USA > Arizona > History of Arizona and New Mexico, 1530-1888, Volume XVII > Part 53
USA > New Mexico > History of Arizona and New Mexico, 1530-1888, Volume XVII > Part 53
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496
THE GADSDEN PURCHASE.
road in the north, another was opened in the south by Superintendent James B. Leach and Engineer N. H. Hutton. This corresponded largely with the Cooke road of 1846, but led down the San Pedro to the Ari- vaipa, and thence to the Gila, 21 miles east of the Pima villages, thus saving 40 miles over the Tucson route, and by improvements about five days for wagons. The work was done by Leach and Hutton from the Rio Grande to the Colorado, between October 25, 1857, and August 1, 1858.8 Over this road ran in 1858-60 Arizona's first stage, the Butterfield overland line from Marshall, Texas, to San Diego, carrying the mails and passengers twice a week, until the service was stopped by Indian depredations.9
It was not until 1856 that the United States took military possession of the Gadsden purchase by send- ing a detachment of four companies of the First Dra- goons, which force was stationed at Tucson and later at Calabazas. In 1857 a permanent station was selected, and Fort Buchanan was established on the Sonoita about 25 miles east of Tubac. The site was afterward deemed to have no special advantages, and no buildings worthy the name of fort were erected. There were various other temporary camps occupied in the following years according to the demands of the Indian service, the force being from 120 to 375
is an account by Capt. John Moss of his voyage down the Colorado through all the cañons on a raft in 1861. If performed as described, it was a most extraordinary exploit.
8 Campbell (Albert H.), Report wpon the Pacific Wagon Roads, 1859, p. 9-12, and Hutton's Report, El Pasoand Fort Yuma Wagon Road, in Id., 77-100, with map; 35th cong. 2d sess., H. Ex. Doc. 108.
9 Under act of congress of March 3, 1857, bids were received for an over- land mail service, and that of John Butterfield for a semi-weekly service by the southern route at $600,000 per year was accepted, the contract being signed Sept. 16th. Many particulars in Overland Mail Service to Cal. (n. p., 1857), Svo, 45 p .; Overland Mail Co., Memorial, 1860, 7 p .; Id., Observations, 5 p. See also Hayes' Scraps, Ariz., v. 247, 251, 277, 299; S. F. papers of 1858-60. According to Ariz. Hist. (Elliott & Co.), 316-17, Burch and Woods ran the stage for a year before Butterfield began; and from the news- papers of the time it appears that for a time two lines were running. There was in 1859 a branch stage from Ft Buchanan to Tubac, and there were probably several others on short routes in the territory. Fred Huselman, P. M. at Tubac, made arrangements in 1859 for a weekly mail to and from Sonora. See Estrella de Occidente, Dec. 30, 1859.
497
FORTS AND MINES.
men, besides that of parties from abroad occasionally engaging in campaigns. In some years only two com- panies are mentioned. Late in 1858 Fort Mojave near Beale's crossing of the Colorado was established with three companies of infantry; and late in 1859 Fort Breckenridge at the junction of the San Pedro and Arivaipa with part of the garrison from Fort Buchanan. The soldiers did much good service and had many hard fights with the Apache foe; but the force was of course utterly inadequate for the protec- tion of the country. On the outbreak of the war in 1860-1, all the forts were destroyed and abandoned, and the troops removed.10
The territory of the Gadsden purchase was believed to be rich in precious metals. Americans had long been more or less conversant with Mexican traditions of immensely rich mines discovered in Jesuit times and abandoned in consequence of Apache raids-tradi- tions for the most part false in their details, and so far as the Jesuits were represented as miners, but well founded to the extent that prospectors had actually found many rich deposits of silver. Reports of the various government explorers, who had in all directions noted indications of mineral wealth, corroborated the current traditions, and made Arizona a most attractive country for adventurers, and all the more so because of the recent successes of gold-seekers in California.
