The town of Quartzsite can trace it's roots all the way back to 1856. Charles Tyson, an early pioneer, established a stage station and dug several wells to accommodate the many teamsters hauling freight between Prescott and Ehrenberg. His homemade "Fort" was at the center of a small community called Tyson Wells. With the coming of the railroad, the stage station fell into ruin, and the Tyson Wells post office shut it's doors. When a mining boom hit the area in 1897 the community was reborn. Unfortunately due to postal regulation the town was forced to rename itself. George Ingersoll suggested the name Quartzite after the abundance of that stone in the area. The Postal Service agreed but erroneously added a "s" to the spelling of the name. The town has been known as Quartzsite ever since.
Citation: Will C Barnes, Arizona Place Names (Tucson AZ: University of Arizona Pub.,1960).299
