Barrett Village: A Mini Wonder

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Quartzsite, Arizona can boast fabulous weather in the winter which brings lots of visitors and the largest gem and rock show.  There is one other place to add on your list of must sees while in Quartzsite and that is Barrett Village.  Sitting on a small band of dirt behind the parking lot of the Quartzsite Historical Museum which is located near the Tyson Well Old Stage Station at 161 W. Main Street is a mini village of stone buildings. 

In 1970, Walter Barrett and his wife moved to Quartzsite, AZ from Ferndale, Washington.  He became fascinated with all the interesting rocks located in the area and started a rock collection as well as made jewelry.  He built their home out of stones and used his collection to make several projects around their property.  The first thing he made was a birdbath out of stone to accommodate all the birds hanging out on their land.  After that, he built the mini village.  He poured over eight years of love into each structure even doing a replica of his birth home in Farmville, NC.  In the tiny town he built a general store, churches, a castle, lighthouse, several homes, ranches and much more.  After Walter’s death, in March of 1991 his children donate the mini village to the Quartzsite Historical Society and moved it to its current location.


Comments

  1. Jessica PenotNovember 17, 2012 at 10:07 AM

    How pretty!

    ReplyDelete
  2. Justine’s HalloweenNovember 17, 2012 at 1:46 PM

    Isn't it amazing that so many people have built structures out of rocks? When I first saw your photos, I was sure your post would be about one of the stone places I'm familiar with. It turns out this little village is a lot smaller! Here's a neat video about one of the structures I'm familiar with: Weird U.S. at Florida's Coral Castle

    ReplyDelete
  3. Little Gothic HorrorsNovember 19, 2012 at 4:45 PM

    That's adorable! I love things in miniature!

    ReplyDelete

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