Upcoming Events
March 21, 2023 - 6:00 PM; General Meeting; Guest Speaker Bill Cavaliere - "Chiricahua Apache History"
We are very excited about our guest speaker for our March 21, 2023 General Meeting, Bill
Cavaliere, who will speak to us about the Chiricahua Apache History based on the book he
authored The Chiricahua Apaches, A Concise History. Bill’s extensive historical knowledge stems
from his years of independent research after retiring from 28 years in law enforcement which
included serving as Sherriff of Hidalgo Co. NM, and many years in the U.S. Forest Service in the
Chiricahua Mountains of Arizona.
Bill Cavaliere is an independent researcher and currently President of the Cochise County
Historical Society. He is also on the board of the Arizona Historical Society’s southern chapter.
He and his wife Jill live on a ranch near Portal, Arizona, where he has written numerous articles
published in historical journals.
The RRHS Meeting will take place on Tuesday March 21, 2023, at 6pm, at the Rio
Rico Community Center at 391 Avenida Coatimundi, Rio Rico, AZ 85648.
Visit us at www.rioricohistoricalsociety.org
Cavaliere, who will speak to us about the Chiricahua Apache History based on the book he
authored The Chiricahua Apaches, A Concise History. Bill’s extensive historical knowledge stems
from his years of independent research after retiring from 28 years in law enforcement which
included serving as Sherriff of Hidalgo Co. NM, and many years in the U.S. Forest Service in the
Chiricahua Mountains of Arizona.
Bill Cavaliere is an independent researcher and currently President of the Cochise County
Historical Society. He is also on the board of the Arizona Historical Society’s southern chapter.
He and his wife Jill live on a ranch near Portal, Arizona, where he has written numerous articles
published in historical journals.
The RRHS Meeting will take place on Tuesday March 21, 2023, at 6pm, at the Rio
Rico Community Center at 391 Avenida Coatimundi, Rio Rico, AZ 85648.
Visit us at www.rioricohistoricalsociety.org
May 16, 2023 - 6:00 PM; General Meeting; Guest Speaker - Erik Berg - "Vintage Arizona: The Growth, Death, and Rebirth of a Local Wine Industry"
We are very excited about our guest speaker for our May 16, 2023 General
Meeting, Erik Berg. His lively presentation will trace the history of Arizona wine from its earliest
origins to the present. Starting from almost nothing in the 1970s, there are now over eighty
wineries and vineyards across the state with more starting every year. Despite the youth of the
current industry, there is a long and largely forgotten history of wine-making in Arizona dating
back some two hundred years. Topics will include fact and fiction regarding Spanish Colonial
winemaking, wine on the western frontier, 19th century Mesa’s infamous ‘homicidal wine,’ the
illegal raisin wineries of the Great Depression, and the unlikely band of aspiring winemakers
that spurred the modern rebirth of Arizona wine in the 1980s. Some of the wines discussed
may be dry, but this interesting and often amusing presentation certainly won’t be.
Erik Berg is an award-winning historian and writer with a special interest in the role of science
and industry in the early twentieth century Southwest. In addition to contributing to several
books on southwestern history, his work has appeared in the Journal of Arizona History,
Arizona Highways, and Sedona Magazine. His initial work on the history of wine in Arizona won
the Barry Goldwater Award for best overall paper at the 2016 Arizona History Convention.
The RRHS Meeting will take place on Tuesday May 16, 2023, at 6pm, at the Rio
Rico Community Center at 391 Avenida Coatimundi, Rio Rico, AZ 85648.
Visit us at www.rioricohistoricalsociety.org
Meeting, Erik Berg. His lively presentation will trace the history of Arizona wine from its earliest
origins to the present. Starting from almost nothing in the 1970s, there are now over eighty
wineries and vineyards across the state with more starting every year. Despite the youth of the
current industry, there is a long and largely forgotten history of wine-making in Arizona dating
back some two hundred years. Topics will include fact and fiction regarding Spanish Colonial
winemaking, wine on the western frontier, 19th century Mesa’s infamous ‘homicidal wine,’ the
illegal raisin wineries of the Great Depression, and the unlikely band of aspiring winemakers
that spurred the modern rebirth of Arizona wine in the 1980s. Some of the wines discussed
may be dry, but this interesting and often amusing presentation certainly won’t be.
Erik Berg is an award-winning historian and writer with a special interest in the role of science
and industry in the early twentieth century Southwest. In addition to contributing to several
books on southwestern history, his work has appeared in the Journal of Arizona History,
Arizona Highways, and Sedona Magazine. His initial work on the history of wine in Arizona won
the Barry Goldwater Award for best overall paper at the 2016 Arizona History Convention.
The RRHS Meeting will take place on Tuesday May 16, 2023, at 6pm, at the Rio
Rico Community Center at 391 Avenida Coatimundi, Rio Rico, AZ 85648.
Visit us at www.rioricohistoricalsociety.org
We are currently taking donations for our third historical monument.
Calabasas Historical Monument on Pendleton Dr.
Dedicated January 2018 |
50th Anniversary of Rio Rico Monument at the County Building on Rio Rico Dr.
Dedicated May 2019 |