Sunnuside was started as a religous commune in the 1880's by Samuel Donnelson of San Francisco. He used to be a frequent bar patron, but changed his ways. He became a preacher and brought a group of followers from Tombstone to Sunnyside. They worked the mines there, and lived under the rules of Christainity and brotherhood. There were no saloons or brothels here.
People contributed to the group according to their talents. Samuel Donnely died in 1901, but the group lived on until the mines closed in 1932 and the townsite was sold. Sunnyside is on private propery and is posted with No Trespassing signs.
Fairbank owed it existence to the 1882 completion of the Arizona-New Mexico Railroad. Fairbank was on the connecting tracks between Benson and Douglas. It was named after Nathaniel Kellog Fairbank, a founding member of the grand Central Mining Company in Tombstone. Fairbank survived for many years due to its three sets of tracks, the Douglas-Benson Line, a line to Tombstone, and a line to Bisbee. Fairbank was the site of a train robbery/shootout in 1900. Fairbank became a supply hub, although its population was never more than 100.
The most notable day in Fairbank's history happened in February of 1900. A gang with Billy Stiles and Burt Alvrod and three others (see Cochise), attempted to rob a train when it stopped at Fairbank. Lawman Jeff Milton was in the train car with the Wells Fargo box. A shootout ensued and one bandit was killed, one escaped to Mexico and the other three were captured. Milton got a slug in his arm, but he recovered.
There are still a few 1880's buildings at the townsite. They are being stabilized now.
If you are really thinking of going to Sunnyside, first get really good maps. Then e-mail me for specific directions (my e-mail is on the home page), as you are guaranteed to have little chance of finding it without talking to someone who has been here. You will need a high clearance vehicle, NO EXCEPTIONS OR YOU WILL BE SORRY!
Take exit 303 or 304 on I-10 in southern Arizona. Take Highway 80 south about 22 miles to the Highway 82 turnoff. Ture left and go 6 miles. Fairbank will be on your right.
