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THBFort Apache, Arizona Territory, 1881 Letter Regarding Indian Fighting
About Seller
6270 Este Ave.
Cincinnati , OH 45232
United States
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About Auction
LiveJun 12, 2015 - Jun 13, 2015
Cowan's Auctions dawnie@cowans.com
View Full Catalog (401)
- Lot Description
4pp, 5 x 8 in., Fort Apache, AT, July 18, 1881. Signed George (and maybe Clum a bit down in the margin - he has jammed a couple of notes into the top margin of the last page). Addressed to "Friend Anna." On the first page he tells her (most of his spelling retained): "...in the first place my horse was shot yesterday the Indians that were on the reservation got fighting among themselves and they telegraphed for the two cavalry companies to go and i thought there would not be anything of any acct. so went along but when we got there they were at it in earnest and before they stoped there were 28 Indians killed i am very glad of that but my poor horse was shot through the neck and now i am 82 dollars out you see i was not ordered out if i had been i would have been all right..." Most of the rest is personal. Part of his letter concerns life in the military versus civilian life, in an attempt to explain why he remains in service, even though his parents worry about his safety, etc.
For the first decades of the American presence in the Southwest, most Apaches viewed them as allies against the Mexicans, with whom the Apaches had been fighting for decades. Once the US took full control of the territory after the Mexican War, getting the various tribes to stay within the borders became an issue. As they had on the plains, the army began setting up garrisons, mostly to stop raids by the Indians into Mexico, then the Civil War began and most troops were called back east. The posts were remote and difficult to maintain, anyway. In 1862 Major James Carleton and his California Volunteers entered the territory, and operations began against the natives in earnest. There followed skirmishes, raids and massacres, on both sides. As time went on, the United States moved more people onto smaller reservations, triggering competition for control among various bands, chiefs and medicine men/prophets. In the summer of 1881 there were a series of especially nasty battles - Cibecue Creek, Fort Apache, plus smaller skirmishes, including this one that does not seem to have "made the history books," even though, if George is to be believed, over two dozen Indians died. The situation in Arizona Territory became so hostile and bloody that "Fort Apache" became a metaphor for official representatives of the government (police, military) who found themselves surrounded by "hostile savages," and operated with an "us versus them" mentality.Folds as expected. Some ink smears and surface soil, as written.Condition
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