A little known, but must see attraction in Yarnell is the Catholic Shrine of Saint Joseph of the Mountains. In 1939 a group of Catholics called the Catholic Action League of Arizona, from Phoenix, commissioned Felix Lucero, a Native American from Trinidad, Colorado; to create the Stations of the Cross, in the Weaver Mountains, about a half-mile west of "downtown" Yarnell. While not as famous has his Garden of Gethsemane in Tucson, the Stations of the Cross in Yarnell is just as impressive and in a similar magnificent setting. This hillside shrine has a chapel, the Way of the Cross, replicas of the Garden of Gethsemane and the Last Supper. Felix Lucero sculpted all of the work out of reinforced concrete. The life-sized pieces are set among an oak tree-shaded area amidst the boulders. Visitors can take a trail through the stations of the cross to see the statues or mediate in its beautiful park - like setting. The history of Felix Lucero is interesting. Like other young men of his generation, Felix Lucero was drafted into the Army and sent across the Atlantic to the trenches of France to fight in World War I. After a battle in which his unit engaged the enemy, Felix found himself laying along among the dead and near-dead who had been abandoned and left to die on the now silent battle ground. Critically injured, as well as alone and scared, Felex prayed to God for life, promising that in return for the gift of continued life he would devote that life to building statutes of Christ wherever he went during that life. His prayer was soon answered and following his rescue, recovery and return home, this young man, with no formal training in art, began to devote his life to creating sculptures of Christ and related religious figures. Despite his lack of formal training, his figures have a majesty and realism that people can immediately relate to and feel some of the deep bond that Lucero felt with God. Felix Lucero was a truely a starving artist. He drifted into Arizona during the Depression and he finally settled in Tucson in 1938. His home in Tucson was a plywood and cardboard shelter built under the Congress Street Bridge. He was homeless, just living a few feet from where the park holding his sculptures in Tucson now stands. His hillside shrine has a chapel, the Way of the Cross, replicas of the Garden of Gethsemane and the Last Supper. Felix Lucero sculpted all of the work out of reinforced concrete. Yarnell is located on the Highway 89, Scenic Route to Prescott, Arizona. Yarnell is also listed as one of the communities to visit along the American Heritage Trail route. There is a link to the Yarnell Chamber Of Commerce at the bottom of this page.

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