Early American Occupation
Tucson - Indian Raids - Population of Tucson AND Tubac - Route of Gold Seekers - First American Child Born in Arizona Ferry Across Colorado - Massacre of Glanton Party - Ferry Reestablished by Jaeger and Hartshorn e - Major Heintzelman - Dr. Webb's Encounter With Indians - Fort Yuma - Adventure of L. J. F. Jaeger - Schooner "Invincible" With Troops and Supplies Reaches Mouth of Colorado - Navigation of Colorado - Schooner Sierra Nevada - First Steamer ''Uncle Sam"'- Colorado City, Afterwards Arizona City, Then Yuma, Established - Yuma Indians.
At the time of which we are writing, 1849, Tucson was a part of Sonera,
and the Government maintained only a precarious possession of that town.
Continued raiding of the Apaches, driving off their livestock, made life in
the Old Pueblo one of constant annoyance and danger. Retaliatory raids by
the soldiers became less frequent, and although the Papago allies were
somewhat more successful in repelling and pursuing the savages, there was a
constant diminution of population. The census report of September, 1848,
gave Tucson 760 inhabitants and Tubac 249. In December of that year after an
attack in which 9 persons were killed, Tubac and Tumacacori were abandoned,
the people transferring their residence to Tucson. "Between this presidio
and that of Santa Cruz south of the line" says Bancroft, "it does not
clearly appear that a single Mexican establishment of any kind remained,
though before 1852, a small garrison had reoccupied Tubac."
After the discovery of gold in California in 1848, immigrants began to flock
through Arizona from Sonora and other Mexican states, and from the eastern
United States. The route usually followed was by the Santa Cruz and Gila
Valleys, and the Americans reached Tucson from the Rio Grande, for the most
part by Cooke's wagon route of 1846. It was a journey of much hardship and
dangerous on account of drought and lack of water and grass for the stock.
For this reason, it was not recommended by Kit Carson and other
frontiersmen. The Maricopa villages were the last friendly shelter to the
emigrants before reaching the Colorado River, where, in the fall of 1849,
Lieut. Cave J. Coutts, in command of an escort to the Boundary Surveyors
under Whipple, established Camp Calhoun on the California side, and for two
months aided the hungry gold seekers, whose arrival was noted almost every
day.
On the first of November, 1849, a flatboat, which had made the voyage down
the Gila from the Pima villages, with Mr. Howard and family, and two men, a
doctor and a clergyman, on board, arrived at the camp. During this voyage a
son was born to Mrs. Howard, said to have been the first child born in
Arizona of American parentage. The Lieutenant, it is said, purchased the
craft, which was used as a ferryboat during the remainder of his stay, and
was transported to San Diego where it was used on the bay. "This," says
Bancroft, "was the history of the first Colorado ferry."
There is some doubt as to the exact year in which Dr. Langdon established
his ferry across the Colorado, whether it was late in the year 1849, or
early in the year 1850. Bancroft says it is the latter date, but other
authorities claim that it was in the previous year, 1849. The money for the
establishment of this ferry was furnished by J. P. Brodie, an American
gentleman then a resident of Hermosillo, who retained an interest in it.
Prior to its establishment the Indians aided the emigrants in crossing with
their livestock and other property, having, in some way, secured a scow for
this purpose. In disregard of their rights, the Americans occupied the
field. They established a stockade on the California side, which they called
Fort Defiance, and which became the scene of a massacre by the Yumas the
following year. Dr. Langdon, who seems to have had charge of this ferry,
associated with himself one John Glanton, or Gallantin, who seems to have
been the head of a band of outlaws who had been employed by the Mexican
Government to gather Apache scalps at one hundred dollars for each brave,
fifty dollars for each woman, and twenty-five dollars for each child. The
business seems to have been lucrative, so far as they were concerned, for
the Glanton party did not confine itself to gathering the scalps of the
Apaches, but took those of the Opatas and Pimas, and sometimes of the
Mexicans. This being discovered by the authorities, they were compelled to
leave the country.
There seems at this time to have been an opposition ferry. Glanton killed
its manager and in this way controlled the business of transportation across
the Colorado. He exacted heavy tribute from all immigrants, amounting to
extortion, and disregarded in every particular the rights of the Indians,
who rose in rebellion and killed all his party, some twenty-five in number,
excepting C. O. Brown, who afterwards became prominent as one of the early
settlers of Tucson, one Anderson and another whose name is not mentioned.
