Marker: Monument and Tomb of Charles Debrille Poston
Location: Poston Butte 13993 W Hunt Highway Florence, Pinal County, Arizona 33.055285, -111.408983 Directions: Take State Road 79 north from Florence, then head west on Hunt Highway about 13 miles. The pyramid can be seen from the road.
Historical Significance: Charles D. Poston (1825-1902) was instrumental in creating the territory of Arizona and is known as the "Father of Arizona." He was Arizona’s first delegate to Congress from December5, 1864 – April26, 1865.
He was Superintendent of Indian Affairs and the territorial agent of the U.S. Department of Agriculture. His later life included travel to the Far East, and he became interested in Zoroastrianism and sun worship. In 1878, on top of a 250-foot-tall hill near the town of Florence, he built a "fire temple"; the hill subsequently became known as Poston’s Butte. Poston, a native of Kentucky, died in poverty on June24, 1902, and was buried in Phoenix, Arizona. Poston’s remains were moved from Phoenix to Florence, Arizona, on the 100th anniversary of his birth. His remains were buried on Poston’s Butte, where he had never completed his “Temple to the Sun.” He was entombed in an official ceremony led by GovernorGeorge W. P. Hunt.
Marker Date: 1907
Dedicated: April 26, 1925, 23 years after Poston’s death his pyramid was completed.