10 I have followed the U. S. adj .- general's reports of 1856-61 attached to the messages of the president in the Ist volumes of Ex. Doc. of each session. U. S. Govt Doc. Maj. E. Steen was in command at Ft Buchanan in 1857; Capt. E. H. Fitzgerald in 1858; Capt. J. D. V. Reeve in 1859; Capt. R. S. Ewell in 1860. Lieut. J. R. Cooke commanded 67 men at Ft Breckenridge in 1860. In 1861 the report mentions no troops in Arizona, though Ft Mojave, estab- lished by Col Hoffman, is said not to have been abandoned till May 1861. In the south Col Morrison is said to have succeeded Ewell in 1860, and in- fantry to have been substituted for the cavalry, though I find nothing of this in the military records. See also on forts, with many dates and names not agreeing with the original reports, Hamilton's Resources, 22-3, 110; Hinton's Hand-book, 308-18; Ariz. Hist., 209, 221; Hayes' Scraps, Mining, v. 16-17; Id., Ariz., v. 259-307. In Id., Angeles, viii. 179, is mentioned a Ft Floyd, changed to Ft McLane in 1861; and in U. S. Surgeon-general's Circular, 8, p. 552, a Camp Verde is mentioned in 1861. In Sept. 1855 the Mex. garrison at Tucson. 26 men, was commanded by Capt. Hilarion García. Pinart, Col. Doc., MS., no. 153-4.
HIST. ARIZ. AND N. MEX. 32
498
THE GADSDEN PURCHASE.
The Ajo copper mines in the Sonoita region, which had been discovered by Mexicans, was worked by a San Francisco company from 1855.11 Charles D. Poston with Herman Ehrenberg, after a preliminary tour in 1854-5 from the gulf coast, formed a company in the east, and in 1856 began the development on a large scale of silver mines near Tubac. Half a dozen other companies in this and the following years under- took similar operations in the same region, that is, in the mountain ranges on both sides of the Santa Cruz valley in the southern part of the territory. The garrison at Fort Buchanan afforded protection to a certain extent, and the laborers employed were chiefly Sonorans from across the line. Fuel and water were scarce, apparatus and supplies of all kinds were ob- tained only at an excessive cost by reason of the long and difficult routes of transportation, and the Indians were troublesome; but many of the mines were rich and even under such unfavorable circumstances yielded a large amount of bullion. Developments extended over a wide region, including mines of copper and gold as well as silver, especially in the east on the New Mexican border; and prospecting operations, often with great success, were extended to the upper and lower Gila and even into the unexplored regions far- ther north. Tucson recovered something of its old- time prosperity ; Tubac became a flourishing little town of some 500 inhabitants, where the first Arizona news- paper was published in 1858-60;12 a few ranchos were established, including several in the Gila valley on the stage route; and the American population in- creased to several thousands. Emigrants continued, though in diminished numbers, to cross Arizona by
11 In the Yuma Sentinel, March 30, 1878, is an account by one of the party, fitted out to search for the famous Planchas de Plata in Sonora, some of whose members turned aside to take possession of the Ajo mines.
12 The weekly Arizonian, often cited in Cal. newspapers of these years. See Barton's Directory of Tucson, 1881, p. 10; Tucson Star, Dec. 4, 1879; S. F. Bulletin, March 22, 1850; Hinton's Hand-book, 40, 186; Ariz. Hist., 260. The paper was moved to Tucson in 1860, and suspended in 1861, the office furni- ture-two derringers-being advertised for sale,
499
AFFAIRS ON THE COLORADO.
