. The U.S.-Mexican War (1846-1848) had little effect on Tubac until the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo. Land north of the Gila River was ceded to the U.S., forming the New Mexico Territory. This did not include Tubac, but Mexican troops were recalled anyway. Forty-niners pasting Tubac enroute to California, enticed away even more residents.
Arizona Territorial: A ghost town when the U.S. took possession after the Gadsden Purchase of 1853, Tubac returned to life in 1856. Charles Poston and others established the Sonora Exploring and Mining Company in the old presidio ruins. Soon the population topped 1,000; new businesses, regular Butterfield Stage service, and The Weekly Arizonian newspaper attracted the elite to Tubac.
By 1860 the mining boom had faded, Civil War recalled Federal Troops and Apache raiding intensified. August 1, 1861, Confederate Troops seized Arizona only to lose it to the Union a few months later. Lincoln declared Arizona a Territory, February 20, 1863.
T. Lillie Mercer, Sabino Otero and others established the Tubac town site in 1882, built the Tubac School in 1885, and they organized the Tubac Scouts in 1866 to fight the Apaches. Geronimo surrender in September, bringing peace to Tubac at long last!
Statehood: On February 14, 1912, Arizona was admitted to the Union. Homesteaders, granted land during the Arizona Territorial period, lost it in the Baca Float #3 land dispute. Evicted from their land by 1917, Tubacans were forced to relocated to today's "Historic District." St. Ann's Church was rebuilt for the third time in 1920 and life in Tubac serene.
In 1948, artist Dale Nichols arrived establishing the Artists School. Since that time, Tubac has become a center for art and history. The Tubac Presidio State Historic Park, was established in 1959 and the Museum in 1964. The first Tubac Festival of the Arts took place in 1960, with the Tubac Center of the Arts opening in 1972.
Interesting Points
Tubac Name Origin: Over the years, there have been many translations of the name Tubac. They include: "where the water comes out," "gray adobe house," 
"black water," and even "rotten." According to Henry Dobyns in "Tubac Through Four Centuries.", the original Piman place name for Tubac may be written Tchoowaka in English. More recently Dave Shaul, a noted Pima linguist, has determined that the Pima language does not include the words "tubac" or "bac." However, it does include: "tu" = "black"; and "ba'a" = "pool of water"; also the word "tuva" = "where it is low" or "low area," which is possibly a more accurate translation.
5 Cultures form Tubac
Tubac has been home to at least five distinct cultures: the Hohokam between 300 and 1400 AD; the Tohono O'odham ("Desert People" called Papago by the Spanish) arrived sometime in the 1500's; the Spaniards arrived with Father Campos in 1726, according to a baptismal record; Mexico claimed it during the 1821 Mexican War of Independence; and it was bought by the United States under the 1853 Gadsden Purchase.
The Twentieth Century and Beyond: Tubac's Art
Tubac's transition to the place Where Art & History Meet began in 1945 when noted American painter Dale Nichols made his first visit to study the possibilities of establishing an art school here. He moved to Tubac three years later and founded the Dale Nichols Art School in a portion of what is now Tubac's old town. Though the school's existence was short lived, Nichols' influence wasn't.
Subsequent years heralded the arrival of notable artists such as Ross Stefan, El Meyer and Sid Cedargreen.
Ross Stefan, a longtime friend of Dale Nichols, leased Nichols' studio space in the historic Poston Block (now owned by painter Michael Gibbons). Sid Cedargreen moved to Tubac in 1958 and established a small studio. Though less known than Nichols or Stefan, Cedargreens' contributions to Tubac are substantial. As a co-founder of the Tubac Center of the Arts and the Santa Cruz Art Association, Cedargreen continues to silently influence.
Harwood Steiger established his seminal fabric silk screening business on Tubac Road back in 1974. Known for distinctive patterns and strong colors, the fabric of Harwood Steiger continues to be prized by collectors.
One of Arizona's most beloved artists made Tubac his home during the final years of his life. Hart "Hal" Empie was born in Arizona in 1909 and his credits as a painter include his highly collected "Kartoon Kards", several covers of Arizona Highways, and legions of loyal fans around the world. Empie, who worked entirely from the landscapes of his mind, passed away in 2001.
Though Tubac isn't known for abstract art, Virginia Hall wasn't deterred when she move here in 1979. The artist, who grew up in the company of Ansel Adams, paints from an expansive viewpoint that's expressed vividly in her large abstracts.
Of all the working artists' studios of Tubac, perhaps none have become more of a destination for visitors than Lee Blackwell's. Blackwell's copper fountains are at once both fun and artistic, uniting many of the desert elements Arizona is known for.
Recent years have seen a resurgence of artists seeking Tubac's casual, art-sensitive lifestyle. In 1995, Diane Lysle built her working pottery studio on Camino Otero. Fred Tuch, a noted art director from Hollywood, and his wife Norma made Tubac their home in 1994. Bobb Vann, known nationally for his paintings chronicling the social and historical significance of African Americans in the United States, moved to Tubac in the early 1990's. Abstract painter Georgia Schwartz lived here and painted the universe from 1995-2001. Renowned wildlife illustrator Nicholas Wilson now maintains his year-around studio in Tubac's historic old town, as does plein air painter Michael Gibbons.