According to Bartlett, the money which the Glanton party had accumulated,
somewhere from fifteen thousand to thirty thousand dollars in gold, was
taken by the Indians, who used it in purchasing supplies from the
immigrants, and, not knowing its value, frequently gave four or five
doubloons for a worn-out blanket, and a gold eagle for a tattered shirt.
There is much confusion in regard to the Glanton affair. Cremony and some
other authors claim that he and his party were in charge of a large flock of
sheep which they had purchased in New Mexico and were driving to California,
and were murdered by the Yumas upon their arrival at the Colorado River. All
the evidence in reference to the Glanton party is hearsay, but the weight of
evidence seems to be that Glanton and his party were not encumbered with any
great amount of livestock, and that he engaged with Dr. Langdon in ferrying
emigrants across the Colorado as I have stated above.
Shortly thereafter, in July, 1850, Jaeger and Hartshorne headed a party who
reestablished the ferry, and built their boat on the ground from wood
secured from the cottonwood trees growing there. Major Heintzelman, then in
charge of the army post at San Diego, established a military post there and
left ten men under Lieutenant Sweeney, and the soldiers and ferrymen all
occupied the stockade which had been erected by the Glanton party. Jaeger
and Hartshorne did a profitable business for several months. Supplies
becoming short, however, Jaeger went to San Diego, and, returning with one
Mexican with several mule loads of provisions, was attacked by the Indians
within sight of the stockade. The Mexican deserted him and Jaeger applied
his spurs to his horse, which dashed into the stockade carrying its rider,
who was badly wounded by spears and arrows, remaining unconscious for
several days. That night the party deserted the post and carried Jaeger with
them into San Diego, where the arrow points were extracted and he, under
proper medical treatment, was restored to health.
Within a few days after this occurrence, Dr. Webb, in charge of an exploring
party belonging to the Boundary Survey, encountered some Indians, the story
of which encounter and the events following are told by Captain Cremony in
the following language:
"Early next morning, we resumed our journey down the Gila, and prosecuted it
for several days until we reached the Colorado near its junction with the
Gila. At that period the whole country was a wilderness, and the place now
occupied by large houses and well filled stores, with an American population
of six or seven hundred souls, was waste and desolate. The approach to the
river was hidden by a dense mass of young willow trees, through which we had
to pass in order to reach water, of which ourselves and animals were greatly
in need. The thermometer stood at 118 degrees Fahrenheit, in the shade, and
we had marched twenty-four miles that day without water. On emerging from
the willows on the banks of the broad, red, swift and turbid stream which
met our gaze, we discovered, on the opposite side, within easy rifle reach,
a large number of Yuma men, women and children, a fact which assured us that
our approach had not been known by that tribe. They instantly fled in all
directions, thereby proving their fear and suspicions, which would not have
been entertained if the two people had been at peace with each other. Having
watered our suffering animals, we pursued our way down the Colorado, and
encamped upon an open sand beach, with three hundred yards of clear ground
in the rear and the river in front. No weapon in possession of the Yumas
could reach anything like that distance, while our rifles commanded the
whole area. Our animals were drawn up in line on the river side with a
careful guard, and were fed with an abundance of young willow tops, which
they ate greedily. Our fires were well supplied, and kept blazing brightly,
so as to shed light on the surrounding shore and disclose the approach of
any enemy. In this manner we passed an anxious night.
"The next day, soon after dawn, an Indian presented himself unarmed, and
with reiterated statements of the most cordial friendship for the Americans.
He subsequently proved to be Caballo en Pelo, or the 'Naked Horse,' the head
chief of the Yumas. Our reception was not calculated to excite his hopes,
everyone extending his left hand, and keeping a revolver in his right, and
it was not long before Caballo en Pelo found that he had committed himself
to the tender mercies of men who entertained the deepest suspicion of his
professional amity. To test his sincerity, Dr. Webb asked what had become of
the soldiers, to which he replied that they had voluntarily withdrawn three
months before. This we knew to be a lie, as Gen. Conde had informed us of
their presence with a couple of good launches to assist the crossing of
immigrants, and we had met the General only twenty days previous, when this
information was received from him, who had come directly from the Colorado
in eleven days. The report of our Maricopa visitors also disproved the
statement of Caballo en Pelo, and we immediately consulted together as to
our future course, which was afterward carried into effect, as the reader
will discover, and to it I attribute our escape from the treacherous Yumas.
