These fourteen non-fictional accounts relate to Arizona from the time of the first visit by Spanish explorer Francisco Vásquez de Coronado in 1540 to the frustrated claim of a would-be homesteader in the early 1900s. Between these we meet a series of military visitors, the railroad dreams of Confederate President Jefferson Davis, adventures and encounters by early-day travelers, and characterizations of Fort Yuma and Tucson by persons who were not among their admirers. Two young boys helped to turn aside the mayhem brought on by the last Apache raid in 1886, and less than a decade later Arizona farmers began raising a new type of livestock-ostriches. The glowing success of oil drillers in Texas and California encouraged Arizona entrepreneurs to explore for black gold as well. The results proved elusive. These and other stories helped establish the state's colorful history.