For approximately 30 years, the Arizona Folklore Preserve has been much more than a performance venue. Nestled in the natural beauty of Ramsey Canyon, the Preserve has welcomed audiences to one of Arizona’s most popular destinations, where music, poetry, stories and traditions have been performed, celebrated and preserved. Many people have discovered and attended performances while visiting Ramsey Canyon, making the Preserve an important part of their experience in the Canyon.
In July 2026, the Preserve completed its final scheduled season after the University of Arizona announced its intention to sell the building because of the University’s financial difficulties. The pending sale has brought live performances to an end and raised serious questions about the future of a cultural institution built through the vision of Dolan Ellis and the generosity and work of volunteers, donors and supporters.
A Dream Takes Root in Ramsey Canyon
The Arizona Folklore Preserve grew from the vision of Dolan Ellis, Arizona’s Official State Balladeer. Governor Sam Goddard created the position and appointed Ellis in 1966, and every Arizona governor since has continued that recognition. In 2026, Ellis marks 60 years as Arizona’s first and only Official State Balladeer—a remarkable six decades devoted to preserving and sharing the music, history and folklore of Arizona.
Ellis dreamed of establishing a permanent home where the songs and stories of Arizona and the American West could be performed for contemporary audiences and preserved for future generations.
The dream took root inside the historic Moffett House, a modest Ramsey Canyon home dating to the 1920s. According to the history preserved by those associated with the property, the house was constructed in stages by a soldier named Moffett, who was stationed at nearby Fort Huachuca, as a home for himself and his family.
The house later became part of southern Arizona’s film history when it was used as a location in the 1996 television movie Ruby Jean and Joe, starring Tom Selleck, Rebekah Johnson, JoBeth Williams and Western film legend Ben Johnson.
In June 1996, the Moffett House began yet another chapter in its history when Ellis started presenting live folk and acoustic music there. It was an exceptionally intimate setting. Even when the kitchen and porch were used for additional seating, the house could accommodate only approximately 20 to 25 guests.
From those modest beginnings, the Arizona Folklore Preserve began to grow.
A Cultural Center Built by the Community
The Arizona Folklore Preserve obtained nonprofit status, and its Board members, volunteers and supporters began raising money to establish a permanent performance center. Fundraisers were held, donations were received and members of the community contributed their time, labor and resources to help turn Ellis’s dream into a reality.
The University of Arizona was not involved in the original creation of the Preserve, the performances held in the Moffett House, or the fundraising and community effort that established the Preserve. Those efforts originated with Dolan Ellis, the nonprofit organization and the many people who supported its mission.
What Recorded Deeds Show
The history of the property is important to understanding the present controversy.
The Arizona Folklore Preserve did not begin as a University program. It grew from Dolan Ellis’s vision and from the work of the nonprofit organization, its Board, volunteers, donors and supporters.
The Moffett House and surrounding acreage became central to that vision. The property provided a permanent setting in Ramsey Canyon where the Preserve could present performances and carry out its cultural mission.
In 1999, the Arizona Folklore Preserve Board of Directors voted unanimously to donate the Moffett House and approximately four acres of land in Ramsey Canyon to the University Foundation of Sierra Vista, Inc. The property was transferred without payment as part of an effort to provide a permanent home for the Preserve and its cultural mission.
After the University Foundation took ownership of the property, it subsequently deeded the property to the University of Arizona. This subsequent conveyance is an important part of the property’s history because it establishes the chain through which property originally donated for the benefit of the Arizona Folklore Preserve ultimately came into the ownership of the University of Arizona.
Representatives of the University and the Arizona Folklore Preserve also entered into a Memorandum of Understanding addressing the continued presentation of live music at the Preserve. The historical documents should speak for themselves as to the precise language and obligations contained in that agreement.
That history matters because the people who donated property, money, labor and other resources did so for a particular purpose. They were building and supporting a cultural institution devoted to preserving and presenting music, stories, poetry and folklore.
For approximately 25 years, the Preserve successfully carried out that mission, presenting live acoustic music, poetry and storytelling to audiences in Ramsey Canyon.
The history surrounding the property was therefore much more than an ordinary real-estate transaction. The property was donated for a cultural purpose, and the Preserve’s volunteers, donors and supporters continued investing their time, money and resources with the expectation that the mission would endure.
Live Acoustic Music Nearly Every Weekend
The Arizona Folklore Preserve maintained an extraordinary performance schedule. Live acoustic music, poetry and storytelling were presented 44 weekends each year. Performances were held every Saturday and Sunday from 2:00 to 4:00 p.m., amounting to approximately 88 regularly scheduled shows annually.
The Preserve also presented occasional dinner shows and special performances on weekday evenings.
Although the Preserve became particularly well known for Western music, its roots were in folk music, and its stage welcomed performers representing a variety of acoustic musical traditions. Artists traveled to Ramsey Canyon from throughout the United States, Mexico and Canada, bringing with them songs, stories and poetry representing a rich variety of musical traditions while preserving a special connection to Arizona and the American West.
Because of the quality and reputation of these artists, performers were commonly booked approximately one year in advance.
