About Us
The Patagonia Museum is located in the 1914 Patagonia Grammar School, 320 School Street, Patagonia, Arizona.
Museum Hours:
October through May: Thursday, Friday and Saturday 2 – 4 PM.
June through September: Friday and Saturday 10:30 AM – 12:30 PM.
Closed Thanksgiving and Christmas. Other times by request or appointment.
Membership: Membership-Application
Individual dues are $35 paid annually and $50 for family membership payable to:
The Patagonia Museum
PO Box 919, Patagonia AZ 85624
Background: The Patagonia Museum was incorporated in the state of Arizona in 2004. The Patagonia Museum is a nonprofit organization dedicated to collecting and preserving the culture and history of eastern Santa Cruz County. The Patagonia Museum was granted 501c (3) status by the IRS in 2007.
The Patagonia Museum has two immediate goals: (1) maintaining the 1914 Grammar School as the facility in Patagonia for a museum and (2) preserving and restoring the historic territorial one-room Lochiel Schoolhouse.
The Lochiel Schoolhouse was built prior to 1905. Research continues to search for an exact date of construction. The Lochiel/La Noria School District was in place in the 1890s and may have originated as far back as the 1880s. Again research continues to search for the exact dates of origination. The schoolhouse was last utilized in the school year 1972-1973. Years of neglect and vandalism followed.
In September 2010, The Patagonia Museum and the Patagonia Elementary School entered into a lease agreement allowing The Patagonia Museum to preserve the school site for educational and historic purposes. In January 2011, The Patagonia Museum received a grant from the Patagonia Regional Community Foundation to provide arborist services and building weatherization. Since then, numerous grants and volunteer hours have benefited the Lochiel Schoolhouse. Restoration work on the Lochiel Schoolhouse was completed in the spring of 2022.