''Soon after Caballo en Pelo, or the 'Naked Horse' entered our camp, he made
a signal to his associates, and we soon had an accession of fourteen more,
embracing several of the principal men in the Yuma tribe. They were all
unarmed, and each one expressed his desire to maintain friendly relations
with our people. Dr. Webb, with his usual blunt honesty of character, and
total neglect of policy, abruptly asked them - 'If you mean as you profess,
why did you drive away the small body of soldiers left here to assist the
Americans in crossing the river and supplying their needs, and, why did you
massacre the American party with sheep, who came here on their road to
California?' These unexpected questions discomfited the savages, and threw
them 'all aback,' as may readily be supposed. Caballo en Pelo, Pasqual, and
several other leading men, undertook to deny these charges in toto, but we
were too well informed, and their denials only tended to put us more than
ever on the qui vive.
"A few words interchanged between the members of our party decided our
course of action. In any case we were fully committed, and nothing but
perilous measures could decide the result of our desperate surroundings. It
was determined to hold all the Yumas present as captives, subject to instant
death upon the exhibition of any hostility on the part of that tribe. We
felt that our lives were at the mercy of those savages, but also resolved
that we should not be sacrificed without a corresponding amount of
satisfaction. Their principal men were in our camp unarmed; we had the
disposal of their lives in our power, and knew that they could not escape in
the event of any hostile act against our small party. These deliberations
were fully unfolded to the chiefs, who were informed that no more of their
tribe would be admitted into our camp without jeopardizing the safety of
those already there. They were also told that having come of their own free
will, they would be expected to remain during our pleasure, and, in the
meantime, would be fed from our very limited resources. They were
furthermore informed that the launch which they had taken from the soldiers
would be needed for our conveyance across the Colorado, and as we knew it to
be in their possession, it must be forthcoming when required. The first act
of Caballo en Pelo was to signalize his people not to approach our camp,
which was located on a sand spit, with three hundred yards clear rifle range
on all sides not covered by the river. He then went on to disclaim any
inimical design, quoting the fact that he and his chief men had sought us
unarmed, when they might have overwhelmed our paltry force with hundreds of
warriors. He also stated that they had no hostile feeling toward white men
coming from the east, but would oppose all from the west, as they had
learned that a force from that quarter was being prepared for a campaign
against them. They were not at war with Americans generally, but solely with
those whom they expected from California with warlike intentions. Caballo en
Pelo then asked if he and his companions were to consider themselves
prisoners. To this home question, Dr. Webb, who was in charge of our party,
directed me to answer - yes, they were; and would be held as such until the
launches they had taken from the soldiers were produced for our passage
across the Colorado, and they had given satisfactory evidence of their
peaceful intentions. This abrupt announcement was not pleasing to our savage
guests, who exhibited alarm, mingled with half uttered threats, of
vengeance; but the old motto, 'in for a penny, in for a pound,' was the only
one we could adopt under the circumstances, and our resolution was as
unalterable as the laws of the Medes and Persians.
Dr. Webb furthermore informed the Yumas that they must order their warriors,
who were gathering thickly on our side of the river, not to approach within
three hundred yards, adding, 'we suspect your motives, and intend to have
the first blood, if any is to be shed. Your chief men are in our power. Your
people can kill us, as they are so much more numerous, but we will kill you
first, if they do not obey our orders which shall be promulgated through
you.'
"This was undoubtedly the 'tightest fix,' our visitors were ever in. They
were by no means prepared for such a decided stand, and were quite at a loss
for expedient. Seeing resolution in each man's eye, and knowing that it was
our determination to put them to death the moment any decidedly hostile step
should be taken by their people, they concluded to make the best of a bad
bargain, and escape by strategy from the trap they had prepared to spring
upon us, but in which they had caught themselves.
"Caballo en Pelo made a few signs to the surrounding and anxious multitude,
which then quietly retreated out of sight among the dense willows which grew
with remarkable luxuriance about three hundred yards from the river. We then
dug two holes about twenty feet apart, parallel to each other, and each
about five feet long by one and a half wide and two deep. In these holes we
made blazing fires which rose about two or three feet above the surface of
the ground, and between these two fires we ordered the Yumas to lie down,
side by side, while a sentinel with a cocked six shooter paraded along the
line of their heads, and another along the line of their feet. A flank
escape was impossible, as it was prevented by a bright and hot fire on each
side. Our few remaining animals were drawn up in line on the river side of
the camp, with a guard outside of them and within twenty feet of the whole
party. We slept but little that night, and at early dawn we were once more
afoot, and in discussion with the Yumas, who stoutly denied any hostile
motive, and professed indignation at their treatment. We gave them a good
breakfast, as we had given them a plentiful supper the evening previous, and
then reiterated our demand for the launches, while they as stubbornly denied
any knowledge of their existence.
