Scorpion Gulch - a story without a sting

Scorpion Gulch is not a ghost town or a location of important wild west history. It is, however, burned into the memories of many people who grew up in the area around South Mountain Park in Phoenix, AZ.

This small collection of buildings brought much joy and probably more than a few sore stomachs to children from the mid 1930’s until the late 60’s. This is because Scorpion Gulch was a store that sold household items and Native American goods like jewelry and leather, but most importantly penny candies and soda for the young and the young at heart.

Bill or “Grandpa,” as he preferred to be called, built the store and connecting home out of rock that he hauled and placed himself. Grandpa’s store was a labor of love. He loved to socialize, and he also loved to see smiles on the faces of the over 200 children that would make their way to Scorpion Gulch every weekend. Every kid got their own bottle of pop even if they could not afford it because two kids drinking out of the same bottle, well, “It isn’t sanitary.” It was said that Bill gave away more candy and soda than he sold but that was not a concern of his.

The children loved Grandpa so much that some of them even rigged up an alarm that he could pull if ever he was unwell and needed assistance. Parents would even give Bill a call when their kids and friends were headed his way, and Bill would call the parents back once the children left for home to make sure the parents knew that the kids were on the way home. Bill also ran a cactus garden which boasted over 1,800 species of cactus from all over the world.

For a short time in the 70’s the store became a bar. I assume this was after Bill passed away, though he was still running it in 1966 at the age of 75.

Scorpion Gulch was added to the historic preservation list in 1990 and in 2012 there was a major restoration and stabilization of the buildings. Today the buildings have no roofs and some of the walls are incomplete, but it is a beautiful place to take photos. Many wedding, high school senior, and other event photos are taken out at the gulch. We highly recommend stopping off at Scorpion Gulch any time you are in the South Mountain area. Don’t forget to take some soda and candy in memory of Grandpa. Sources: Wikipedia, Ghosttownsofaz, Southmountainhistory.blogspot.com