:''These events should not be confused with the Skeleton Canyon Shootout in 1896.''
The Skeleton Canyon massacres refer to two separate attacks on
Mexican
Mexican may refer to:
Mexico and its culture
*Being related to, from, or connected to the country of Mexico, in North America
** People
*** Mexicans, inhabitants of the country Mexico and their descendants
*** Mexica, ancient indigenous people ...
citizens in 1879 and 1881.
Skeleton Canyon
Skeleton Canyon, called Cañon Bonita by the Mexicans, is located northeast of the town of Douglas, Arizona, in the Peloncillo Mountains, which straddle the modern Arizona and New Mexico state line, in the New Mexico Bootheel region.
This can ...
is located in the
Peloncillo Mountains (Hidalgo County)
The Peloncillo Mountains of Hidalgo County, (Spanish language ''pelo'', hair, ''pelón'', hairless, bald; ''peloncillo'', Little Baldy), is a major long mountain range southwest of New Mexico's Hidalgo County, and also part of the New Mexico Bo ...
, which straddles the modern Arizona and New Mexico state line border. This canyon connects the
Animas Valley
The Animas Valley is a lengthy and narrow north–south valley 85 miles (137 kilometres) long, located in western Hidalgo County, New Mexico, in the Bootheel Region; the extreme south of the valley lies in Sonora- Chihuahua, in the extreme north ...
of New Mexico with the
San Simon Valley
The San Simon Valley is a broad valley east of the Chiricahua Mountains, in the northeast corner of Cochise County, Arizona and southeastern Graham County, with a small portion near Antelope Pass in Hidalgo County of southwestern New Mexico. T ...
of Arizona.
1879 Skeleton Canyon massacre
The first Skeleton Canyon Massacre occurred in 1879 when a group of Mexican
Rurales
In Mexico, the term ''Rurales'' ( Spanish) is used to refer to two armed government forces. The historic Guardia Rural ('Rural Guard') was a rural mounted police force, founded by President Benito Juárez in 1861 and expanded by President Porf ...
were ambushed by cattle rustlers. In July 1879, several rustlers attacked a rancho in northern
Sonora
Sonora (), officially Estado Libre y Soberano de Sonora (), is one of the 31 states which, along with Mexico City, comprise the Administrative divisions of Mexico, Federal Entities of Mexico. The state is divided into Municipalities of Sonora, 72 ...
, killing several of the inhabitants. After the attack on the rancho, the survivors reported the attacks to Commandant Francisco Neri, who sent out a detachment of Rurales, including Captain Alfredo Carrillo. The Rurales crossed the border into Arizona. As they entered Skeleton Canyon, shots were fired against them. Of the large group that crossed, only three of the Rurales survived.
No action was taken by the Mexican Government, but it protested the killings to President
Chester Arthur
Chester Alan Arthur (October 5, 1829 – November 18, 1886) was the 21st president of the United States, serving from 1881 to 1885. He was a Republican from New York who previously served as the 20th vice president under President James A. ...
, although acknowledging the Mexican policemen had crossed into Arizona.
Johnny Ringo
John Peters Ringo (May 3, 1850 – July 13, 1882) was an American Old West outlaw loosely associated with the Cochise County Cowboys in frontier boomtown Tombstone, Arizona Territory. He took part in the Mason County War in Texas during which h ...
, considered to be one of an outlaw group known as the
Cochise County Cowboys
The Cochise County Cowboys is the modern name for a loosely associated group of outlaws living in Pima and Cochise Counties in Arizona in the late 19th century. The term "cowboy", as opposed to " cowhand," had only begun to come into wider use ...
, who were cattle rustlers and bandits, claimed to have been at the ambush. He said others there who participated in the murders were Old Man Clanton, brothers Ike and
Billy Clanton
William Harrison Clanton (1862 – October 26, 1881) was an outlaw Cowboy in Cochise County, Arizona Territory. He, along with his father Newman Clanton and brother Ike Clanton, worked a ranch near the boomtown of Tombstone, Arizona Territo ...
Florentino Cruz
The Earp Vendetta Ride was a deadly search by a federal posse led by Deputy U.S. Marshal Wyatt Earp for a loose confederation of outlaw "Cowboys" they believed had ambushed his brothers Virgil and Morgan Earp, maiming the former and killing th ...
Tom McLaury
Tom McLaury (June 30, 1853 – October 26, 1881) was an American outlaw. He and his brother Frank owned a ranch outside Tombstone, Arizona, Arizona Territory during the 1880s. He was a member of a gang of outlaws and cattle rustlers called the ...
.
1881 Skeleton Canyon massacre
In July 1881, "Curly Bill" Brocius learned that several Mexican smugglers carrying silver were heading to Arizona through Skeleton Canyon.
Curly Bill
William "Curly Bill" Brocius (''circa'' 1845 – March 24, 1882), was an American gunslinger, rustler, and member of the Cowboy outlaw gang in the Cochise County area of the Arizona Territory during the late 1870s and early 1880s. His name i ...
and around twenty other men including
Johnny Ringo
John Peters Ringo (May 3, 1850 – July 13, 1882) was an American Old West outlaw loosely associated with the Cochise County Cowboys in frontier boomtown Tombstone, Arizona Territory. He took part in the Mason County War in Texas during which h ...
and Jim Crane ambushed the smugglers, killing four and stealing $4,000 in bullion and livestock. Two months after the attack was reported by the surviving smugglers, Commandant Neri again sent a detachment of Rurales led by Captain Carrillo across the border. This time, the Rurales successfully ambushed the Cowboys, killing five including Old Man Clanton and Jim Crane, in what became known as the Guadalupe Canyon Massacre.
In popular culture
* In 1958 an episode of the TV series ''Tombstone Territory'' portrayed the 1881 attack.
* In 1961, in episode 222 (Season 6/Episode 33), titled "Requiem for Old Man Clanton" of the TV series, "
The Life and Legend of Wyatt Earp
''The Life and Legend of Wyatt Earp'' is the first Western television series written for adults.Guadalupe Canyon.