''That day we moved down the river about eleven miles and selected a good
camp ground early in the afternoon. Again we were surrounded by hundreds of
Indians, but the personal fears of our hostages kept them at bay, and they
did not approach nearer than three hundred yards. The night passed as the
previous one had done, and we perceived that it was the intention of the
Yumas to wear us out, and then seize their opportunity; but this scheme was
frustrated by the nerve and decision of Dr. Webb, who, next morning,
informed Caballo en Pelo and his chief followers, that 'we were well aware
of the existence of the launches by oral as well as written intelligence;
that they were absolutely necessary to cross the Colorado; that we knew the
Yumas had driven away the small garrison of American soldiers and had the
launches in their possession; that we had met the escaped Maricopas, who
told us all about the massacre of Gallantin and his party, and the
appropriation of the launches by the Yumas; and, finally, that if those
launches were not forthcoming by twelve o'clock the next day, we should at
once proceed to extremities and kill him and all the Yumas in our camp.
"It may well be supposed that this sort of talk aroused the liveliest alarm
among our prisoners, who commenced an excited conversation in their own
tongue, which culminated in a request from Caballo en Pelo that one of his
young men be permitted to leave our camp and make inquiry if the launches
really were in existence, and, if so, to bring them down river to our camp.
This was agreed to, and a young lad, about eighteen years of age, the son of
Pasqual, selected for the business. He was allowed to depart with the
positive assurance that we would keep our words in regard to his father, and
the other head men of the Yuma tribe in our camp.
"That night we observed more than the usual precautions, for one half our
number were on guard at all times. Next morning no Indians were to be seen,
but at ten o'clock A. M. a large launch, capable of holding half our party
with their baggage, was seen ai3proaching under the conduct of two Yumas. It
was moored in front of our camp, and immediate preparations were made for
crossing. Five of us, taking half the Yuma prisoners, immediately embarked
with rifles in hand, ready for use, and as we could easily sweep both sides
the river, our party was really as strong as ever. Our mules and horses were
made to swim across under the lead and direction of two Yumas, who were kept
within range of our rifles, and in this manner we succeeded in gaining the
western bank of the Colorado, after three most exciting days of detention
against overwhelming numbers of hostile savages; but our troubles were not
yet ended. We had still to undergo another ordeal, even more perilous,
because we had no hostages as securities for our safety from attack.
"Having gained the western bank of the Colorado in peace, the Yumas demanded
to be released from captivity, but our safety would not permit such a
course, and Dr. Webb informed them that they must remain in camp that night
and would be set free next day. The utmost precaution was again observed
throughout the night, and at three o'clock next morning we were once more en
route toward California, accompanied by the leading Yumas, who were kept
closely guarded. That day we penetrated twenty-eight miles into the great
Colorado desert, halting about four o'clock P. M., in a place where neither
water nor wood existed, and completely surrounded by hills and banks of
white sand. With much toil several of our number ascended one or two of the
highest hillocks, but as far as the eye could reach nothing was to be seen
but one unbroken expanse of sand, white, dazzling under the rays of a
burning sun, unrelieved by a single bush or shrub - broken and fretted with
countless hillocks, and utterly void of animal life. This part of the
Colorado desert is much more frightful than the great Sahara of Africa. The
absolute stillness and repose is something awful; it is death in life; it is
the most impressive lesson of man's feebleness, and the most startling
reproof against his vanity. In our case these sensations were not mitigated
by the knowledge of being surrounded by a fierce, warlike and numerous
Indian tribes, thirsting for our blood, and eager to revenge the indignity
they had suffered by the captivity of their head chiefs, and the failure of
their treacherous schemes.
"As before stated, we halted and made preparations as if to encamp. Dr. Webb
then directed Mr. Thurber to ascend the highest sand hill in the
neighborhood, examine all around with his field glasses and report if the
Indians were upon our trail. In about half an hour Mr. Thurber returned, and
assured us that from two to three hundred Yumas were within five miles of
our position, and heading toward our camp. There was no time to lose.
