Look to your left for a sturdy rectangular brick house sitting securely on a rugged stone foundation topped with a steeply pitched charming roof. That is the Brannen-Devine House, built in 1892. The building is a beautiful example of vernacular Queen Anne architecture, which just means it takes those fancy, highly decorative Victorian styles and scales them down into something practical for a rugged pioneer town.
This home perfectly captures that classic frontier grit, where people built their lives around shifting opportunities and relentless drive. You see, Flagstaff was once split in two. But when the railroad moved its depot east to avoid a steep hillside, an ambitious merchant named P.J. Brannen immediately followed the tracks and built a sturdy store right across from the new station, anchoring this brand new neighborhood.
A few years later, a man named Thomas Devine moved into this house. Born to Irish immigrants, he started out doing grueling work as a brakeman for the logging train. But his physical career ended abruptly when a devastating train accident cost him his leg. Rather than letting the loss defeat him, Thomas Devine pivoted his career and found new ways to thrive. He took a job with the local electric company and soon threw himself into politics, winning two highly successful terms as county treasurer.
He eventually moved away, and his young son Andrew, who toddled around these very floors, grew up to be the famous Hollywood character actor Andy Devine. Tragically, Flagstaff still claimed Thomas in the end. He returned for a town celebration in 1926, contracted severe food poisoning, and passed away a month later.
Today, this historic home is an Airbnb, known for a totally different kind of history. Guests frequently report eerie sounds and even sightings of a ghost... specifically, an apparition of a young woman in a yellow dress wandering through the dining room.
Well, whether you believe in ghosts or just the lingering memory of pioneer resilience, this town is full of surprises. Now, let us head to our next stop. We are going to walk about six minutes to First Baptist Church, a sanctuary that had to be dragged through the dusty streets to finally find its home.
