Prescott's chief museum highlights the town's period as territorial capital (1863–67). The 1928 museum is named for its founder, pioneer Sharlot Hall (1870–1943). A small exhibit in the lobby commemorates her legacy. The most interesting of the nine buildings is the 1864 Governor's Mansion, a log cabin where Hall lived in the attic until her death. It's filled with memorabilia, from guns and opium pipes to letters. The Sharlot Hall Building next door is the main exhibit hall.
Ms Hall distinguished herself first as a poet and activist before becoming Territorial Historian. In 1924 she traveled to Washington, DC, to represent Arizona in the Electoral College, dressed in a copper mesh overcoat – currently on display in the lobby – provided by a local mine.