Caballo en Pelo with his fellow captives were immediately informed that they
must take the back trail and return to the river, that our road was toward
the west, that we had no more provisions to give them, and that it was
indispensable for us to part company with them then and there. To these
requirements the wily chief demurred, and stated his desire to go on with us
to California. He was overruled, by the strong persuasive force of drawing
our pistols, and giving him the sole alternative of obeying or dying. They
chose the former, and decamped with haste. So soon as they disappeared
around the base of a friendly sand hill, we immediately repacked our wagon,
and drove on with all possible speed, hoping to escape in the fast coming
darkness.
"Eleven years afterward, Pasqual himself told me that they met about three
hundred of their warriors half an hour after being expelled from our camp,
and the whole band came in pursuit of us, but as the Indian never risks life
when he thinks the same end can be accomplished by strategy, and as time is
of no moment to them, it was agreed to fall foul of us just before daylight
the next morning, and by a rapid and combined assault massacre our little
party with comparative ease and impunity. Acting on that policy, they
approached our abandoned camp with extreme caution, and commenced a survey
from surrounding hillocks. They were not surprised to see no fire, as they
knew there was no wood in that part of the desert, and they remained
quiescent until nearly morning, when their scouts gave them the unwelcome
information that we were gone.
"Our flight was continued all night and part of the next day, until,
overtaken by one of those dreadful sandstorms which prevail on the Colorado
desert. The day was intensely hot, and the most impressive silence seemed to
reign absolute. Suddenly a dark, dense and singular looking cloud arose in
the west and moved toward us with incredible velocity. Great masses of heavy
sand were lifted as if they were so many feathers, and carried high into the
air with extreme violence. The places formerly occupied by huge hillocks
containing many thousand tons of sand, were swept clean as if by magic in a
few moments, and the vast banks removed to other localities in the twinkling
of an eye. Our mules fell flat upon their bellies and thrust their noses
close to the ground, our horses followed their example - none of us could
stand against the force and might of the storm - and we, too, laid down
flat, hauling a tent over us. In a few moments the tent was so deeply
covered with sand as to retain its position, and every now and then we were
compelled to remove the swiftly gathering mass, to avoid being absolutely
buried alive. Amidst the distress, the horrible sensations, and the
suffocating feelings occasioned by this sirocco, we entertained the grateful
sense of protection from our savage pursuers, who were quite as incapable of
facing that terrific storm as we were. For forty-eight hours we had not
tasted food, and were more than a day without water in the hottest climate
known to man, and our distress heightened by the intense craving for water
invariably attendant on those scorching blasts of the desert. These
sensations were not alleviated by the fact of knowing that we had yet a
journey of forty miles before we could find water.
"About three o'clock P. M., the storm passed off, and we instantly resumed
our way without cooking food, for eating could only add to our terrible
thirst. All that night our weary feet trod that infernal desert until the
glowing morning sun shone upon us like a plate of molten brass, but we had
arrived at a fine camp ground, thickly supplied with shady mesquite trees
and abounding with excellent grass for our worn-out animals, which had
dwindled down to less than one half the number we boasted before crossing
the Colorado. About an hour after camping, the stepfather of Inez (Inez
Gonzales, whose rescue from Apaches has been noted), who served us as guide,
reported that he saw an alamo (cottonwood), tree a short distance off, and
he believed that there must be water in its neighborhood. Several of us
proceeded to the spot and in a short time discovered a small pool containing
about twenty gallons of water deposited in a hollow by a former copious
rain, and sheltered from the sun by friendly brush. The joyful news was soon
made known to the rest of our comrades, and our raging thirst slaked, after
which the remainder of the water was equally divided among our famished
stock. As Carisso creek was then within a day 's march, no thought was taken
for the morrow, and after a most refreshing night's rest, we recommenced our
journey at early dawn, reaching Carisso creek about five o'clock on the
afternoon of the same day. At this place we felt ourselves wholly safe from
the Yumas. There was abundance of pasture, and water and wood, and we would
have remained for a day or two to obtain much needed rest, but our
provisions had entirely given out, and we had still one hundred miles of
travel before us without an ounce of food, unless such as might possibly be
procured in the way of game.
''With sad hearts, and weakened frames, we pushed forward until we reached
Vallecito, where we found an American garrison consisting of a company of
infantry and three officers.
