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Old Town, the original Scottsdale
Four blocks of real Western history wrapped in boot shops, saloons and ice cream. Here's how a local stoner works it.
Old Town is where Scottsdale started, and if you squint past the bachelorette sashes you can still see it. For years the corner of Brown Avenue and Main Street basically was downtown. The town itself got its name from Winfield Scott, an Army chaplain whose push brought most of the early settlers out here in the 1890s. Hitching rails and Western facades went up along Main in the 1940s when homes started turning into shops, and a lot of that look stuck.
This page covers the historic core: Main Street, Brown Avenue, the Old Adobe Mission and the Civic Center park out back. The galleries west of Scottsdale Road have their own page at the Arts District, and the bar blocks to the north live under the Entertainment District. Old Town is the daytime half of the deal. Come stoned and curious, leave full.
A little Old Town Scottsdale history, the stuff worth knowing
The oldest bones here are surprisingly easy to spot once you know where to look. Scottsdale's first general store and post office went up at Brown and Main in 1897. The red brick drugstore built in 1921 on the northwest corner is still standing behind a newer Western front, the one the Saba family put on when they opened a department store there in 1948. Over on Second Street near Drinkwater, the olive trees were planted by Winfield Scott in 1896 to wall off a 40 acre orange grove. One of them was named Arizona's first Centennial Witness Tree in 2011.
Old Town also has deep Mexican American roots that the cowboy branding sometimes buries. Families from the Mexican settlement built the town's Catholic church by hand, and the neighborhood around Second Street and Brown was their center for decades.
Things to do in Old Town Scottsdale
Old Town is compact and flat, so the move is to park once, light up at home first, and wander. Go early in the warm months. By midafternoon in summer the sidewalks radiate heat like a pizza stone.
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Old Town
Old Adobe Mission
3817 N Brown Ave, Scottsdale, AZ 85251The little church at First Street and Brown Avenue was finished in 1933, built by the Mexican community that settled here, using roughly 14,000 adobe blocks made right on site. Bérnabe Herrera, a tinsmith and the parish's first catechist, made its 15 stained glass panes from glass thrown out by St. Augustine's Cathedral in Tucson. That detail alone is worth the walk.
It was Scottsdale's only Catholic church for years, later got leased to the Scottsdale Symphony Orchestra, and has been restored in stages since 2002. It's quiet, cool inside and genuinely moving. Visiting hours change with the seasons, so check before you go, and drop a donation if you can.
TipBe the respectful stoner in the room: finish your sesh well before, no smell, phone on silent.
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Old Town
Scottsdale Historical Museum
7333 E Scottsdale Mall, Scottsdale, AZ 85251The museum lives inside the Little Red Schoolhouse, built in 1909 with two classrooms and a lower level that doubled as a church and town meeting hall. From the 1920s to the 1960s it served the Mexican settlement as a school and community center. The museum opened in 1991, and entry is free.
It's small. That's the point. You can see the whole place in one easy lap and come out understanding why Main Street dead ends where it does.
TipPair it with the olive trees on Second Street. Ten minute walk, two centuries of town.
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Old Town
Scottsdale Civic Center
3939 N Drinkwater Blvd, Scottsdale, AZ 85251The city rebuilt its downtown park around a new 360 Stage with lawns spilling out from the Scottsdale Center for the Performing Arts. The LOVE sculpture is back in a new spot, along with The Yearlings and Windows to the West. The east side has Children's Gardens, a Water and Fog Plaza, the City Hall lagoons and the East Bowl.
The West Paseo entry off Brown Avenue and Main Street got opened up in the rebuild, so the park now flows straight out of the historic blocks. It's the best free people watching in Old Town, especially when there's a show on the stage.
TipIt's a public park, so it's look but don't light. Bring water and find shade under the trees.
Where to eat and drink in Old Town
Old Town eats skew touristy, but the old guard is legit. These three have been verified open and are the ones a local actually sends friends to.
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Old Town
The Mission
3815 N Brown Ave, Scottsdale, AZ 85251Right next door to the Old Adobe Mission, which makes the name make sense. Modern Latin food and the tableside guacamole mashed in a molcajete off a rolling cart. It's the dish everyone posts and it earns it.
The pork shoulder with pineapple habanero glaze and the duck carnitas empanada are the other reasons to stay seated. Book ahead on weekends.
TipOrder the guac the second you sit down. Munchies wait for no one.
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Old Town
Rusty Spur Saloon
7245 E Main St, Scottsdale, AZ 85251Scottsdale's oldest saloon sits inside the town's first bank, the Farmers State Bank, built in 1921. It became the Rusty Spur in 1951, and the old vault is now the walk in cooler. Live music, a house band that's been playing there for more than 30 years, and spring training regulars who come back every year.
The walls are covered in signed dollar bills. The tradition is you pin one up so there's a drink waiting when you're broke. Every December they pull them down and give the money to charity.
TipGo on a weeknight when the band's playing and the bachelor parties are elsewhere.
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Old Town
Sugar Bowl
4005 N Scottsdale Rd, Scottsdale, AZ 85251Jack Huntress turned a 1950 general store into an ice cream parlor in 1958, and the family still owns it. The soda fountain counter is the original deal and the place is on the city's historic preservation register. Menu, decor and location have barely moved in decades.
This is the munchie stop. Ice cream and diner classics in a room that looks exactly like you want it to.
TipGrab a seat at the soda fountain counter. Ten seats, best in the house.
Questions about Old Town
Can you smoke weed in Old Town Scottsdale?
Not in public. Arizona adults 21+ can possess cannabis, but smoking in a public place is a petty offense, and that includes sidewalks, parks and patios open to the public. Sesh on private property with the owner's OK, and check your hotel or rental rules first.
What is the oldest building in Old Town Scottsdale?
The earliest structure on the historic walking route is the building at Brown Avenue and Main Street that J.L. Davis built in 1897 as Scottsdale's first general store and post office. The Little Red Schoolhouse dates to 1909 and the Old Adobe Mission to 1933.
Is the Scottsdale Historical Museum free?
Yes, entrance to the Scottsdale Historical Museum in the Little Red Schoolhouse is free. It's at 7333 E Scottsdale Mall, right on the Civic Center grounds.
Is the Old Town Scottsdale trolley free?
Yes, the Scottsdale Trolley is free. The 68th Street/Camelback route serves Old Town, Fashion Square and the Entertainment District. Check the city's trolley page for current routes and detours.
What's the oldest bar in Old Town Scottsdale?
The Rusty Spur Saloon at 7245 E Main St calls itself Scottsdale's first and longest running saloon. It opened in 1951 inside the 1921 Farmers State Bank building, and the old vault is now the beer cooler.