the southern route, and many of them remained here for a while before going on to California.13
Fort Yuma, on the Colorado side of the Colorado, was occupied continuously by United States troops, affording much better protection to this part of Ari- zona than was enjoyed in the south-east. Steamers continued to ply on the Colorado; the ferry did a prosperous business; the overland stage had a station here; and much teaming was done in the transporta- tion of supplies and ores to and from the copper mines in Papaguería and the silver mines by the Gila route. The settlement on the Arizona side known as Colorado City and Arizona City is often mentioned as a thriving town, as under the circumstances it should have been ; but the more definite of current items reduce it to a very few buildings, mostly destroyed in the flood of 1861-2.14 In 1858 gold placers were discovered on
13 On Arizona mining before 1863, including companies, districts, particu- lar mines, colonization and prospecting parties, with naturally much on In- dian troubles, the cataloguing of the complicated and often vaguely recorded details being obviously impracticable here, see Hayes' Scraps, Mining, v., pas- sim; Id., Ariz., i. v., passim; California newspapers, especially the Sac. Union, March 22, Oct. 12, 1854; April 25, May 29, June 13, 17, Aug. 12, Nov. 28, Dec. 15, 1857; March 31, Oct. 22, Nov. 1, 3, 8, 11, 12, 16, Dec. 11, 20, 28, 29, 30, 1858; Jan. 3, 20, March 14, April 15, May 11, 14, 16, June 10, 1859; Feb. 24, May 23, June 28, July 9, 14, Nov. 3, 17, 1860; April 17, May 13, 21, June 27, 1861; Feb. 10, 1862; S. F. Alta Cal., March 6, Aug. 21, 1854; Aug. 25, Oct. 14, 1856; May 29, Aug. 21, Sept. 6, 1857; Jan. 18, March 12, 27, April 15, 27, May 11, 21, June 3, Nov. 2, 6, 7, 12, 25, Dec. 21, 24, 27, 31, 1858; Jan. 11, 19, 24, 26, Feb. 6, 11, March 1, 10, 21, April 3, 4, 8, 13, 15, 21, May 11, 17, 22, June 3, 28, July 8, 23, 25, 31, Aug. 8, Sept. 12, Dec. 12, 31, 1859; June 17, 1860; March 18, June 27, July 17, 1861; July 30, Oct. 14, 1862; S. F. Bulletin, March 14, 1856; April 13, May 11, 12, Sept. 15, Oct. 30, Nov. 6, 11, 13, 17, 26, Dec. 9, 17, 18, 1858; Jan. 3, 10, 11, 26, Feb. 4, 11, 12, 14, 28, March 12, April 7, 8, 27, May 9, 12, 14, 23, 27, June 5, 8, 24, July 18, 28, Aug. 20, 27, 1859; May 24, June 10, 16, 18, July 9, 14, 18, 21, 22, 28, Aug. 1, 28, Sept. 3, 10, 26, Oct. 10, Nov. 21, 1862; Yuma Sentinel, Jan. 12, March 30, 1878; Jan. 7, 1883; Poston's Arizona, in Id., May 7, 1873; Mining Magazine, i. 1-15, 243, 321-2; ii. 83; ix. 383 4; x. 335-6; Harper's Mag., xxix. 557-60, 690-2; Hamilton's Resources, 22, 145-7; Hunt's Merch. Mag., xxxiv. 759-60; xlii. 117; xliv. 242-3; Dublan and Lozano, Legis. Mex, vii. 521-2; Hinton's Hand-book, 32-42, 185; Arizona, Hist. (Elliott & Co.), 63, 201, 207-10, 220-2, 244, 301-2; Arizona Scraps, passim; Hodge's Ariz., 61-5, 69, 124-9; U. S. Census, 9th, p. 665; Box's Adven., 317-34; Conklin's Pict. Ariz., 186; Browne's Min. Resources, 136, 142, 156-9, 466; Id., Apache Country, pas- sim; Ind. Aff. Rept, 1862, p. 327; Sonora, Doc. Hist., MS., iv. 174-7; Niles' Reg., lxxv. 348; Hall's Sonora, MS., 72-3; and Mowry's Works on Ariz., pas- sim.
14 The most definite and most flattering statement that I have seen is that in the S. F. Bulletin of Aug. 9, 1859, which states that Colorado City had bmt one house, of adobe, and used as a custom-house; Arizona City had half &
500
THE GADSDEN PURCHASE.
