Fort Bowie, Arizona:
Fort Bowie, constructed in 1862, was a United States Army outpost located in southeastern Arizona near present-day Willcox. Protected as a National Historic Site, its remains and foundations are open to the public year-round. During the early years of the American Civil War, the Union army established the fort in response to a series of skirmishes with the Chiricahua Apaches. The original defense was nothing more than a temporary camp. In 1868, the army built a second, more substantial structure on a plateau roughly 500 yards east of the original location. This structure included adobe barracks, houses, corrals, a trading post, and a hospital. For the next 24 years, Fort Bowie and Apache Pass would be the focal points of all military operations against the Apache in southeastern Arizona, culminating in the surrender of Geronimo in 1886. With the Indian Wars over, the army finally abandoned the fort in 1894.
Fort Bowie circa 1880s. A cavalry detachment photographed departing the fort for patrol. The post traders building, constructed of adobe bricks, is clearly visible in the background. This image depicts one of many information boards displayed throughout the area.
Fort Bowie March 7, 2021. The corresponding view 141-years later. The adobe remains of the post traders building are still visible in the background.
Access to the Fort Bowie National Historic Site and Apache Pass is exclusively through a 3-mile roundtrip hike into the fort ruins and visitor center. This path plays an integral role in understanding numerous historical events, offering a unique experience akin to hiking through history. It provides insight into the stories that shaped Apache Pass and the fort's establishment. Historically, the canyon was significant for two reasons. It facilitated easy passage between the Chiricahua and Dos Cabezas Mountains, and it was the location of Apache Spring. This year-round water source emerged from a geological fault line running through the canyon, serving as the only reliable water for miles. Many Indigenous tribes relied on this water until challenged by the U.S. Army and migrants heading west.
Apache Spring emerges from a geological fault line running through Apache pass. The Pass's history begins with this spring—as the only reliable water source for miles; the spring served as a critical resupply point for indigenous peoples and westward migrants alike. The spring became a crossroads for the Apache people, with many trails from different directions converging on the site. The Apache favored the area as a camping spot in winter and spring. There were often hundreds of Chiricahua's living nearby. A little higher than the surrounding desert terrain, the Pass was cooler on hot days, and the area around the spring provided abundant game and firewood.
In 1858, the Butterfield Overland Mail Company inaugurated a stagecoach service connecting St. Louis, Missouri, to San Francisco, California. The company erected a station on the eastern side of Apache Pass to access spring water. This station was one of nineteen established across southern Arizona, facilitating mail delivery and offering east/west passenger transportation. With stagecoaches, military personnel, settlers, and migrants all relying on the spring, a confrontation became inevitable. Two significant events unfolded in the canyon, setting the stage for the relationship between the Chiricahua Apache and the United States Army. These events ultimately paved the way for the construction of Fort Bowie in 1862.
In 1857, the government awarded John Butterfield a contract to carry mail by stagecoach between St. Louis and San Francisco. Looking East along the original trail of the Butterfield Overland Mail, wheel ruts are still visible today. Butterfield had the Celerity wagon designed for the central segment of the route (through the New Mexico and Arizona Territory's), unlike the larger Concord coaches used at both ends of the line. The mule-driven, lighter Celerity could quickly negotiate the rugged mountains and rocky canyons of the Southwest.
The Butterfield Overland Stage stop at Apache Pass, 164-years after its original construction. Butterfield anticipated trouble with the Apache in 1857; he ordered the building of these staging posts to be constructed from stone, thereby creating a defensive position. This image shows the walls of the stage rest stop from the area of the mule corral. A side door (in the foreground of the image) leads to the corral. The corral wall obscures the front door, and the fireplace is visible at the far end of the structure.
The first incident, known as the 'Bascom Affair' or 'Bascom Massacre,' marked a confrontation between Apache Indians and the army under Lieutenant George Nicholas Bascom in early 1861. This event directly led to the decades-long Chiricahua Apache Wars between the United States and several other tribes in southwestern Arizona and Mexico. On January 27, 1861, the affair began when an Apache raiding party targeted John Ward's ranch at Sonoita Creek, stealing livestock and kidnapping Ward's 12-year-old stepson, Felix Tellez. Ward reported the raid to the nearby military authority at Fort Buchanan, Arizona. The army assigned the task to Lieutenant George Bascom, with orders to lead a company of infantry into Apache Pass, recover the boy, and employ whatever means necessary to punish the kidnappers.
