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HOW SHOW LOW GOT ITS NAME
Show Low, Arizona

Photographed by Gerald Thurman of Tempe, Arizona
Statue in Show Low, Arizona

Show Low had its beginning as a ranch of nearly 100,000 acres jointly owned by Marion Clark and Corydon Cooley, a U.S. army scout. According to legend, sometime around 1876, the partners decided that one of them should leave. They agreed to play cards to decide who would get the ranch. The game they played was believed to have been "seven up," and they played all night with neither of them achieving the winning hand. Finally, Clark is reputed to have said, "Show low, and you take the ranch." Cooley turned up the deuce of clubs and won the ranch, the cattle, all of the crops, and the buildings. The main street of the town is still called "Deuce of Clubs." Local political lore suggests that if the local election is ever tied, the winner will "draw low" for it.

Show Low Statue
1100 W. Deuce of Clubs
Show Low, AZ 85901

Map

Photographed by Gerald Thurman
June 1, 2005
Posted on RoadTrip America 1/06