GLOBE-MIAMI
LOCAL BOOKS & WRITERS
A spotlight on the books and writers of Globe-Miami. Both fiction and non-fiction, we explore the literary talent of the area, both past and present. From crime thrillers though to works of local history, it is a selection of books that will take you on an unforgettable journey into these old copper towns and vestages of the Wild West.
VIRGIL ALEXANDER
Raised around Globe-Miami, Virgil Alexander is one of the area’s most prolific authors. He shares a lifelong interest in local history, and has accumulated a wealth of firsthand knowledge regarding law enforcement. It is these two elements that Virgil Alexander has woven so effectively into his works. His most recent book is Broken Earth. The story deals with the day-to-day life of San Carlos Apache Tribal Police Sergeant Al Victor, and a variety of cases facing his department, including that of a rogue Apache medicine-man.
SUE THE BASTARDS
Billee Shoecroft literally lived and died by her words. Long before such popular whistleblowers as Erin Brockovich, Billee Shoecroft fought one of the biggest corporations in the world, and won! Sadly, this Globe woman is largely forgotten, but her book Sue The Bastards still stands as a testimony to her brave achievements. It chronicles a dark chapter in the town’s history when the toxic chemical Agent Orange was sprayed repeatedly in the canyons south of town, and people in the vicinity began to fall sick, and even die. Billee Shoecroft was one of those who paid the ultimate price for those dreadful deeds. Most tragic of all, she passed before knowing that she had won her David and Goliath battle.
AROUND MIAMI
Around Miami provides a fascinating and richly illustrated profile of Miami’s history, with many originally unseen photographs. Its author, the late Santos Vega, was born in the town in 1931. He went onto become a professor at Arizona State University, and had a passionate interest in Mexican-American history. Published in 2011, the book is divided into six distinct parts, Place and People, Families, Celebrations, Community at Work, Military Service, Activites, Education and Sports. Santos Vega died in 2021 , one more victim of the Covid-19 pandemic that claimed the lives of so many.
WHICH LIVES TO FEAR
The authors J. Maynard Carr and Corey Schubert are respectively a veternarian and a media relations specialist. In Which Lives to Fear, the duo have come up with a tense thriller set in Globe. Indeed, the opening chapter starts with a grisly discovery in the Old Dominion Mine Park.
The story follows Melissa Wilder, a talented reporter who returns to her hometown of Globe many years after an event that tore her family apart. Her big brother was murdered and her father maimed by the actions of a psychopath whose identity still remains a mystery.
GLOBE
The huband and wife team behind the book, Dr. Wilbur “Bill” and Lynn Haak moved to the Globe area in 1981 and soon became involved with the Gila County Historical Museum. The book contains over 200 photographs chronicling the town’s history, drawn from the archives of the Gila County Historical Museum, as well as the couple’s personal collection. Within it’s 130 pages, the authors chart the history of Globe from its preexisting Native American inhabitants, through to the charming town built on copper that we know today.
HISTORY OF GLOBE, ARIZONA
Moving to Globe from Indiana in 1963, Donna Anderson developed an outstanding career in journalism, working for the Arizona Record and Arizona Silver Belt. Later, she went onto found the Copper Country News with her husband Guy. History of Globe, Arizona was a book Donna Anderson had longed to write and she finally managed to do so by 2008, the year that marked the city’s centennial. It comprises two sections, one dealing with the town’s history and the other exploring many of the families who played such a part in in that story. The book is well illustrated with photos, some extremely rare. Donna Anderson died in 2020 at the age of 87, though her contribution to the town will long be remembered.
GLOBE, ARIZONA: EARLY TIMES IN A LITTLE WORLD OF COPPER AND CATTLE
Clara Woody was an eminent local historian and lived in Globe from 1917 until her death in 1981. She started her writing career with the Arizona Record in 1956. Globe, Arizona: Early times in a Little World of Copper and Cattle was published in 1977 when Clara Woody was almost 91 years old. She was assisted in this literary venture by Milton L. Schwartz, a fresh graduate student at the University of Arizona. All the years of endless historical research finally culminated within the 232 pages of that book. The work contains a foreword by C L Sonnichsen, Benedict Professor of English at the University of Texas, El Paso, and onetime president of the Western Historical Association.
