The FlagstaffRailroad Addition Historic District is significant because of its association with the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway as well as U.S. Route 66. The original boundary was roughly bounded by Santa Fe RR tracks, Agassiz and Beaver Sts., Birch and Aspen Avenues. The district was expanded twice to add nine buildings along Phoenix Avenue from Beaver Street to San Francisco Avenue, and a building at 122 East Route 66.[2]
Disastrous fires swept through early Flagstaff; in 1897, the city passed an ordinance requiring all buildings in the business area to be built of brick, stone or iron.
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Several of the buildings in the District are associated with well-known businessmen of the late 1800s and early 1900s. These include John W. Weatherford, who constructed the Weatherford Hotel, the Babbitt brothers David, George, William and Charles, whose names are associated with several buildings in the District, and Thomas E. Pollock, Sr.[4]
Notable buildings in the Railroad Addition Historic District
Most of Flagstaff's first businesses were saloons, catering to railroad workers; brawls and shootings were common; building made of brick, but stuccoed in 1939[5]
Donahue Building
1888
Originally a saloon, and was owned by one of Flagstaff's most colorful characters, Sandy Donahue; built of brick and stuccoed in the 1930s[5]
^ abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyzaaabRichard K. Mangum and Sherry G. Mangum (1993). Flagstaff Historic Walk: A Stroll Through Old Downtown (Map). Northland Printing.