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Early newspaper accounts of Edison’s Phonograph in the wild west.

Both of the following are from the Arizona Silver Belt a weekly newspaper serving Globe City.

An Edison Phonograph exhibits in an Arizona Territory mining town, 1880 A Magic Lantern and Phonograph evening in 1883. Globe City, started as a mining camp in the Arizona Territory, and became established in 1876.
Silver brought fortune seekers and business 90 miles east of Phoenix to this isolated area.
Due to its remoteness and proximity to the San Carlos Indian Reservation, Globe remained a
"Wild West" town, complete with stagecoach robberies, lynchings, murders, and
violent conflict with the Apache.[/size]

James.

Found some photos of Globe (circa 1880) courtesy Arizona State Library, Archives and Public Records. History and Archives Division., obtained from http://adnp.azlibrary.gov/

That's great! I'm very sure this was some would-be exhibitor who bought a Parlor Model tinfoil and set out to emulate the professional exhibitors of late 1878 and early 1879. By 1880 the tinfoil phonograph had lost most of its allure, certainly in big cities. But an enterprising, ambitious newcomer might see a potential fortune in tiny towns in the wilderness. Evidently, based on the article, he failed to master the operation of the (surprisingly complicated) little tinfoil phonograph.

Oh, for a time machine to go back and witness that...

I love the research you do. Very interesting.

Very interesting James, thanks.

Fran

Thanks for the comments.

It's hard to believe that someone would travel to a dangerous outpost with just a phonograph to exhibit. He must have had some Bear's Oil and Mustard Plaster to hawk, too!

James.