Old Camp Grant

[Gypsy Heart]

This is a photo from old Camp Grant looking toward the Pinal Mountains, seen in the distance. Old Camp Grant was the site of some of the most famous episodes in all of Arizona/Apache history. It is located about 40 miles south of Globe, near what is now the Aravaipa Campus of Central Arizona Community College (near Winkelman, AZ). The site is practically invisible to all passersby, actually split in half by a modern highway. It was in operation from about 1859 to 1872, when General George Crook moved it to "new" Camp Grant, just south of the Graham Mountains, near Safford and Willcox, Arizona. "New" Camp Grant (or Fort Grant) is now the site of a penal institution.
It was near Old Camp Grant that the infamous Camp Grant Massacre of 30 April 1871 took place.
http://www.geocities.com/~zybt/grnt.htm


Arizona's
Camp Grant Massacre

by Howard Sheldon
In the pre-dawn hours of April 30, 1871, eight men and 110 women and children were brutally murdered in the brief span of 30 minutes. In addition, 28 Arivaipa Apache papoose were kidnapped from the grisly scene for sale in the child slave trade. The corpses left to rot in the morning sun of Arivaipa Canyon were a macabre sight to Dr. Conant B. Briesly the first white man to chronicle the sight when he arrived at half past seven the same morning. By eight o'clock that morning, the mongrel band responsible for the gruesome massacre was breakfasting and celebrating their victory over an Indian tribe of defenseless, sleeping victims. What prompted 148 Arizonans -- comprised of 6 Anglos, 94 San Xavier Papagos and 48 Mexicans -- to commit such an atrocity?
April 30, 1998, marks the 127th anniversary of this dark page in Arizona's Territorial diary, written in Arivaipa Apache blood. There will be no recognition of this day by the white man. There is no physical marker to locate the site. However, this day has not been forgotten by the relatives of those slain, the Arivaipa Apaches. This attempt at genocide is known as the Camp Grant Massacre.

The events that led up to and culminated in the Camp Grant Massacre were the severe depredations of humans and livestock in the first four months of 1871. Atrocities were committed by both the white man and the native Indians. The immigrants, white-eyed enemies or pindah-lickoyee as the Indians called them, were moving in by the thousands and exhausting the native food and water resources. The Arivaipa Apaches relied on game and native plants -- primarily mescal -- as their primary food sources. With these problems and a host of others, which included new diseases introduced by the white man, it is easier to understand why the native peoples were unwilling to share their home with these new uninvited guests. Much to the chagrin of the settlers, government representatives were unavailable to protect the white citizenry. Unable to see any relief in sight, six white pioneers, a mixed company of San Xavier Papagos and Mexican's, took matters into their own hands, vigilante style.


http://www.desertusa.com/mag98/april/stories/campgrant1.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Camp_Grant_Massacre
http://query.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=9800EFD7103EEE34BC4951DFB166838A669FDE

http://query.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=9A04E0D7103EEE34BC4851DFB166838A669FDE

Marker Topic: Old Camp Grant - 1858
Address: Mouth of Aravaipa Creek, on the San Pedro River Beside State Route 77 adjacent to Old Camp Grant
City: Old Camp Grant
County: Pinal
Marker Text: Established in 1858 as Camp Breckenridge. Important in protecting travelers crossing Southern Arizona. In 1871 near here occurred the Camp Grant Massacre, organized by Tucson residents to punish Apaches for raids. More than 100 natives, mostly women and children, were killed in a dawn raid.

 

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[cptbil]

This is also, the last place that an ancestor of mine:
Lt. J. Crittenden

Was seen alive, before heading out to his Rich! Rich* Gold Mine !
It is still unsolved or the mine found !

I will be attemping to locate it, His body and the mine, this coming year.

Care to join the Search ?


* $67,000 a ton, As assayed in Tucson !

 

[cptbil]

I have been to the Family Cemetary,
It's near Spurling Ky
My mother and her twin sister were buried there!
I never realized just how many relatives I had!
The Wrights, The Crittendens, The Spurlings, Breillatts .. etc
All over the area, from Ind. Ill. Ky. Tenn. etc..
But!
One of the reasons is,
That I'd like to find the mine

That I'd like to return a few of his "bones" to that part of the country
His Wife was buried there..
Lt. Crittenden was never found
I believe that an Apache Custom was followed
"If you want our gold...Here! You can have it forever"
His body was more than likely buried right, on top of the Gold Outcropping!
The Outcropping was/is in a small conical shaped hill
The gold is in the middle of the cone
It is a "rose" quartz w/pure gold, vein/outcropping

 

[cptbil]

I will be out in this area this coming summer/fall!
This, Camp Grant, is close to where I have found a very nice deposit of Fire Agate!
Worth about $200. a pound!
It's of a good gem quality deposit!
I am thinking of going out and filing a claim on it!
Anyone interested in working it?

 

[cptbil]

Strange!
That there has been no reply to this "post"
I would think that, just for the sake of unraveling some Ariz. History/Legend/mystery, that someone would be interested in going along, out there!