On February 3, 1861, Bascom, Ward, and 54 soldiers arrived in Apache Pass. Bascom convinced a local Chiricahua Apache chief named Cochise to meet with him. Skeptical of Bascom's intentions, Cochise brought his brother Coyuntwa, two nephews, his wife, and two children as a gesture of peace. Numerous reports on the affair provide mixed information on who perpetrated the kidnapping. Many accounts claim it was Tonto Apache, while several others point to Coyotero and other Pinal Apache. Suffice to say, from Bascom's perspective, it was Apache! Apache or not, Cochise and the Chiricahua people were unaware of the kidnapping—a statement he strongly asserted at the meeting! Bascom decided to hold Cochise and his family hostage until the boy's release. He separated them into several tents and placed them under guard; however, Cochise escaped alone by slashing a hole in the canvas wall with a hidden knife. Apache historians today describe this incident as 'Cut the tent.'
This image shows the campsite of Lieutenant George Nicholas Bascom on February 3, 1861. 160-years ago. The two-man tens that would have accommodated the Company would have extended from the tree to the hill's base in the midground. Cochise scurried up the hill's left side, cresting the ridge roughly in line with the pinnacle in the distance during the 'Cut the tent' incident.
On February 5, Cochise delivered a message to Bascom demanding his family's release. Bascom refused, stipulating that they would be set free upon the boy's return. The following day, the standoff worsened. Cochise and a sizeable raiding party attacked a group of American and Mexican teamsters at the Butterfield Overland station—and took hostages, three Americans, and nine Mexicans. After torturing and killing the Mexicans, he took the three Americans hostage, offering them in exchange for his family. Still, Bascom repeated that he would accept nothing other than the return of the boy and cattle.
Cochise fled with his hostages to Sonora, Mexico (outside American jurisdiction). On the way, he tortured and killed the American prisoners and left their remains for Bascom to find. On February 19, 1861, Lieutenant Isaiah Moore, who had led a cavalry relief party to Apache Pass, hanged Cochise's brother and nephews in retribution. The army learned several weeks later that the Chiricahua Apache were, in fact, not responsible for the kidnapping. Nonetheless, it was too late; a war had erupted that would continue from Cochise through Geronimo for the next 24 years.
The second notable event occurred on July 15-16, 1862, during the Battle of Apache Pass. The combined forces of Chief Mangas Coloradas and Cochise (approximately 140-160 Apache) ambushed a column of infantry. This small detachment comprised one Company (Company E) of the 1st California Volunteer Infantry, consisting of 116 men, commanded by Captain Thomas L. Roberts. Additionally, Roberts had two 6-pounder mountain howitzers and a cavalry escort of 22 men.
From a tactical standpoint, the Apache had the advantage; they occupied the high ground, had the element of surprise, and superior numbers. However, the army possessed two artillery pieces. This type of weapon was entirely foreign to the Indians. Although the howitzer wasn't accurate, it was loud and destructive. It took the Apache by surprise, which was enough to turn the tide in favor of the army. In securing the spring, the military casualties were relatively light, with two dead and three wounded, but the Indians suffered 66 dead.
After the battle, the army dispatched the 5th California Volunteer Infantry into Apache Pass with orders to build a fort to protect the spring. The fort was named Bowie in honor of the regiment's commanding officer, Colonel George Washington Bowie.
The advanced guard of the 1st California Volunteer Infantry marching towards the San Simon River to establish a supply depot for the main Californian column was ambushed here by Cochise and his ally, Mangas Coloradas, with their combined forces, they attacked the rear of the column. The Californians drove the Apache's into these hills—to find they had taken up new positions along the high ground (shown here). The Californians, supported by a 22-man Cavalry detachment, and two 6-pound howitzers, attacked again and finally reached Apache Spring after dispersing the Apache from the rock foundations commanding both flanks of the spring.
This image shows the remains of the Chiricahua Apache Indian Agency. U.S. assigned Indian agent Thomas Jeffords governed some 900 Chiricahua Apache's from here in 1875 – 1876, under the vigilance of the U.S. Army at Fort Bowie. Cochise, the Chiricahua chieftain and friend of Jeffords, died in 1874, leaving the band divided in leadership and conduct. Some Apache's lingered on the reservation while others slipped away to plunder Mexican settlements. In June 1876, the government removed Jeffords and moved 325 Apache's northward to the San Carlos reservation. However, many escaped under Geronimo and fled to distant sanctuaries to renew hostilities for another decade.
The remains of the original Fort built in 1862 on a high plateau overlooking Apache spring.
A desert Catclaw Acacia tree, growing through the foundations of one of the original Fort's buildings. The first Fort was built in 1862, roughly 500-yards west of the second Fort, which was constructed later in 1868.
The remains of the original Fort built in 1862 on a high plateau overlooking Apache spring.
