In April, the Presidio Museum will host its last Salon & Saloon lecture of the season. Changing Woman, A Novel of The Camp Grant Massacre, written by Venetia Hobson Lewis focuses on the true events of April 30, 1871, known as the Blackest Day in Arizona’s History. Arizona Territory, 1871. Valeria Obregón and her ambitious husband, Raúl, arrive in the raw frontier town of Tucson hoping to find prosperity. Changing Woman, an Apache spirit who represents the natural order of the world and its cycle of birth, death, and rebirth, welcomes Nest Feather, a twelve-year-old Apache girl, into womanhood in Aravaipa Canyon. A large group of men from the Tucson area plan to attack an Aravaipa Apache ranchería near Camp Grant fifty-five miles north. Lewis will discuss her book, and copies will be available for sale. All lectures are held in the Monsoon Room at JoJo’s Restaurant, 201 N. Court Ave. NO BAR SERVICE WILL BE AVAILABLE IN THE MONSOON ROOM ON THIS DAY, SO ATTENDEES ARE ENCOURAGED TO ARRIVE EARLY TO ORDER DRINKS AND SNACKS AT JOJO’S CANTINA BEFORE THE LECTURE. Lectures cost $5/person at the door, or pre-registration is available online at https://tucsonpresidio.com/civicrm/event/info/?reset=1&id=917.
The museum’s workshop series continues in April with a Nopalitos Workshop on Thursday, Apr. 3, from 11 am-12:30 pm. When the young nopal pads are cut up, they become nopalitos and they are ready to be mixed with other ingredients to make delicious and healthy dishes. Locally, young prickly pear pads appear in the late spring. Led by Carolyn Niethammer, author of The Prickly Pear Cookbook and four other cookbooks that include prickly pear recipes, this class will show attendees how to clean the pads of spines and cook them so they are ready to incorporate into delicious dishes. The cost of the workshop is $60/person or $50/member. Pre-registration is required at https://tucsonpresidio.com/presidio-museum-workshops/.
A Tohono O’odham Frybread Workshop will be held on Thursday, April 10, from 10 am-11:30 am. Sherrie Cruz of Sheri’s Traditional Foods will teach attendees how to prepare the dough, make the dough into small balls, heat the oil to the right temperature for frying, flatten out the dough, and safely place it into the hot oil to fry on both sides until the frybread is golden brown. She’ll also discuss different sweet and savory fillings that can be piled on top of the frybread to make it even more delicious. The cost of the workshop is $60/person or $50/member. Pre-registration is required at https://tucsonpresidio.com/presidio-museum-workshops/.
The workshop series continues with the Propagating & Cultivating Native Plants Workshop, which will be held on Saturday, April 12, from 10 am-12 pm. The Arizona-Sonora Borderlands is home to an astonishing diversity of plant species that survive in conditions ranging from year-round standing water to sun-baked desert. With such a broad selection at our fingertips, there is a native plant for every garden situation. Bringing these plants into your home can attract wildlife, cultivate food and medicine, and help stem the tide of habitat fragmentation, all while creating a sense of place. This workshop will focus on the methods for propagating and growing a variety of species native to the Sonoran Desert region. Through hands-on practice and observation, we will learn to start plants from seeds and cuttings and will discuss how to choose the right plant for your location and ensure that it thrives. This class is for gardeners of all levels with an interest in making their landscapes more resilient and productive. Participants are encouraged to come with plant questions, landscape drawings, and a willingness to learn. All materials including pots, soil, and seeds/cuttings will be provided. Some pruners will be supplied, but participants are encouraged to bring hand pruners from home, as well as seeds or plant cuttings they would like to learn how to propagate. The cost of the workshop is $60/person or $50/member. Pre-registration is required at https://tucsonpresidio.com/presidio-museum-workshops/.
The final workshop in the series is the Soap-Making Workshop on Sunday, April 13, from 10 am-12 pm.In this hands-on class, Tracy Conklin, owner of Artemesia Soaps, will teach participants:
**The basics of making cold process soap from scratch using all natural ingredients,
**The fundamentals of cold process soapmaking,
**The best ways to safely work with sodium hydroxide (aka lye),
**The process of putting desert botanicals and clays in soap
Participants will leave class with one pound of soap, a soap mold, and recipes to continue soap-making adventures at home.
The cost of the workshop is $75/person or $65/member. Pre-registration is required at https://tucsonpresidio.com/presidio-museum-workshops/
The museum’s popular walking tours continue this month. All tours are $35/person or $20/member unless otherwise stated. Pre-registration is required at www.TucsonPresidio.com/walking-tours:
Mainly Murals – April 5, 9-11 am
Barrio Viejo – April 6 AND April 20, 10-11:30 am
Death After Dark – April 6 AND April 20, 8 to 10 pm
Presidio District Tour, Part 1 – April 11, 9:30-11:30 am
Turquoise Trail – April 12, 9-11:30 am
Court Street Cemetery – April 12, 10 am AND 1 pm
Turquoise Trail Shortened Version – April 20, 9-11 am
Turquoise Trail Shortened Version + Wine Tasting – April 20, 2-5 pm
Mansions of Main – April 20, 9-11 am
Santa Cruz River History – Mar. 25, 8-10 am ($40/person, $25/member includes admission to Mission Garden)
Presidio District Tour, Part 2 – April 25, 10 am-12 pm
Public Art & Murals with Wine Tasting at Leo Kent Hotel – April 26, 1 to 4 pm ($65/person, $55/member includes wine tasting)
Pioneer Women of Main Avenue – April 27, 9-11 am
Murals & More of the 4th Avenue District – April 27, 11:30 am to 1 pm
Murals & More + Margaritas of the 4th Avenue District – April 27, 2 to 4:30 pm
The Presidio San Agustín del Tucson Museum is located on the northeast corner of the original Presidio at 196 N. Court Ave. The Presidio Museum is a reconstruction of the original Tucson Presidio built in 1775. Docent tours give visitors a glimpse of what life in the Presidio was like for soldiers and other residents. Additional highlights include an original 150-year-old Sonoran row house and a 2,000-year-old prehistoric pit house.
Admission to the museum is $9 for adults, $6 for children ages 6-13 and free for children five and under and Presidio Museum members. Pima County residents, seniors 65+ and members of the military receive a $3 discount with ID. The Presidio Museum is managed by the Tucson Presidio Trust for Historic Preservation, a not-for-profit entity whose mission is to guide and aid in the interpretation of history at the Presidio San Agustín through research, education and living history experiences.
In 2025, the Presidio Museum will be the official host of the Celebration of All Things S-cuk Son/Tucson 250+, the anniversary of the Aug. 20, 1775, founding of the Presidio San Agustin and modern-day Tucson, as well as Tucson’s thousands of years of history and culture. The event will be held on Saturday, Aug. 23.
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