Fairbank, Arizona

What can you tell me about the town of Fairbank, Arizona?

Chalmer Davidson
Poplarville, Mississippi

The railroad arrived in what became Fairbank, Arizona, in 1881, making the town the closest link by rail to Tombstone, which was one of the largest cities in the territory at the time.

Fairbank’s train station became the scene of a sensational attempted train robbery on February 15, 1900, by the Burt Alvord Gang. Former Texas Ranger Jeff Milton, who was in the Wells, Fargo & Co. express car, thwarted the heist.

By the mid-1970s, Fairbank was all but deserted. The town was later incorporated into the BLM’s San Pedro Riparian National Conservation Area as the Fairbank Historic Townsite, which is open to the public.

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