“Hell-raising, Heroic and Hidden Women of the Old West”

Clarkdale AZ (May 6, 2019) – The Clarkdale Historical Society and Museum, in partnership with Yavapai College Osher Lifelong Learning Institute (OLLI) Sedona/Verde Valley, is pleased to present an Arizona Humanities Council-AZ Speaks free community education event on Thursday May 23, titled “Hell-raising, Heroic and Hidden Women of the Old West” by noted author and journalist Jana Bommersbach.

The program will be held at 2:00pm in Room M-137 on the Verde Valley Campus of Yavapai College located at 601 Black Hills Drive in Clarkdale.

Although history tries to tell us that only men settled the Old West, that is shattered by Bommersbach’s verbal tour through some of the amazing women who made all the difference. Any woman who came West in the 1800’s had to be full of grit and spit to survive. Hear the collected stories of dozens of women who prove it.  Ever heard of Donaldina Cameron or Biddy Mason?  Sharlott Hall or Pearl Hart who was Arizona’s infamous stagecoach robber? Bommersbach reveals the in depth contributions of women like Lozen, the Apache warrior considered to be the “Joan of Arc” of her people and Terriita, the most famous Mexican woman in the nation at the turn of the century. Meeting these women, you will never think of the Old West as the same again!

Jana Bommersbach is an acclaimed and respected journalist having been a reporter and editor for both weekly and daily newspapers; has written columns and investigative stories for magazines; has appeared on television with both political commentaries and investigative stories. She is also an accomplished author, releasing her newest book in 2018.

AZ Speaks is the longest-running and most popular program of Arizona Humanities who makes this program possible.  Arizona Humanities is a statewide 501(c)3 non-profit organization and the Arizona affiliate of the National Endowment for the Humanities.

AZH supports public programs that promote understanding of the human experience across Arizona.

For further information, contact the Clarkdale Historical Society and Museum at 928-649-1198, www.clarkdalemuseum.org. or Osher Lifelong Learning Institute Verde Valley Campus at 928-649-5550, www.ollisedonaverde.org.