By these warm hearted and gallant gentlemen we were received with the
greatest courtesy and kindliness and entertained by them with a warmth of
hospitality which has found an abiding place among my most grateful
recollections. Some time had elapsed since supplies were received from San
Diego, and they were themselves on ' short commons, ' and unable to furnish
us with the provisions needed to complete our journey; but gave us freely to
the extent of their power. It would have been gross ingratitude to remain
there, living upon the very diminished stores of our kind entertainers, and
we again pushed forward the next day. Our course lay over the Volcan
Mountain, and upon its magnificent height we found a rancho owned and
inhabited by a big hearted gentleman, who ministered to our wants and
furnished us with two fresh mules. Next day we resumed our march, and soon
after passing the old battle ground of San Pasqual, met Col. Heintzelman, in
command of three hundred troops, on his way to chastise the Yuma Indians for
their many murders and robberies. The officers were surprised to meet us
coming from the river, and asked many questions, which we were delighted to
answer, giving valuable information.
"Col. Heintzelman 's force was subsequently increased to five hundred men,
and after two years active warfare he succeeded in reducing the Yumas, who
have never since presumed to contend against our power. Since then Fort Yuma
has become a noted frontier fortification, surrounded by many hundreds of
American citizens, who live, for the most part, on the eastern bank of the
river, and carry on a lucrative trade with the interior of Arizona and the
Yumas, Cocopahs, Cuchans, Amojaves and other tribes. The waters of the
Colorado are now plowed by half a dozen steamers, and my old enemies, the
Yumas, do the 'chores' and menial offices for the whites. The next day after
meeting Col. Heintzelman, we reached San Diego, devoutly thankful to
Providence for our many and almost miraculous escapes from the tomahawks and
scalping knives of the Indian tribes through which we had passed for the
distance of two thousand eight hundred miles."
In the spring of 1852, after the Jaeger party had been driven out of Yuma,
Major Heintzelman, in command of six companies of United States soldiers,
reestablished the post at Fort Yuma, and waged an incessant war upon the
Indians, who sued for peace the year following, and have ever since remained
at peace with the whites. Jaeger returned with these troops and
reestablished his ferry. From that time on he was a prominent resident of
Yuma, and figured largely in the subsequent history of Arizona for many
years.
About the time of the reestablishment of Fort Yuma and the ferry, or, to be
more exact, in 1851, Captain Wilcox reached the mouth of the Colorado in a
sailing vessel, the schooner "Invincible," with troops and supplies from San
Francisco. The troops were commanded by Lieutenant Derby, who under the name
of "John Phoenix," contributed largely to the humorous literature of that
day, and who was ordered to explore the Colorado River from its mouth up.
The schooner drew from eight to nine feet of water, and only ascended the
river some twenty-five miles, to about latitude 30° 50 but Derby, in a boat,
went some sixty miles further up the river, meeting Heintzelman and a party
from Fort Yuma.
Of the navigation of the Colorado, Bancroft says: "It appears that also in
the spring of 1851, George A. Johnson arrived at the river's mouth on the
schooner Sierra Nevada with supplies for the fort, and lumber from which
were built flatboats for the trip up the Colorado."
"In 1852," I again quote from Bancroft, "the first steamer, the 'Uncle Sam'
was brought by Captain Turnbull on a schooner to the head of the Gulf, and
there put together for the river trip. She reached Fort Yuma at the
beginning of December, but had been obliged to land her cargo of supplies
some distance below. After running on the river for a year or two, the'
Uncle Sam' grounded and sunk, being replaced in January, 1854, by the
'General Jesup,' under Captain Johnson, the new contractor, but exploded in
August. The 'Colorado,' a stern wheeler 120 feet long, was put on the route
in the autumn of 1855, and from this time the steam navigation, with an
occasional opposition line, seems to have been continuous."
Upon the reestablishment of the ferry by Jaeger, the tide of immigration
again turned to the Colorado river under the protection of the fort. The
village of Colorado City, on the California side, arose. It was afterwards
called Arizona City, and its name subsequently changed to that of Yuma. The
present site of Yuma was not included within the limits of the United States
until the Gadsden purchase in 1854. Colorado City was formally surveyed on
the Arizona side in 1854, prior to which time there was no American
settlement in Arizona.
