New Public Stairways in the Miami – Globe, Arizona Mining District

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A little over two years ago, I wrote a blog post about the 147-step Keystone Stairway in Miami, Arizona. (Click here to read that post.) That post generated a few comments and some tips on finding other stairways in the Miami – Globe area of Arizona. After two years, my dog Petey and I finally got a chance to check them out last week.

Our first stop was the mining town of Globe, Arizona on Highway U.S. 60 about 90 miles east of Phoenix. Our tip was to look for a stairway at the end of Apache Street and on Sutherland Street. We found both stairways and some other surprises.

We parked on Apache and found a sidewalk running perpendicular to the end of the street.

This is the sidewalk at the end of Apache

This is the sidewalk at the end of Apache

We followed the sidewalk to the 82-step Apache stairway. Unfortunately these stairs seem to be neglected and do not appear to get much use.

As you can see, the stairs do not get much use

As you can see, the stairs do not get much use

The stairway was probably built before everyone over the age of sixteen decided to run their errands by car rather than foot. That’s too bad because there is so much to discover when you wander on foot.

This is the path at the bottom of the Apache stairs. It leads to an unpaved parking lot off the main road.

This is the path at the bottom of the Apache stairs. It leads to an unpaved parking lot off the main road.

After reaching the bottom of the stairs, Petey and I decided to take a walk and wander around the area. The first thing we spotted was a labyrinth that someone had built in their backyard.

This labyrinth was very cool.

This labyrinth was very cool.

As we continued along we saw cactus, different types of flowers, and plenty of buzzing bees. We even found a couple of small stairways we were not expecting to find. I would guess that there are others if we had taken more time to look for them.

We were not expecting to find this stairway.

We were not expecting to find this short stairway.

We finally circled around to Sutherland to walk across a deep arroyo on a footbridge and 30-step stairway on the east end of the bridge. The Sutherland footbridge was just around the corner from the Apache stairway.

This is a great short-cut. I hope neighbors appreciate it.

This is a great short-cut. I hope neighbors appreciate it.

Rather going right back to the car, we continued walking and circled around so we could finish our brief visit to Globe with a climb up the Apache stairway. We then hopped in the car drove seven miles west on U.S. 60 to Miami, Arizona. Miami, like Globe, is an old mining town.

In Miami we hoped to check out stairways at Forrest and Latham streets near where they cross U.S. 60. We found Forrest Street a couple of streets west of the Keystone stairs and parked the car. The Forrest stairs were just south of U.S. 60 and easy to find. So we got out of the car and started climbing.

This is the bottom of the Forrest stairs.

This is the bottom of the Forrest stairs.

The Forrest stairway has 112 steps.

The Forrest stairway has 112 steps.

The stairway had 112 steps and a house along the way. When we reached the top we had great views of the mining area and saw a now-closed Catholic school at the end of the street. As we walked towards the school we could hear the distant sound of a train blowing its horn. Hearing what’s around you is a big part of wandering.

Freeport-McMorRan, the mining company, is restoring the mining areas to a more natural appearance.

Freeport-McMorRan, the mining company, is restoring the mining areas to a more natural appearance.

Even better we found another stairway at 884 Rose Street that we were not expecting. That stairway had 50 steps and led us down to several houses and ended at an unpaved road that went back to where we parked our car. Instead of getting back in the car, we continued walking.

This is the top of the 50-step stairway at 884 Rose.

This is the top of the 50-step stairway at 884 Rose.

Along the way we passed an old Catholic Church built in 1915, probably for Italian immigrants. Old mining towns are always interesting to walk around as you can learn so much about the different people from around the world who came to work the mines.

This is the church we passed.

This is the church we passed.

In another mining town you might find an Eastern Orthodox Church for Serbian miners. If you explore the old mining towns of Michigan’s Upper Peninsula (the U.P.) or the copper mining town of Butte, Montana, you’ll find that pasties (pass-tees) are a local treat. They were brought over by Cornish miners. If you’ve never had a pasty, it is like a calzone except that it filled with meat, potatoes, onions, and rutabaga. They were what the miners ate for lunch.

Finns were another group that came to the U.P. to work the mines. When the mines closed the Finns stayed. And you can still hear Finnish language shows on the radio.  Without the mines and the diversity of the work force, we would never have these wonderful local traditions.

With us running out of time and having another stairway to climb, we went back to the car and drove to the Latham stairway, a few streets to the east. This stairway was a little trickier to find as the road where they were located did not have a sign. Nevertheless we found them without a problem.

This is the bottom of the Latham stairway.

This is the bottom of the Latham stairway.

The Latham stairway had 122 steps and was in poor condition. It’s too bad because the stairs provide a great route from the top the hill to the businesses in town.

As you can see they are not in the best of condition.

As you can see they are not in the best of condition.

With the last stairway climbed, Petey and I then headed south to Bisbee to complete our research for the upcoming Bisbee stair guide.

12 Comments

  1. Pingback: Walkable placemaking with outdoor public stairways | Panethos

  2. In Miami, if you turn south on Cordova by the old Silver Front Cafe there is a combination path and stairway that connects to Merritt Street above. It was a route used by many students attending the old Miami High School. There is also an interesting stairway between Adonis and Crestview, that was built for the same purpose. The High School was where the Christine Apartments are now.

  3. Stairways To Heaven

  4. When I started reading your article I immediately thought of the stairs on Rose Rd in Miami, and was happy to see them included in your story. Around 1971-72 I lived in an apartment at the bottom of those stairs when my daughters were 2 & 4 yrs old. At that time there was no road to the apartment, we parked at the top on the street and took the stairs everyday.for everything we had to do from shopping to laundry and anything in between. Needless to say,I was in great shape thanks to all that stair climbing 😊 After I had moved there my Mom told me that was the street she and my Dad lived on when I was born. Thanks for the article, it brought back good memories.

  5. The church was there because my fathers family lots of other families were Mexican Americans that were catholic. Many were immigrants who moved there from Chihuahua Mexico and their descendants are still there today.

  6. Super glad you found the two by my house I mentioned. You had to be across from me to go down the second set. :). Still have the library and prospect ones to go!

  7. Thanks so much. I did the circuit in Globe yesterday – what great fun and what an interesting town. I went to Miami and did your Latham stairway I also located the one that you discovered off of Rose. Somehow I missed the one on Forrest – does it go up to Merritt St? It was late and windy and I guess I just did not have the patience to keep looking.

  8. Albion, California boasts one to the past.

  9. Very interesting post. I love the stairways in old mining towns. Jerome also has some great ones.

    Highway 60 through New Mexico is one of my favorite roads but I’ve not taken it as far as west as Miami, AZ. (I’ve been close though–veered northwest after Globe to hit the Apache Trail.) This makes me think it’s time to become acquainted with Highway 60 through to Phoenix, at least.

    Thanks for the info! JM

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