 

[Eppa]

I am definitely interested! Me and my friend are trying to find the Eskimozine mine. He was the cheif for the Aravaipa Apaches that were massacred. Mostly old men, women, and children were murdered. The men were out hunting when they were attacked. There is a book called Enju, that tells of this sad time in AZ history. I am not sure he had a mine, but my friend said that he was told the old cheif always had money, long after the massacre when he lived on his own.

 

[pippinwhitepaws]

i used to live down in eden.
some sad and interesting things occured in that area...and still do.

 

[froggy]

The parade ground at Camp Grant, Arizona Territory, a baked and barren outpost typical of the "forts" U. S. troops manned on the frontier. Photographed by John Hillers c. 1870. (National Archives [106-WB-100])

 

[froggy]

1869 "OLD" Camp Grant area Map

 

[kimmie4476]

So, the old camp grant is at the mouth of aravaipa creek? We used to do a 4wheel drive run that went from the "new"camp grant through aravaipa canyon and came out in Mammoth. Beautiful territory but some of the roughest 2 days that our club ran! (we stopped going because they began milling the road through, bad for 4 wheeling, good for TH!) My husband and I lived at the new camp grant in staff housing for about 2 years, and if you've ever been there, it is in the middle of nowhere, very boring lol, so we know that area very well. There are many abandoned mines and houses in that area (a lot of abandoned houses where you start hitting aravaipa creek) and there is even what looks like an abandoned mining town back in the hills. At the time we lived there I didn't have a metal detector, but I would love to go back and check it out now! Thanks, Gypsy for the post as you reminded me about this area and the places we found while out 4- wheeling. Now I have another place to bug my husband to take me!

 

[pippinwhitepaws]

YOU DROVE THROUGH ARAVAIPA?
thats just wrong.

 

[kimmie4476]

There is a road that goes through aravaipa canyon from fort grant to mammoth. where were you thinking?

 

[pippinwhitepaws]

i realize i jumped fast on that one...i don't remember a road...i remember walking ankle deep in water...
from dudleyville area...i guess someone made a road...sorry.

 

[kimmie4476]

lol, yes there is a road, it's an old one, and it used to not be for the faint of heart, but a few years ago I heard someone bought some property back in those hills and began milling the road (making it smooth which is why our 4-wheel drive club stopped going). At the beginning of the road (just past Klondyke) and a couple crossings there are a lot of abandoned houses. A.s you areabout to climb out of the canyon, there are some cliff dwellings and an old mine closed with an iron door up in the cliffs (it's an area that we heard was called Landsman camp, but we can't find it on any maps). The first day of our trip, we used to make camp at "jackson's cabin" Then head out the next day towards "carpet hill". Along the way, you come across an old mining operation with ruins including an old safe with the door blown off of it. We used to have a lot of pics of this area, I can't find them, but I'll keep looking! You will also come across another mine with turqouise laying all over the ground as well as a few other mines. After carpet hill, you drop into mammoth and the trip is over!

My husband states there is a lot of interesting places there such as "Battle Mountain", "Power's Ranch" where the the power's brothers and their father lived when the army came to recruit them, there was a battle, There is an abandoned town by Land'sman Camp etc. Lots of history in that area!

I found one of our old websites where we had some pictures of the road after you climb out of the canyon (where it starts to get rough) Don't laugh, it was one of my first attempts lol http://www.geocities.com/kimmie4476/ariviapajan2001.html

 

[cptbil]

Eppa:
Your Mine, "The Eskimosine", is the same mine, that Lt. C. was shown and was mining
See my "post 1" of this topic
I have seen letters that he wrote to the "family", as to the location, description, etc, of the mine!
"I" (my partner, "Doc & I) will be heading there, to check out the location, on this yr's ('09) trip
Care come along?

 

[Eppa]

IF its a day trip, I could probably make it! Hopefully you are going during late fall/early winter. I hate snakes and have seen plenty out already. Is the Eskimozine mine the same as the Lost Yuma mine?

Have you heard of the crystal cave? Also near Dudleyville, was told its on private property, but I didn't see any signage on my way there. Its near the gypsum mines and was filled in at one time from flooding, but it is opening up again. I've crawled in it a few times, not much room right now. The opening has a huge chunck of white gypsum. I was told when my father was little and in the boy scouts they use to go camping there, and you could actually use a boat to cross it.

Just some FYI stuff.

Eppa

 

[cptbild]

EPPA:
It is probably the same "Mine"!
I, Used the word "mine" for the lack of a better "term"
As we all know the indians did not "mine ", as we know it, for anything.
This "Mine" is actually, an exposed "rose" quartz vein, with pure gold running
thru it
It "assayed" @ $67,000/ton (as per Lt. C.'s assay")
AND!
Doc & I, will be flying over the area this year sometime
To see if we can locate anything useful w/o ALL! of that LEG WORK!

 

[pippinwhitepaws]

isn't the crystal cave above superior?

 

[Eppa]

I am not sure about the cave above Superior. I have only been told about this one, and have gone into this one near Dudleyville. But its always a possibility theres another Crystal cave around!

 

[pippinwhitepaws]

well, there is a cave in superior called crystal cave...above and on the opposite side of the old high school.
no crystals that i could find...