" On Silver Creek "September 27, 1878" At noon we drove across the creek where William Flake and party located. President Erastus Snow directed location of a town site which was called Snowflake. S.G. Ladd, surveyor was instructed to proceed to level the water ditch and survey the town plat and farm lands." Little Colorado Stake History.

Townsite was purchased from James Stinson by Mormon church for 500 head of cattle. It was then called Stinson's Ranch. "Snowflake" was a "coined" word, or name, for the two Bishops, Snow and Flake,. Shows as as Snowflake city on Smith map, 1879. Snowflake was first county seat of Apache county.

"I ran cattle on Silver creek for about five years and then sold my rights to William J. Flake for 500 head of cattle. The agreement was that when he paid me I was to leave the country and I left according to the agreement."Letter, James Stinson, Kline, Colorado May 31, 1931.

P.O. Est. June 27, 1881.

Barnes, Will C. Arizona Place Names University of Arizona Press. 1997.
p. 413

"The Indian name for this location was Todihi Biih'ili (="where it flows into the dark water"). In 1875, Martha Summerhayes visited the ranch here, owned by James Stinson. She wrote that many so-called ranches were adobe ruins, but remained on maps because they were usually near a spring or creek and hence served as travelers' camp sites. Sintson sold land in July 1878 to William Jordon Flake (b. July 3, 1839, North Carolina). In the early fall Erastus Snow and a group of twelve destitute families arrived from the settlement of Taylor, which had failed. A town site was surveyed on Flake's property and the new community took the name Snowflake after its founders. Among Mormons in the 1880s it was referred to as Snowflake Camp. When Apache County was formed in 1879, Snowflake was the countyseat, an honor it retained until 1881 when Springerville was chosen, only to replaced in 1882 by Saint Johns as county seat. PO est as Snow Flake, June 27, 1881, William D. Kartchner PM. name changed to Snowflake, September 17, 1906."

Barnes, Will C.; Granger, Byrd (ed.) Arizona's names : X marks the place Falconer Pub. Co. : distributed by Treasure Chest Publications, c1983. P. 572

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Websites

City Profile-Arizona Department of Commerce
http://www.commerce.state.az.us/pdf/commasst/comm/snowflke.pdf

Arizonan.com-Snowflake
http://arizonan.com/Snowflake/

Local Government Website
http://www.ci.snowflake.az.us/

Sites to See

Snowflake-Taylor Public Library
http://dewnet.net/library/

Smith Memorial Home
10 S 2ND ST W SNOWFLAKE AZ 85937-5216
(520) 536-4041

Stinson Museum
102 N 1ST ST E SNOWFLAKE AZ 85937-5317
(520) 536-4881
 

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Books/Manuscripts found in the ASU Library Catalog

The life and times of Snowflake : 1878-1978, a history in stories / compiled by the Centennial Committee.
F819 .S6 L48x

From Indian trails to jet trails : Snowflake's centennial history / Albert J. Levine.
F819 .S65 L47x

Snowflake Stake, 1887-1987 : a story of faith : 100 years of faith and service / compiled under direction of the Snowflake
Stake presidency.
F819.S59 S66x

Snowflake : a pictorial review, 1878-1964 / edited by Albert J. Levine.
F819 .S59 L4x

History Books for Reference
 

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Items on the Arizona and Southwest Index

Snowflake Pioneer Days; N.D.
CM MSM-111

Roberta Flake Clayton Papers
CM MSS-28

Biography of Joseph Peterson. 1943-1944
FM MSM-211

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Last Updated: July 26, 2002
If you would like to know more about the author of this site, Jeffrey Scott, feel free to visit his homepage.
In addition, if you have any questions about this site or Arizona History, feel free to e-mail Jeffrey