Original artifacts from the first Fort—the top of a Civil War 5-gallon water can with the carrying handle still attached. “Disclaimer: It is illegal under federal law to remove any artifacts from BLM (Bureau of Land Management) land that is considered older than 50-years.”
Original artifacts from the first Fort—the top of a Civil War Ginger Beer bottle. “Disclaimer: It is illegal under federal law to remove any artifacts from BLM (Bureau of Land Management) land that is considered older than 50-years.”
The new Fort circa 1868: An image of the original adobe walls of the cavalry barracks—looking North.
The new Fort circa 1868: The walls and foundations of the Commanding Officers home—looking East. The fort's most elaborate structure, a two-story Victorian-style mansion built between 1884 - 1885 for about $4000. The post commander Major Eugene Beaumont was the first occupant.
The new Fort circa 1868: The walls and foundations of the Guard House.
Orisoba O. Spence was a thirty-three-year-old native of Tionesta, Pennsylvania. Spence joined the army in 1868 and was assigned as a Private to Company G, 8th Cavalry, stationed at Fort Bowie. Spence received the Medal of Honor for gallantry in action in an exchange with Cochise's band of Apaches on October 20, 1869, at the Chiricahua Mountains. Spence was discharged at Fort Selden, New Mexico, as a Sergeant in 1873. After his discharge, he stayed in southern New Mexico, marrying a local girl in 1874. Spence's wife resided in Grant County and worked for Nicholas Rogers (a Butterfield Overland Stage station manager) as a cook—through his wife, Spence started working for Rogers as a teamster. On April 1, 1876, bandits stole a horse and mule from the station. Spence went after the thieves, recovering the animals after a shoot-out. While Spence was gone, Nicholas Rogers had sold Whiskey to Apaches. On the morning of April 7, Spence returned to the station with the animals. Later that afternoon, the Apaches returned looking for more whiskey. Rogers refused—and both he and Spence were killed. Although initially buried at the station by an investigating patrol, the bodies were later brought into Fort Bowie for burial in the post cemetery.
Little Robe was part of a group of Apache prisoners captured near Nacori, Mexico, on August 7, 1885; the United States Army brought them to Fort Bowie on September 1, 1885. In this group of seven women and eight children were two of Geronimo's wives, Zi-yeh and She-gha, and two of his sons, Little Robe and Fenton. During this time, soldiers around the guardhouse became attached to Little Robe, and so when he died on September 10, 1885, probably of dysentery, they buried him in the post cemetery.
Civil War Veteran grave marker. GAR (Grand Army Republic) design 1861-1865. Private Aaron J. Bice, Co E, 5 California Infantry.
Geronimo:
Geronimo, a prominent Apache leader, surrendered at Skeleton Canyon, located about 20 miles south of Fort Bowie near the Arizona-New Mexico border. This pivotal surrender marked the conclusion of the Apache resistance in the late 19th century. Geronimo had guided his people through numerous raids against both Mexican and American settlers over many years. After an extended period of conflict and pursuit, Geronimo, along with a group of followers, surrendered to General Nelson A. Miles on September 4, 1886. This surrender stands as a significant event that effectively brought an end to the Apache Wars.
Geronimo and his followers were briefly held at Fort Bowie before being transported to Fort Pickens, Florida. The decision to relocate the Chiricahua Apache prisoners to Florida was part of the U.S. government's strategy to remove them from their homeland and suppress any further resistance. Geronimo, along with his fellow prisoners, spent several years in captivity in Florida before being relocated to Fort Sill, Oklahoma, where he passed away on February 17, 1909. He is buried at Fort Sill.
Fort Bowie circa 1886. On September 4, 1886, Geronimo surrendered to U.S. government troops, and the army moved his remaining band to Fort Bowie. For 30 years, the Native American warrior had battled to protect his tribe's homeland; however, by 1886, the Apache were exhausted and hopelessly outnumbered. This image shows an original picture of Geronimo and his people on the parade ground.
Fort Bowie March 7, 2021. The corresponding view 135-years later. The buildings have long since gone, but the retention wall in the foreground still remains.
A photograph of Natchez (left), son of Cochise and Geronimo (right) at Fort Bowie, Arizona Territory, after Geronimo's surrender to General Nelson A. Miles, September 4, 1886. A.F. Randall took the photograph: Los Angeles, CA, n.d., circa 1886. (Image credit: Public Domain).
Steve McConnell: Sitting in the same space as Geronimo—135-years after the event depicted in the image above.
Image Sources:
A.F.Randall. (1886). Naiche (left) and Geronimo at Ft. Bowie after agreeing to exile in Florida. Image Public Domain.
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