YUMA CROSSING STATE HISTORIC PARK ~ March 17, 2007

Yuma Crossing State Historic Park was the site of the Yuma Quartermaster Supply Depot, used by the U.S. Army to store and distribute supplies for all the military posts in Arizona, Nevada, Utah, New Mexico and Texas. A six month supply of clothing, food, ammunition, and other goods was kept at the depot at all times. The supplies were brought from California by ocean vessels traveling around the Baja Peninsula to Port Isabel near the mouth of the Colorado River. There, cargos were transferred to river steamers and brought upstream to Yuma. The depot was in operation from 1864-1883.

While we were at this state park we had a chance to see a 1907 Southern Pacific Steam Locomotive and Coach Car, a transportation museum with wagons and other vehicles on display (including a riverboat replica and tons of historic photos), and some nice exhibits in the Visitor Center (the centerpiece of which is a Model T Ford on a wooden plank roadway). If you venture into a side room where they show films, be sure to look at the old black-and-white photos on the wall. One of them is a photo of a local bridge from long before WWII, but guess what design is painted on the side? (We did a double-take upon seeing the swastika, but this symbol was actually found in many ancient cultures before Hitler started using it.)

Yuma Crossing State Historic Park is located on the east side of 4th Avenue. All you have to do is find 4th Avenue, head in the direction of the Colorado River, and you will see the park grounds on the east side of 4th Avenue just past the old downtown area.