ARIZONA STATE PARKS: For Immediate Release
Managing and conserving Arizona’s natural, cultural and recreational resources for the benefit of the people, both in our Parks and through our Partners. FOR MORE INFORMATION CONTACT: Ellen Bilbrey at (602) 542-1996 or (602) 228-8518. Contact by Email: pio(at)azstateparks.gov
A modified Civil War Weekend will take place with some re-enactor volunteers on the same dates at a new location: Pioneer Living History Village 
3901 W. Pioneer Road, about 30
minutes north of downtown Phoenix off of Interstate 17.
Admission: $7 for adults; $6 for seniors 60 and older; $5 for
veterans and children ages 6-17; children ages 5 and younger get in
free. For more information call Pioneer Village at (623) 465-1052. Please note the modified event is not organized or operated by Arizona State Parks.
(Phoenix, AZ - February 9, 2009) - Due to State Park budget constraints and staffing concerns, the re-enactment of the Civil War in the Southwest, scheduled for March 14 and 15, has been cancelled. The two hundred Civil War re-enactors, who come to Arizona to participate from as far away as Massachusetts, will be contacted so they can cancel trips to Arizona in a timely manner.
For years visitors have enjoyed the three fascinating historic re-enactments complete with lifestyles of the soldiers in the southwest during the 1860s. The Battle of Picacho Pass, a Civil War skirmish, and two New Mexico battles drew thousands of visitors last year including children from schools, Boy/Girl Scout troops and other organizations.
In 1860 the New Mexico Territory, which consisted of the lands that would later become the states of Arizona and New Mexico, was sparsely populated. It ranked 34th in population out of 43 states and territories with only 83,009 inhabitants. It was 37th in black populations, with just 8 whom were free. When the Civil War broke out in 1861, the U.S. Government recalled the majority of its troops from the West to build the Union army for the fighting in the east. Henry Hopkins Sibley joined the Confederacy and convinced Jefferson Davis that he would raise an army in Texas and invade New Mexico territories. He proposed that mineral resources would fill the coffers of the Confederacy and fund their massive war effort.
For information about Arizona State Parks call (602) 542-4174 (outside of the Phoenix metro area call toll-free (800) 285-3703) or visit the website at azstateparks.com.
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Learn more about Picacho Peak State Park 
See Photos from the 2008 Civil War in the Southwest
link to this page:
http://azstateparks.com/press/2009/PR_02-09-09.html
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