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| no partners | | I finally got to visit the old religious commune, mining, and sawmill camp located in the western portion of the Huachuca Mountains, not far from Parker Canyon Lake. It had been on my to do list since 1980 when I moved to Tucson. For some reason over the years I never got around to checking it out until now. It was pretty hot while I was there, but storm clouds were brewing over the mountain. It was a little tricky to locate, as there are a number of roads in the area to choose from. After initially turning the wrong way and heading toward Peterson and Lyle Peaks, then over to a trailhead, I finally took the right road and found it. This camp was originally located at the Copper Glance Mine, about 3 miles up the mountain, but later moved down to this lower spot as the mine played out and the occupant's endeavors turned to ranching and running a sawmill. Eventually, Sunnyside become totally abandoned by the early 1940s, as residents either died or moved away. One person decided to return there to live late in life. John McIntyre first arrived on the scene in 1893 as a 3 year old. Over the years he moved away, but in the mid 1960's moved back, and lived there with his wife until he passed away in 1985 at age 94. Since then Sunnyside has been a true ghost again. When Mr. McIntyre moved back he put in the more modern building there, a Jim Walter prefab unit with all modern conveniences, which he added to. He acted as the caretaker/historian of the site, and if you happened by he'd give you a tour. I wish I had gone there in the early 1980's to have met him. One of my hiking friends did meet him shortly before he passed, and got the tour. He said Mr. McIntyre stood about 5"2", but was wiry with a powerful grip when they shook hands, even in his 90s.
Mr. McIntyre is buried at Black Oak Cemetery in Canelo.
I was unable to find the nearby cemetery, so that will give me reason to go back again, and also hike up to the old mine. Apparently the town founder, Sam Donnelly is buried up by the mine. He fell ill and died in 1901, early in the life of the camp. My hiking friend remembers checking out the cemetery one time shortly after some grave robbers were there. He said it was spooky when they came across the skull of a woman laying on the ground, with some hair still attached.
A good source of information is a book published in 1982, "A Place Called Sunnyside", by Roberta (Biff) Lamma. She was born in Phoenix in 1914, but grew up in Sunnyside. She and her mother moved to Patagonia in 1941, at the time of the original abandonment, and they lived there many years, with her mother passing in 1965 at age 92. I wondered if she was still alive, but after researching, found she had passed away in Prescott in 2007.
http://www.legendsofamerica.com/az-sunnyside.html |
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