Two blocks west of Courthouse Plaza, this fascinating museum of Arizona and frontier history opened in 1928 in a log home that was once the governor’s mansion of the Arizona territory. The museum was founded by Sharlot Hall, an early activist who fought to preserve Native American artifacts; she played a part in Arizona statehood as well, successfully arguing that Arizona be admitted to the Union as a separate state, not as part of New Mexico. (She then served as territorial historian from 1909 to 1911.) In addition to the governor’s “mansion,” which is furnished much as it originally might have been, several other interesting buildings can be toured. With its traditional wood-frame construction, the Frémont House, built in 1875 for the fifth territorial governor, shows how quickly Prescott grew from a remote logging and mining camp into a civilized town. The 1877 Bashford House reflects the Victorian architecture that was popular throughout the country in the late 19th century. The Sharlot Hall Building houses exhibits on Native American cultures and territorial Arizona. Every year in early summer, artisans, craftspeople, and costumed exhibitors participate in the museum’s Folk Arts Fair.