the Gila some twenty miles above the junction, but extending for several miles along the river; and a new town of shanties sprang into existence, under the name of Gila City. Five hundred miners or more were at one time at work here, some of them very successfully; but there was great difficulty in getting water, the richest diggings being several miles from the river, and before 1862 the glory of these placers had de- parted, and the city was destroyed by the flood.15 There was no settlement north of the Gila, though prospecting was carried on in different directions, a few emigrants came over the Beale wagon road, and Fort Mojave, as we have seen, was garrisoned from 1858.16
For five or six years after the American occupation, the Indians caused comparatively little trouble, though constant vigilance was required, and petty depreda- tions never ceased entirely. The Yumas, not a nu- merous tribe, were kept in control by the garrison and rarely molested Americans except as pilferers, though
dozen adobe buildings, including 2 stores, 2 saloons, and a post-office; while at the ferry, a mile below the Gila junction, was the stage station, 2 stores, 2 blacksmith shops, a hotel, and several houses, the three ' cities ' being all within the space of a mile. Most items, except those that simply speak of a flourishing town, mention only one or two buildings, but perhaps refer only to that portion known as Colorado City. See Id., Oct. 13, Nov. 17, 1857; Nov. 8, 1858; Hayes' Scraps, Angeles, iv. 33; Id., S. Diego, i. 192-200; Yuma Sentinel, May 23, 1878; Hinton's Hand-book, 246; S. F. Alta, Aug. 25, 1857; May 27, 1859; Feb. 11, 1862; Sac. Union, April 9, 1856; S. F. Herald, Dec. 18, 1857; Arizona, Hist., 245. The receipts of the ferry in 1857 are given as $2,000 a day.
15 The references in note 13 include the Gila mines. See also on Gila City, Hayes' Scraps, Mining, v. 78; S. F. Alta, Dec. 27, 1858; Sac. Union, Feb. 12, 1332, according to which Gila City was also destroyed by the flood. Conklin, Pict. Ariz., 84-5, describes the city-which had had 1,200 inhab. in 1861-as being in 1877 a stage station, with stable, corral, 'Gila Hotel,' and kennel, and containing by a census made at the time 9 inhabitants, including 3 dogs, squaw, and papoose.
16 Here may be noted that in 1862 Maj. D. Fergusson made a reconnois- sance of a route from Tucson to the gulf, with a view to opening a shorter and cheaper way for the transportation of supplies to the Arizona mines. He found no serious impediment to travel, and pronounced the ports of Libertad and Lobos well fitted for the purpose. Fergusson's Report on the country, etc., and the route between Tucson and Lobos Bay, 1862. Letter of sec. war in U. S. Govt Doc., 37 cong., spec. sess., Seu. Ex. Doc. 1, 22 p., maps. In 1860, Gov. Pesqueira had, by decree, permitted the transit of U. S. merchandise through Sonora. Hayes' Scraps, Ariz., v. 311-12; Id., Angeles, viii. 24; Es- trella de Occidente, Jan. 25, 1861; S. F. Alta, Mar. 8, 1861.
501
INDIAN AFFAIRS.
often in trouble with their neighbors. In 1857, with Mojave, Cocopa, and Tonto allies, they attacked the Pimas and Pápagos up the river, and in a great battle were almost annihilated. The Mojaves were more hostile and treacherous, committing many depreda- tions on emigrants and others in 1858; but during this year and the next were brought into subjection by Colonel Hoffman's efforts, and by the establishment of the fort. The Pimas, numbering about 4,000, the Maricopas 500, and the Pápagos 3,000, were uni- formly friendly, and of great assistance in keeping hostile tribes in check. From 1859 John Walker was Indian agent for these Indians, residing at Tucson, being succeeded by Abraham Lyons in 1862. By act of congress, February 28, 1859, a sum of $1,000 was appropriated for a survey of the Pima and Mari- copa lands on the Gila, and $10,000 for gifts in the form of implements and clothing. The survey was made by Colonel A. B. Gray, and the presents were distributed by Lieutenant Sylvester Mowry before the end of the year. As to the Apaches, estimated at about 10,000 in number, under the care of M. Steck as agent, and after a campaign by Colonel Bonneville in 1857, they were for a time, compara- tively speaking, at peace, though continuing their raids across the line, attacking Mexicans wherever they could be found, and often committing petty depreda- tions against small parties of Americans. Agents reported some progress in inducing the Mescalero Apaches to till the soil and refrain from hostilities; and it was urged by all familiar with the subject that all the Apaches must be induced to settle north of the Gila, there to be instructed, aided, and watched, while the southern passes must be guarded by garrisons at several points. Nothing was done, however, except the division of the military force, and the establish- ment of Fort Breckenridge on the San Pedro. In 1860 hostilities became more frequent and general, and were greatly aggravated by bad management and
502
THE GADSDEN PURCHASE.
