NPS photos: Coronado - D. Bly / Chiricahua - C. Dishinger The National Park Service's Southeast Arizona Group (SEAZ) includes Coronado National Memorial, Chiricahua National Monument, and Fort Bowie National Historic Site. The trio of parks are managed by one leadership team, headed by a superintendent. The close collaboration between these park units benefits nearly every aspect of operation. Every park in the group is unique in its own right: the cultural history of Fort Bowie and the shaping of the American West, the geologic grandeur of the standing rocks at Chiricahua, and the Spanish history and rich landscape of Coronado National Memorial. Yet each park shares more in common than geography alone. SEAZ Group parks are protected areas where important historical events took place, and where crucial biological habitats intersect. While Fort Bowie and Coronado were established as historical sites they both have fascinating natural history, and alternately, Chiricahua - known for it's "wonderland of rocks" - also shares a powerful cultural history involving European settlers and Apache Indians. The Southeast Arizona Group plays an important role in the local communities of Sierra Vista, Hereford, Willcox, Bisbee, Bowie and more, by bringing tourism dollars and jobs to the region. A National Park Service report showed that 201,211 visitors in 2010 spent $8,076,000 in the group’s three parks, and in nearby communities. The spending at these three parks supported 110 jobs in several local areas. |
Last updated: January 3, 2022