HISTORIC LANDMARK: There was once a day when some people were certainly not happy to see Yuma's famous Territorial Prison. But many (many, many) decades have passed since one of the toughest lockdowns in the Old West shuttered its doors, or creaked the big iron gates closed, rather. Since then, the Territorial Prison has become a tourist draw and a lesson in history for the many people and television shows and tours that regularly make for the stone-laden fortress. Meaning that keeping the aging site open and running for all to see is something of a major task. Enter a group of fundraising angels, people who want the Territorial Prison to continue for visitors, students, and Old West aficionados alike; they're behind the 3:10 to Yuma event on Saturday, March 31. And if you think, "oh, that's cool, but I bet this fundraiser happens in some hotel ballroom, and there will just be slides of the prison on some screen," au contraire; the event actually happens at the Territorial Prison after dark.
DINNER AND ELVIS: Yep, The King -- aka tribute artist Donny Edwards -- will be stopping by the prison to provide some hip-swaying entertainment and "Jailhouse Rock" songship. There's a dinner, too, and an auction, and other interesting haps during the night. Our favorite bit? The auction item that offers a chance for four people to dine in one of the prison's "dark cells" by candlelight. What other near-and-dear couple would you invite to dine with you in such a location?
Most of all, if you love your 18th-century Arizona gunslinger stories and you like seeing important places weather on, make a date for the dinner. You're helping history, after all. A ticket is $50.