From the journal of an expedition from San Diego, California, to the Rio
Colorado in 1849, by Lieutenant A. W. Whipple, of the United States
Topographical Engineers, I make the following extracts with reference to the
Yuma Indians, or, as they were called at that time, the Cuchans. Of his
first meeting with them, on September 29th, 1849, he says:
"Santiago, their chief, wore a blue greatcoat, and a fancy cotton
handkerchief bound his head; his legs and feet were bare. Others were clad
in the simple breechcloth. All were mounted on spirited horses. The road up
the bank, to the left, is the emigrant trail over the deep, drifting sand of
the desert. Taking the more circuitous route to the right, we were escorted
by the Indians a short distance to their village in the Canada, luxuriant
with maize and melons. We were at once surrounded by great numbers of Indian
men and women, evincing friendliness, curiosity and intelligence. The women
are generally fat, and their dress consists of a fringe, made of strips of
bark, bound about the hips, and hanging loosely to the middle of the thighs.
The men are large, muscular and well formed. Their countenances are
pleasing, and seem lighted by intelligence. I doubt whether America can
boast a finer race of Indians. Their warriors wear the white breechcloth,
and their hair, hanging in plaits to the middle of their backs, is adorned
with eagle's feathers and the rattle of a rattlesnake. They are exquisite
horsemen, and carry their bow and lance with inimitable grace. A dozen of
these warriors conducted us beyond their village three miles, through fields
of maize and groves of alamo and willow, to the Rio Colorado, where we
encamped, twelve miles below where the Rio Gila unites its 'sea-green
waters' with the rightly named Colorado."
Again: "October 7, 1849- Took a walk into the villages to see how the
Indians live. They all knew me, and received me kindly enough into their
family circle, composed of about a dozen men, women and children, sitting or
lying upon the ground, under the shade of a flat roof of branches of trees
supported by posts at the four corners. The women, dressed in girdles of
bark, stripped into thongs, and partially braided, hanging in a fringe to
the thighs, and ornamented with many strings of shells or glass beads, were
making a mush of zandias (watermelons), or grinding grass seed into flour.
The men, with breech cloths, or perhaps a shirt cast off by the emigrants,
were ornamented with rings in their noses and eagles' feathers in their
hair. The children wore no covering except what nature gave them, but were
decked with beads upon their necks, and small strings of the same were
inserted through their ears.
''The laborious part of their toilet - that in which all their taste and
skill are put in requisition - consists in painting. Warriors dye their
faces jet black, with a stripe of red from the forehead down to the nose and
across the chin.
"Women and young men usually paint with red, and ornament their chins with
dots or stripes of blue or black. Around their eyes are circles of black.
Their bodies are generally of a dark red, and polished with an oily
substance, so as to resemble well cleaned mahogany. The face and body are
sometimes fancifully striped with black. Of their hair they are quite proud,
and take great care in dressing and trimming it. It falls naturally from the
crown of the head, and is neatly and squarely trimmed in front to reach the
eyebrows; the rest is matted into plaits, and falls upon the neck, reaching
nearly to the ground.
"Strings of broken shells, called 'pook' are highly valued among them. They
consist of circular pieces of seashells, with holes very nicely drilled in
the center. They are very ancient, and were formerly used as money. A string
is now worth a horse. An Indian dandy is never dressed without them, and the
number of strings worn indicates the wealth of the possessor. The figure of
the young dandy, though large, is so faultless in its proportions that, when
I have seen him dressed in his clean white breechcloth, with no other
covering to his carefully painted person, except the graceful plume upon his
head, and the white bracelet of leather, with buckskin fringe and bright
brass buttons, which serve as mirrors, upon his left arm, I could but
applaud the scorn with which he looked upon European dress, and the resolute
firmness with which he refused the proffered gift of pants.
''The Yumas (or, as those near the mouth of the Gila call themselves, Cuchans) appear to be skilled in none of the arts. They have neither sheep, cattle nor poultry. Horses and a few pet lapdogs are the only domestic animals found at their ranches. The men are warriors, and occasionally fish and hunt. The women not only attend to their household duties, but also cultivate fields of maize and melons, and collect grass seed, which they pound to flour for bread.'
Notes About Book:
Source: History Of Arizona Volume 1, By Thomas Edwin Farish, 1915, Printed
and Published by Direction of the Second Legislature of the State of
Arizona, A. D.
Notes about Online Publication: This manuscript has been ocr'd and heavily
edited. Many of the Native American words have been reproduced as clearly as
online publication will allow us, but not all are exactly the way they were
in the original work. The structure of this manuscript has been changed to
allow better online presentation.
