How the town of Holbrook got its name

Like many towns in the west, the northeastern Arizona town of Holbrook got its name from railroads.

On Sept. 24, 1881, the day that the Atlantic and Pacific Railroad completed its railway through town, the town was named after the railroad’s chief engineer, Henry Randolph Holbrook.

Henry Randolph Holbrook was instrumental in getting the railroad to go through the town after it began as a settlement at Horsehead Crossing, an important stagecoach route. He also fought for the Union Army during the Civil War.

“Young men in the mid-nineteenth century fought in the War Between the States," Colorado’s Eleanor Fry wrote in August 2000 in Lore, the monthly publication of the Pueblo County Historical Society. "Many of those who survived that bloodbath came West to build railroads which were to link the East and the West coasts and crisscross the country. Henry Randolph Holbrook was one of these ex-soldiers.”

Henry Randolph Holbrook was also related to the family that founded the town of Holbrook, Mass. 

In addition to the Atlantic and Pacific Railroad, Henry Randolph Holbrook also worked as an engineer for other railways including the Kansas Pacific Railroad, the Southern Colorado Railway, the Boulder Valley Railroad, and the Denver and South Park Railroad.

According to the Navajo County Historical Society, during its early years, “The town quickly earned a reputation as a wild frontier hub, rife with cattle drives and fierce confrontations. The arrival of the Hashknife Outfit, with its massive herd of Texas cattle, transformed Holbrook into a bustling cow-town where gunfights and lawlessness were commonplace.”

Holbrook is also the hometown of former Phoenix Suns head coach Mike Budenholzer.

Hopefully you enjoyed this bit of history about Holbrook.