Those of you who have read some of my brief histories on Southern Arizona Guide know that I sometimes refer to Tucson before the coming of the railroad in 1880 as “a dusty little Mexican village”. Even though Tucson legally became an American town with the Gadsden Purchase in 1854, most of the 600 residents [...]
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Most Americans know at least a little about Custer’s Last Stand, also known as the Battle of the Little Bighorn. The incident has an epic quality worthy of Homer’s Illiad or Virgil’s Aeneid. The battle took place on June 25th & 26th, 1876 between the combined forces of the Lakoda, Northern Cheyenne, and Arapaho tribes [...]
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The Gunfight at the OK Corral in Tombstone was only the beginning of the murderous conflict between the Earp Brothers and their friends, and the outlaw gang known as ‘The Cowboys’. ‘The Cowboys’ were about two-dozen hard riding, hard drinking ranchers and rustlers, their hired hands and gunslingers. Most notable among them were the Clanton Brothers, Ike and Billy; the McLaury Brothers, Frank and Tom; Johnny Barnes; “Curly Bill” Brocius; Florintino Cruz, aka “Indian Charlie”; Frank Stilwell; and Johnny Ringo. … Continue reading
Throughout the history of Tucson, people who lived here, and others who were just traveling through, occasionally recorded their impressions. These hardy pioneers left us with a way to peak into our past though a tiny knothole in time.
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A brief synopsis of the Cowboys and the Earps and a timeline of the events that led up to the Gunfight at the OK Corral.
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The story of the Coronado Expeditions is one of bravery, perseverance, high adventure, faith, and incredible greed. Between hiking trails and scenic back roads, we can retrace their historic route.
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Following the Gunfight at the OK Corral, Ike Clanton filed murder charges against the Wyatt Earp and Doc Holliday, as well as Virgil and Morgan Earp who had been wounded in the gunfight.
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After what became the most famous gunfight in history, Wyatt Earp went on what became known as the Earp Vendetta Ride to avenge the ambush that crippled his older brother, Virgil, and the assassination of his younger brother, Morgan, by a gang of outlaws known as “The Cowboys”.
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Bisbee, Arizona boasts an exciting piece of baseball history. It is home to the Warren Ballpark, considered the oldest continuously used professional baseball venue in the country. The field was built in 1909, five years before Wrigley Field in Chicago!
Continue readingJim Turner, recently retired from the Arizona Historical Society, is a professional Arizona historian, author, and public speaker whose talks both educate & entertain a range of audiences: retirees, teachers, service clubs and professional & business conferences & conventions. His range of knowledge and informative talks also include broader subjects, such as Southwestern and Mexican history. … Continue reading
By the 1930’s, Tombstone was dying. The mining boomtown of the 1880’s was long gone. In 1882, Tombstone residents numbered between 6,000 and 7,000. By the time these photographs were taken, the nation was deep in the Great Depression, and Tombstone was almost a ghost town.
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The Hohokam built this city in a most inhospitable place. This prehistoric site is seriously interesting.
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A video presentation of the history surrounding La Posta Quemada Ranch at Colossal Cave Mountain Park.
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Video presentation: Interesting history and description of the Caves, Colossal Caves offer several different tours from easy to challenging.
Continue readingLast week I posted here about how the U.S. Government hosted 8 0r 10 Apache men for an all expenses paid sightseeing tour of Washington D.C. and New York City. Many people seemed to have enjoyed that tidbit of local history, so here’s a brief follow-up. This account comes from the same book, Britton Davis’s [...]
Continue readingLike so many others, I enjoy local histories. Understanding history is how I get a sense of the places and people I visit as I travel around Baja Arizona creating my videos, photographs, stories, and reviews to share with you on my Southern Arizona Guide. Of late, I have been reading extensively about the Apache [...]
Continue readingViente de Agosto Park is an acre of grass & trees in the heart of downtown Tucson at the point where Congress & Broadway split into one-way streets. “Viente de Agosto” is Spanish for 20th of August. In late 2011, the park became the tent camp of Occupy Tucson protesters. The Tucson Visitors & Convention Bureau website claims that Viente de Agosto Park celebrates the birth-date of Tucson, August 20, 1775. Wikipedia has a different take. “Viente de Agosto is the national holiday celebrating teachers and mentors across Mexico. Although the name would indicate the holiday is held on August 20, it is actually celebrated according to the lunar calendar. The first celebration of this glorious occasion fell on Friday, August 20, 1974. Every 6 years, when the holiday falls on a Friday again, leads to an even greater celebration than normal.” Viente de Agosto Park is also the site … Continue reading
(A) Fort Lowell in east Tucson. (B) Fort Bowie. (C) Cochise Stronghold. (D) Chiricahua National Monument. (E) Fort Huachuca.
View main Apache Wars article here:
Read the Apache Wars sequence of events in the following article.
Two good places to dine and overnight in Southeastern Arizona are:
Places of Major Historical Importance In Southeastern Arizona include Ft. Huachuca, Ft. Bowie, Chiracahua Mountains, and Cochise Stronghold
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The saga of the Apache Wars is both complex and compelling. For over a quarter century, hundreds of ambushes, raids, massacres, and full-fledged military battles occurred over a huge, rugged, and diverse landscape. The wars involved hundreds of notable participants. The following is the merest of highlights to help you get your mind around the amazing history of many places you can visit here.
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The Apaches lost their wars against the Mexicans and Americans for six basic reasons.
First, the Apaches were hopelessly outnumbered. When an Apache chief, such as Cochise, lost a warrior in battle, there was no replacement until one of the younger boys grew up and became a warrior. All an American or Mexican military officer usually had to do when he lost men was call for readily available replacements. It was a war of attrition.
Continue readingCould these devastating wars have been avoided? The short answer is “NO!” Given the inevitability of the White Man’s massive western migration; and the Apache’s understandably powerful desire to hold on to their ancestral lands, brutal conflict was unavoidable.
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(Italics are my comments to assist readers in understanding the fuller context. jg) DEDICATORY Geronimo: The True Story of America’s Most Ferocious Warrior Because he has given me permission to tell my story; because he has read that story and knows I try to speak the truth; because I believe that he is fair-minded and will cause my people to receive justice in the future; and because he is chief of a great people, I dedicate this story of my life to Theodore Roosevelt, President of the United States. Geronimo. (Over many months in 1905, Geronimo told is life story to S.M. Barrett. Barrett transcribed Geronimo’s spoken words into English with the help of an interpreter who Geronimo trusted.) INTRODUCTORY S. M. Barrett: 1905 Early in October I secured the services of an educated Indian, Asa Deklugie, son of Juh (pronounced Ho or sometimes Whoa), chief of the Nedni Apaches, … Continue reading
Video of a tour of the Cold War Bunker housing the Titan II Missile the only one of its kind left.
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Each October the park hosts a commemorative Mass inside the Tumacácori mission church in conjunction with Tubac Presidio State Historic Park’s annual Anza Day celebration.
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