The Arizona sentinel., 1880-07-03
The town of Charleston contains

are two fine quartz mills at this place on the river. It is also quite d depot for supplies for the min ing district of Buachuca, ten miles distant to the southwest, and for the farmers in the San Pedro Valley. From Benson to Charleston the road runs directly through the farming districts oi the San Pedro Valley, which is rapidly filling up, and which is the most fertile and productive agricultural section in Southern Arizona. The quartz-mills now erected, and those which will hereafter be erected, will be To. cated up and down on both sides, and this railroad will run within easy communication of all the eligible points for miles on this river, for the entire distance from Benson to Charleston.
 At Contention City, on the San Pedro, is the splendid new mill of the Contention Company. This mill consumes about sixty tons of ore per day. and the Company contracted for duplicate mi to be erected immediately. Two other niIlS are contracted for, 10 be put up at once, and it is esti- mated that within eighteen months from date there will be at least twenty large mills on the San Pedro river between Benson and Charles :on, with an average reduction capacity of at least forty tons of ore per day each. or sou tons daily. The freight on this ore alone will produce ('t low estimste) $2 per ton, or S1600 dai- ly. Contention City has now about 200 hundred inhabitants, but is growing rapidly, and must eventually become. an important mill town. At present the two mills at Charleston and the one at Contention City consume about 150 tons of ore daily. The amount of freight now going daily to Tombstone alone from the ter minus of the Southern Pacific is about seventy tons, and to Char leston, Huachuca, Patagonia and intermediate points, by wagons, is as much more; and the trans portation is not sufficient for the wants of trade. The passenger travel over the Southern Pacific east from Tucson, going to the aforesaid points, is about 100 daily bo.h ways; but the increase of pas senger and freight traffic is 80 rapid that no approximate idea can now be formed of the status in these departments six months hence.
 Tombstone has a population of 5000 and is the largest town ill the county outside of Tucson. Its grand and prosperous future is assured by the wonderful discov- cries of mineral wealth in that section and the rapid devtlope- ment of all mining property.
 Patagonia District has several fine towns, the largest of which is Harshaw. This place has a population of about 300, and the towns of Washington, Mowry and another not yet named have as many more.
 The Mule Mountains, east from the Huachucas, are rapidly as' suming importance on account of rich discoveries in that section of copper and silver. There are sever.l small camps scattered about in that section, and favOra. ble reports are constantly arriv- ing.
 Further north and east from the Mule Mountains are the rich mineral districts in the Chiricit- hua Mountains, which are attract ing great attention now 6n ac- count of discoveries of gold, silver and copper. There are about 200 men prospecting in these mountains now.
 North of this point lies the beautiful town of Dos CabeZas, noted for it's rich gold mines. This is one of the most elegantly situated towns in the county, and has population of about two hundred.
 Tie climate in the San Pedro Valley from Benson to Charleston is dry and warm. The thermom- eter in summer ranges from S5 degrees to below 97 degrees in the winter it rarely falls below 30 degrees. At Tombstone anu Dragoon Pass the climate is somewhat different on account of the altitude From Charleston on the San Pedro to Tombstone and Dragoon Pass there is a gradual ascent of from 40 10 50 feet to the mile. At Tombstone the weather iS varU booitifuI apI bo,t1lel