The setting made the experience unlike a conventional concert. Visitors crossed a small bridge and entered the wooded surroundings of Ramsey Canyon, where they might see hummingbirds, deer or wild turkeys before entering the theater. Inside, the intimate size of the venue created a personal connection between performers and audiences that was rarely found elsewhere.
The Preserve also helped support future generations of musicians. It encouraged young performers, donated musical instruments and raised thousands of dollars for the International Western Music Association Youth Chapter.
An All-Volunteer Organization
The Arizona Folklore Preserve has always been operated entirely by volunteers.
Board members and community volunteers organized fundraisers, selected and scheduled performers, coordinated travel arrangements, managed reservations, operated the bookstore, staffed performances, welcomed audiences and handled the many responsibilities required to present performances nearly every weekend of the year.
The Preserve’s longevity and success were possible because of their donated time and labor, along with the generosity of individuals and businesses that contributed money, furnishings, equipment, artwork and other resources.
The Arizona Folklore Preserve nonprofit owns the personal property used to operate the venue. That property includes furnishings, Western decorations and paintings, bookstore inventory, recording equipment, lighting and sound systems, stage equipment, tables, chairs and other operational items. Much of it was purchased or obtained through charitable donations, fundraising and years of volunteer effort devoted specifically to the Preserve’s cultural mission.
The University Announces Its Intention to Sell
In approximately January 2026, the dean of the University of Arizona South met with representatives of the Arizona Folklore Preserve. Those attending included Board President Mike Rutherford; Board members Sharon Heikkinen, Dolan Ellis, Jon Messenger and Randy Groth; and other volunteers.
At that meeting, the Preserve’s representatives were informed that the University intended to sell the building because of its financial difficulties.
According to those present, the dean also verbally communicated that the University did not consider the Memorandum of Understanding controlling or binding upon its decision regarding the property.
The Board asked whether the building could be returned to the Arizona Folklore Preserve nonprofit so that its cultural mission and performances could continue. University representatives stated that the University could not give the building back and was required to sell it.
That position has been difficult for Preserve supporters to understand. The property had originally been donated, not sold, to the University Foundation. It was subsequently conveyed to the University of Arizona after years of work by people who had devoted their resources to creating a permanent home for the Arizona Folklore Preserve.
Donors, volunteers and Board members contributed to the Preserve with the understanding that they were helping to create and sustain a permanent cultural institution—not an asset that would later be sold to address the University’s financial problems.
The Final Season
The University allowed the Arizona Folklore Preserve to complete its existing performance season through the Fourth of July weekend in 2026.
The final scheduled performances were held July 4 and 5, when Jean Prescott, Jon Messenger and Michael Grande presented the Preserve’s traditional patriotic show.
The Board of Directors then made the painful but responsible decision not to schedule another season. The decision was not caused by declining attendance, financial failure, difficulty attracting outstanding performers or a lack of commitment from volunteers.
It was a necessary response to the uncertainty created by the proposed sale.
Because performers are commonly booked approximately a year in advance and frequently travel great distances, the Board could not responsibly enter into agreements with artists without being able to guarantee that the theater would remain available.
No Answers About What Comes Next
In July 2026, Board President Mike Rutherford contacted the head of the University of Arizona’s financial department and requested clarification about the University’s plans for the property and the next steps in the proposed sale.
As of August 22, 2026, the Board had received no response.
The absence of information has left the nonprofit unable to plan for its future or determine when it must remove and protect the furnishings, paintings, Western decorations, bookstore inventory, recording equipment, lighting and sound systems, stage equipment, tables, chairs and other property belonging to the Arizona Folklore Preserve.
It has also left volunteers, donors, performers and members of the public without answers about what will become of the building they helped establish and the cultural mission it was created to serve.
More Than the Sale of a Building
The proposed sale involves much more than a piece of real estate. It concerns the meaning of written commitments, the intent of those who donated property and resources, and the trust placed in institutions by a nonprofit organization and an entire community of supporters.
For approximately 25 years in its permanent theater—and for several years before that in the Moffett House—the Arizona Folklore Preserve did exactly what it was created to do. It brought exceptional live acoustic music to Ramsey Canyon, supported young musicians and introduced audiences to music, history, humor, stories and traditions that might otherwise have been lost.
It also demonstrated what volunteers and donors can accomplish when they unite behind a shared vision.
The music may have fallen silent inside the Ramsey Canyon theater, but important questions remain.
What will happen to a building that ultimately came into University ownership after the property had originally been donated for the benefit of the Arizona Folklore Preserve?
What consideration will be given to the written agreements and understandings concerning the continued cultural use of the property?
How will the intent of the donors and volunteers who established and sustained the Preserve be honored?
What will happen to the nonprofit’s extensive collection of furnishings, equipment, artwork and inventory?
And will the community be given an opportunity to preserve the mission for which the Preserve was created?
The Arizona Folklore Preserve grew from Dolan Ellis’s dream and became an irreplaceable part of Arizona’s cultural heritage. Its significance cannot be measured solely by the financial value of its property.
It represents a promise, a public trust and a cultural legacy that deserves to be honored and preserved.