The Board of Directors of the Boyce Thompson Arboretum called a special meeting after long-time director Franklin Crider died on August 24, 1953. Shortly after, Joe E. Thompson, Jr., nephew of the Arboretum’s founder, William Boyce Thompson, telephoned acting director Bernard “Bill” Benson from Boston to say he wanted to attend the meeting. Thompson told […]
The Unexciting Truth About William Boyce Thompson’s Picket Post Mansion
After his stroke, a personal assistant rolled an invalid William Boyce Thompson in a bathtub on wheels to the window so that he could watch the sunrise over Apache Leap from his beloved Picket Post mansion. The heartwarming story is one of several compelling urban legends told to visitors of the Magnate’s Castle on the […]
Eponymous Cactus ‘Highlights’ Trip to Boyce Thompson Arboretum
The Boyce Thompsoni hedgehog cactus, named after the great benefactor of the Boyce Thompson Arboretum in Superior, Ariz., allegedly grows “glorious magenta” flowers that emit an “irresistibly fragrant” aroma. It sprouts “showy red fruits” so tasty that early desert settlers raced to pick them before animals could eat them. Unfortunately, repeated visits to the arboretum have yet to provide first-hand confirmation […]