Yandell's Cowboy Shop (Gone)
Globe, AZ Photo by RoadsidePeek.com
The Yandell’s Cowboy Shop sign did not need many words to get its point across. A big red boot hanging above the sidewalk marked the way to this little Globe shop, where customers could pick up Western gear or have a worn pair of work boots repaired. 06-23
Combining a cowboy store with a shoe-repair shop made plenty of sense in a town surrounded by ranching and mining country. A sturdy pair of boots probably received quite a workout around here.
UPDATE: Yandell’s Cowboy Shop is closed, and the big red boot sign has been removed. The exact location and fate of the original storefront remain uncertain. 09-26
Ziede's Sales (Closed)
Douglas, AZ Photo by RoadsidePeek.com
The Ziede’s Sales building was another old storefront found along the commercial streets of Douglas. Its plain exterior and straightforward name have the look of a neighborhood store that had been doing business the same way for quite a few years. No fancy branding was needed here. Just put “Sales” on the building and let everyone come inside to see what was waiting on the shelves. 06-23
The store was connected to the Ziede family, part of the Lebanese-American merchant community that established clothing, dry-goods, and other retail businesses around Cochise County. Immigrant families played an important role in the growth of small-town commercial districts across Arizona, often opening stores that remained in the family for generations.
Ziede's Sales
Douglas, AZ Photo by RoadsidePeek.com
Downtown Douglas was once packed with independently owned shops catering to miners, railroad workers, ranching families, and customers crossing the nearby Mexican border. A shopper could walk along G Avenue and find clothing stores, jewelers, general merchandise, restaurants, and just about everything needed without leaving the center of town. Ziede’s Sales was part of that busy retail landscape.
UPDATE: Ziede’s Sales is no longer in business. The old storefront appears to remain standing in downtown Douglas, although it has been repurposed or left vacant and the original signs have disappeared. 09-26
Crystal Palace Saloon
Tombstone, AZ Photo by RoadsidePeek.com
The Crystal Palace Saloon began as the Golden Eagle Brewery in 1879. After it burned during Tombstone’s great fire of 1882, it reopened as a grand saloon complete with a fountain and live goldfish pond. Virgil Earp even kept an office upstairs. 06-23
The building later became a movie theater before being restored as a saloon in 1963. Naturally, a Tombstone landmark this old also comes with a few ghost stories.
UPDATE: The Crystal Palace remains open as a restaurant and bar, serving drinks on the same corner more than 140 years after the fire. 09-26
Tavern Tree Antiques (Closed)
Globe, AZ Photo by RoadsidePeek.com
The Tavern Tree Antiques was one of the little antique shops tucked among Globe’s old commercial buildings. With a name like Tavern Tree, this sounds like the sort of place where a roadside wanderer might step inside for a quick look and emerge an hour later carrying something completely unexpected. 06-23
Little information has surfaced about the shop, including when it opened or who operated it. It has since joined the collection of small hometown businesses remembered mostly through old photographs.
UPDATE: Tavern Tree Antiques is permanently closed, and its storefront sign has been removed. The exact location and current use of the former shop remain uncertain. 09-26
Tombstone Territorial Trading Company (Closed)
Tombstone, AZ Photo by RoadsidePeek.com
The Tombstone Territorial Trading Company occupied an old Texaco service station that had traded gasoline pumps for souvenirs and Old West merchandise. The former station made a fitting little trading post for travelers passing through Tombstone, especially with its roadside location and weathered frontier appearance. 06-23
The shop was operated by Peter Kline, the same local character connected with Kline’s Trading Post over on Erie Street in Lowell. Apparently one trading post was not quite enough for Peter.
During the 1990s, the property became caught up in a strange land dispute when a mining claimant insisted that he owned the ground beneath several Tombstone buildings. At one point, there was even a threat to surround the trading post with a chain-link fence. Peter Kline rallied local opposition before title research determined that the claim involved underground mineral rights, not ownership of the buildings above. Just another quiet day in Tombstone.
UPDATE: The Tombstone Territorial Trading Company has closed, and its old sign has been removed. The former Texaco building appears to have been repurposed, although its present identity remains uncertain. 09-26
Shoe Repair (Gone)
Yuma, AZ Photo by RoadsidePeek.com
The Shoe Repair shop in Yuma did not need a catchy business name. Its plain roadside sign told passing customers exactly what happened inside, while the storefront appeared to offer boots along with old-fashioned cobbler service. When photographed in 1998, it was already looking like a survivor from another era. 06-23
Small repair shops like this once kept work boots and favorite shoes going for years. A new sole, a fresh heel, and they were ready for another trip down the road.
UPDATE: The shoe-repair business appears to be closed, and its old sign is gone. 09-26
H.J. Simmont Plumbing (Closed)
Buckeye, AZ Photo by RoadsidePeek.com
The H.J. Simmont Plumbing shop was one of the small service businesses lining Monroe Avenue through downtown Buckeye. Photographed in 1985, its straightforward storefront and sign belonged to a time when the neighborhood plumber often worked from a little shop right along the town’s main road. 06-23
The Simmont family handled plumbing work around Buckeye for years, although little information has surfaced about when the business first opened or finally closed. The old shop was located along historic US 80 near several other longtime Buckeye businesses.
UPDATE: H.J. Simmont Plumbing is permanently closed, and its old business sign has been removed. The present condition and use of the original storefront remain uncertain. 09-26
Yandell's Cowboy Shop (Gone)
Ziede's Sales (Closed)
Ziede's Sales
Crystal Palace Saloon
Tavern Tree Antiques (Closed)
Tombstone Territorial Trading Company (Closed)
Shoe Repair (Gone)
H.J. Simmont Plumbing (Closed)
