Robert Thoresen
The PCQC completed its Doors of Tucson photo shoot on February 7 with a walking tour of the historic Presidio Barrio. The original settlement of Tucson commenced with the construction of El Presidio San Augustin del Tucson in 1775. Construction took over eight years with adobe walls enclosing an area to protect the colonists from Apache raids. Inside the presidio were homes, barracks, stables, a cemetery and several plazas. Soon after, Americans entered Tucson concluded by the Gadsen Purchase, the presidio was torn down with the last standing wall disappearing shortly after statehood. The common nickname for the city The Old Pueblo is derived from the original adobe walled presidio. Surrounding the original grounds of the El Presidio the first neighborhood began. Many of the structures date from the 1860s to the 1920s, reflecting a mix residence of Transformed Sonoran, Transitional Territorial, Mission Revival and Craftsman Bungalow homes.
Housing construction came after the Viejo Barrio on the south side of city center and is more dominated by stucco and adobe style construction. The Presidio Barrio is bounded on the south by the Tucson Museum of Art, by St Mary’s Road on the north and by Granada Avenue and Stone Avenue to the west and east respectively. A leisure walk of the area can be completed in two and one half hours. Two restaurants are in the area, La Cocina and the original El Charro. A third, a bistro, is part of the museum complex. For this trip the group of 18 members and guests chose the outside patio of El Charro. For snow birding members from the North and the East the only salt found was on the servings of margaritas consumed on a beautiful Arizona day.
The Photography Club of Quail Creek is a chartered club. Membership continues to expand. Club members partake in monthly photo contests and numerous photo shoots during the year. Monthly meetings are held the second Wednesday of the month in the Gold Room of the Madera Clubhouse at 6:30 p.m. Guests are welcome to attend meetings. The club website is at www.pcqc.org.