Clemenceau, Cottonwood facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Clemenceau, Arizona
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The Bank of Clemenceau, founded 1918. The bank building is preserved on the grounds of the Clemenceau Heritage Museum.
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 Clemenceau, Arizona
Location in Arizona
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| Country | United States |
| State | Arizona |
| County | Yavapai |
| Elevation | 3,471 ft (1,058 m) |
| Time zone | UTC-7 (MST (no DST)) |
Clemenceau is a neighborhood in the city of Cottonwood, Arizona. It's located in Yavapai County. This area was built in 1917 as a special "company town." It was made to support a new smelter for the United Verde Extension Mine (UVX) in Jerome.
The town was first called Verde, named after the mine. But in 1920, its name changed to Clemenceau. This was to honor Georges Clemenceau, who was the French premier during World War I. He was also a friend of James Douglas, Jr., who owned the mine. Clemenceau even sent a special vase to the town as a gift.
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Clemenceau's Early Days
The town was renamed Clemenceau in 1920. This was to honor Georges Clemenceau and avoid confusion with nearby Camp Verde. Even though it's now part of Cottonwood, Clemenceau once had its own post office. It also had a train station on the Clarkdale branch of the Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe Railroad.
Construction of Verde, the smelter town, began around January 1918. The company built homes for workers, a school, a bank, and a clubhouse. At different times, between 1,000 and 5,000 people lived there.
To move ore from the mine in Jerome to the smelter, Douglas built the Arizona-Extension Railway. This was a short train line with two branches. One branch connected Clemenceau to the Josephine Tunnel, which led to the UVX Mine. The other branch ran between Clemenceau and Clarkdale.
During World War I, there were some difficult times in the town. In 1918, a local lawman was killed during an incident involving workers. The person responsible was later killed in a shootout.
Changes Over Time
The Clemenceau smelter closed down in 1937. After this, most people moved away from the area. When Cottonwood became an official city in 1960, Clemenceau and its airport became part of Cottonwood.
Today, not much of the original town of Clemenceau remains. You can still see the old school building and the bank/post office. There's also a large pile of leftover material from the smelter called a slag pile. The Clemenceau Water Company still serves the area. The city of Cottonwood bought it in 2004, but it still operates separately.
Clemenceau Heritage Museum
The Clemenceau Heritage Museum is located in the old Clemenceau School building. This school was open from 1924 until 1986. The original Clemenceau Bank and Post Office building from 1918 is also part of the museum.
The museum has many interesting displays. You can learn about mining, ranching, and farming in the Verde Valley. It also keeps old records and items from the area. A detailed working model-railroad display shows the nine different train lines that once operated in the region.
Friendship Between Douglas and Clemenceau
James Douglas, Jr. and Georges Clemenceau were good friends. In 1926, Douglas bought an apartment in Paris for Clemenceau to use after he retired. This building later became the Musée Clemenceau, a museum dedicated to Georges Clemenceau.
Famous Visitors to Clemenceau
Jack Frye, who was a leader at TWA airlines, often kept his personal airplane at the Clemenceau Airport. His plane was a Lockheed Model 10 Electra. Frye owned a vacation ranch near Sedona, which is now Red Rock State Park.