injustice on the part of the officers, by which Cochise, a prominent chieftain, was made the life-long foe of the Americans. Soon all were on the war-path, mur- ders and robberies were of daily occurrence, and even the soldiers were hard pressed. Then in 1861, when for other reasons the stage line was abandoned, and the troops recalled from Arizona, the Indians natu- rally regarded this as their triumph, redoubled their efforts, and for over a year were masters of the terri- ·tory, having killed or driven out all the white inhabi- tants except a few hundred who took refuge within the walls of Tucson.17
In 1856-7 Henry A. Crabb of California had at- tempted a filibustero conquest of Sonora under the
17 Ind. Aff. Reports, 1857-63, reports of agents and others in N. Mexico and Arizona. 'The arrival of the Cal. column under Gen. Carleton in June 1862 found the country between the Colorado and Rio Grande a desolation marked by new-made graves.' Poston, in Id., 1863, p. 383-4. 'The California and Sonora papers of 1861-3 contain many items; also Hayes' Scraps, Ariz .; and each of the general works on Arizona narrates a few of the disasters, though not much reliance can be placed in details, which I do not attempt to catalogue. See Pumpelly's Across Amer., 1-67, for an excellent account of Arizona affairs in these years; also Ross Browne's Adventures in Apache Country, chap. i. Says Hinton, Hand-book, 41-2: ' A few American miners held on to their locations in the Cerbat and Hualapai mountains. In the Salt River valley there was a ranch or two; and elsewhere, except at Tucson and Yuma, there was nothing of life to be found except a few Mexicans, the Pimas and Pápagos, with the hostile Indians at every turn.' And Hamilton, Resources, 23: 'The Apache marauders swept down from their mountain strongholds, and carried death and destruction throughout southern Arizona mines; ranches and stock-ranges were abandoned, and the few whites left in the country took refuge within the walls at Tucson. The savages indulged in a saturnalia of slaughter, and the last glimmer of civilization seemed about to be quenched in blood. The horribly mutilated bodies of men, women, and children marked nearly every mile of the road to the Rio Grande. 'This frightful condition of things existed for nearly a year after the withdrawal of the troops.' In the S. F. Alta, Dec. 16, 1872, is an article by Gov. Saf- ford giving a history of Cochise's career. Besides Cochise, Mangas Coloradas was the most famous of Apache chiefs. It should be noted that in all these years a remnant of the tame Apaches continued to live near Tucson, taking no part in the hostilities of their people. Hamilton, Resources, 108-9, gives a good account of the beginning of the war in 1860. Lieut. Bascom, a young West Point graduate, was sent to Apache Pass to recover some live-stock which a settler had lost. Cochise, the chief, said his tribe had not taken the property, but he would try to find and return it. Next day Cochise and his warriors were invited to a 'big talk, ' and having assembled were surrounded and told they would be held as hostages till the cattle and a captive were re- stored. A desperate struggle ensued, in which several were wounded and six warriors captured, including the chief's brother; but Cochise escaped though badly wounded. He declared life-long war on the Americans, and kept his threat. The troops had a narrow escape, and the six captives were hanged.
503
CRABB'S FILIBUSTERS.
guise of colonization, counting on the support of one of the two contending factions. With an advance party of 100 men he crossed Arizona from Yuma to Sonoita and Caborca, but was defeated and shot with all his companions. A party of thirty went from Tucson to his rescue, but were too late and barely es- caped sharing his fate.18 Crabb's ill fortune prevented later attempts of a similar nature; but the spirit of filibusterism was potent in Arizona, and the Sonoran authorities were always fearful and suspicious. Sono- ran laborers of a vicious class were employed in the mines, and were accused of many robberies and mur- ders, being hardly less feared than the Apaches. Another prominent and but little better element of the population was that of outlaws and desperados from California and Texas, who looked with contempt after the manner of their class on all of Mexican blood. There were public meetings held to urge the expulsion of the hated 'greasers' from the mines and from the country. A war of races at times seemed impending. Even before the withdrawal of troops enabled the savages to take possession of the country, broils, mur- ders, robberies, duels, and outrages perpetrated in the name of vigilantes were of constant occurrence, and created perhaps a more disgraceful and disastrous condition of affairs than is elsewhere revealed in west- ern annals. After the abandonment of the country, Sonoran marauders are said to have crossed the line to steal or destroy any petty remnant of property left by the Apaches. 19
Arizona, besides its Apaches and outlaws, had during ing this period its politics and politicians, though not much government. From 1851 to 1854 it was a part of the territory of New Mexico, and was theoretically divided into five or six counties; that is, the boundaries
18 For details of the Crabb affair, see Hist. North Mex. States, ii., this series. 19 I follow Cal. and Sonora newspaper items, besides the general accounts given in works that have been cited. All authorities agree in the outline and coloring, though not many particulars are clearly recorded. One of the most famous duels was that between Lieut. Mowry and Editor Cross at Tubac in 1859. It was fought with rifles, and nobody hurt.
