Museum Exhibits

The Sharlot Hall Museum invites you to explore the colorful panorama of Central Arizona's History. The Museum's nine buildings and four special gardens (including our famous Territorial Women's Rose Garden) illuminate a period spanning the years from before the founding of Prescott in 1864 to the present. Click here for an overview of our grounds and historic buildings.

A Centennial Canvas: Paintings by Contemporary Prescott Artists

Our newest offering is an exhibition and sale of new paintings by 10 prominent Prescott artists that capture the beauty, history and culture of the Prescott area. The exhibit is being held in conjunction with Arizona’s centennial celebration. Many of the works will be available for sale, with part of the sale proceeds supporting the Sharlot Hall Museum.

Artists whose works will be exhibited are Shawn Cameron, Bonnie Casey, David Harlan, Doug Miley, Doug Oliver, Kathy Quick-Anderson, Cynthia Rigden, Sheila Savannah, Eric Slayton and Rafe Terry. The exhibiton is included with Museum admission and open daily through September 9, 2012.

Our exhibits also include the following:

• Get to know Museum founder Sharlot Mabridth Hall through an exhibit revealing her life and passions. She was a woman ahead of her times in many ways, yet with a keen sense of history.
• The crown jewel of the Museum grounds is the original Arizona territorial Governor's Mansion, proudly standing in the same place where it was built in 1864. It is the Museum's original home.
  
• The Museum's primary exhibits and dioramas are housed in the Sharlot Hall Building, built in 1936 as a project of the Civil Works Administration. This building also served as Sharlot Hall's home for a period.
• Completed in 1875, the Frémont House was built with local, milled lumber when the town of Prescott was little more than a decade old. At that time it was considered one of the more desirable residences in town. John Charles Frémont found it a suitable residence while he served as the fifth territorial governor of Arizona (1878-1881). In 1971 it was moved from its original location in downtown Prescott to the Museum grounds where it was restored to its original magnificence.
• The Bashford House is a Victorian treasure that houses the Museum's gift store, Sharlot's Timesless Treasures. It is the only one of Prescott's many Victorian houses that is regularly open to the public.
• The Museum's collection of Native American baskets is a must-see, with dozens of beautiful baskets on display in "The Baskets Keep Talking" exhibit.
  
• From a vintage stagecoach to Sharlot Hall's own 1927 Durant Star Touring Car, the Transportation Exhibit will stir the imagination of visitors of every age.
  
• In "Skyviews: Aerial Townscapes of Prescott, 1868 to Present" the Museum has put together a collection of old and new aerial views of Prescott that reveal how much the area has changed over the decades.

Off-site Exhibits

Orchard Ranch: An informational kiosk at the entrance of the Orchard Ranch RV Park on Hwy. 69 east of Prescott Valley marks the location of Sharlot Hall’s family homestead, called Orchard Ranch.  The site also includes a cabin constructed with wood from the Hall home.

Archived Exhibit Online

1898: Arizona Goes to War, an exciting story of Arizona's part in the Spanish-American War, is online only. Interpreted from a local perspective, it gives insight into the historic circumstances that propelled Arizonans to the forefront of action in this conflict and explores the question: how did territorial Arizona's frontier heritage affect the war?