Cottonwood, Arizona's revived Main Street known as Old Town is the Verde Valley's new entertainment district. The Cottonwood Hotel sits in the center of this Cottonwood Commercial Historic District, (National Register of Historic Places) and has the best view over all of the downtown activities.
... once known as the "Biggest Little Town in the State of Arizona" for having the most business houses per capita during the 1920's, 1930's depression, as its businesses thrived due to its notorious fame of "Bootlegging" and "Bootlegger Kings". Main Street was lined with Pool Halls that dispensed illegal spirits from their back rooms and underground tunnels that hid it from the law during the prohibition era years of 1915-1933.
Today the spirit lives on. This small strip of historic buildings now dispense "A Taste of Old Town" with half a dozen wine tasting rooms, largest cluster of the Verde Valley Wine Trail and Painted Barrel Trail, a diversified choice of the Valley's most popular restaurants & cafes with outdoor courtyards and sidewalk seating, "foodies" sampling shops, eclectric array of unique shops, antiques, books and galleries, historic lodging, and other accommodations of places to stay, plus an old haunted jail.
Old Town borders the Verde River Greenway Riparian. This "rare" riparian area flourishes with unique vegetation and habitat and is a short walk to the Dead Horse Ranch State Park with hiking trails, picnicking, birdwatching, biking, jogging, horseback riding, fishing, finding your own little private beach along the river and more.
Old Town Cottonwood was visited by many movie stars like Mae West and John Wayne. Some of its historic buildings have been used in many classic movie settings. To mention a few was (1946) Desert Fury starring Burt Lancastor and 'Lizabeth Scott, (1967) "Stay Away, Joe" with Elvis Presley and (1987) "Dudes" starring Jon Cryer.
The Tuzigoot National Monumentprehistoric Indian ruins towers over Old Town Cottonwood. Just a mile up the road, the Tuzigoot is one of the most popular Indian Ruins around. It is still one that visitors can walk into and get a feel to how the Sinaguan Indians actually lived.
Cottonwood the heart of the Verde Valley
is central to many other nearby attractions such as the Verde Canyon Train, Out of Africa Wildlife Park and more.