504
THL GADSDEN PURCHASE.
of the New Mexican counties extended west to Califor- nia;20 but as Arizona-north of the Gila, the only part belonging then to New Mexico or the United States- had no settlements, there existed hardly the semblance of county jurisdiction. By act of congress, August 4, 1854, the Gadsden purchase was added to New Mex- ico; and by act of the legislature, January 18, 1855, it was attached to Doña Ana county, a part of which it remained till 1863.21 In records of the time, how- ever, the only indication of county rule is the occasional sending of a criminal to Mesilla for trial. There were also justices of the peace at Tucson and perhaps else- where. From the first, there was much complaint that the country was not and could not be properly governed from Santa Fé, with corresponding petitions for a sepa- rate territorial organization, the Mesilla district making common cause in this matter with Arizona proper, being separated from the capital by the Jornada del Muerto.
A convention was held at Tucson on August 29, 1856, which resolved, not only to send a memorial to congress urging the organization of a territory of Arizona, but to send a delegate to Washington. The memorial was signed by some 260 names, and Nathan P. Cook was in September elected delegate.22 He was not admitted to a seat, but his mission was brought before the house in January 1857. The committee on territories reported against a territorial organization, because of the limited population, but recognized the unfortunate condition of the people, and recommended
20 See New Mex., Comp. Laws, secs. 242 et seq., for the county lines. Doña Ana county included a small area of Ariz. south of the Gila.
21 Cong. Globe, 1853-4, p, 2207; N. Mex., Comp. Laws, sec. 277. On Feb. 3, 1855, an act divided the Mesilla valley into three precincts, Id., sec. 254; but there is no mention of the Arizona settlements proper.
22 The president of the convention was Mayor M. Aldrich of Tucson; vice- pres. James Douglas of Sopori, José M. Martinez of S. Javier; sec. G. K. Terry and W. N. Bonner; N. P. Cook, G. H. Oury, H. Ehrenberg, Ign. Or- tiz, and I. D. L. Pack were the committee ou resolutions and memorial. The white population was estimated at 10,000 (!). Oury was elected member of the N. Mex. legislature. Cook arrived at S. Diego Sept. 22d, and soon sailed for Washington. Hayes' Scraps, Ariz., v. 244-5; S. F. Alta, Oct. 27, 1856; Sac. Union, Oct. 16, 30, 1856; Arizona Scraps, 445.
505
EFFORTS FOR A GOVERNMENT.
a bill to organize a judicial district south of the Gila, to appoint a surveyor-general, and to provide for rep- resentation at Santa Fé as well as for the regulation of land claims and mining titles. Such a bill was passed by the senate in February, but was not acted upon by the house.23 The president, in his messages of 1857-8, recommended a territorial government; Senator Gwin in December 1857 introduced a bill to organize such a government for the Gadsden purchase, under the name of Arizona; the legislature of New Mexico in February 1858 passed resolutions in favor of the measure, though recommending a north and south boundary line on the meridian of 109, and also the removal of all New Mexican Indians to northern Arizona; several favorable petitions were received from different parts of the union; and in an election held at Tucson in September 1857, the people had prepared a new petition and chosen Sylvester Mowry as a delegate to congress. The delegate was not ad- mitted, and Gwin's bill was not passed.24 In the fol- lowing years Mowry continued his efforts with much zeal and no success, being reëlected as delegate; other
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