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 "Centuries before the first white explorers
discovered the land now called Arizona, this fertile valley served as a major corridor for migrating Indians. In time, the grasses and streams attracted wandering Athabaskan peoples, the Apaches, who
would prove so troublesome to Anglo-American pioneers. Next to arrive were the Spanish, in an imperial procession of conquistadors, missionaries, soldiers, colonists.
"Father Eusebio Kino, that tireless Jesuit missionary, is said to have reached the valley in
1694 during one of his expeditions throughout New Spain. Certainly Captain Juan Bautista de Anza, who founded San Francisco, headquartered here in 1773. The valley's strategic position prompted the
Marques de Rubi, Spain's representative, to advise construction of the San Bernardino garrison in 1775 that operated as a presidio until 1780. In 1846 the famous Mormon Battalion
passed through. And 1849 brought a continuous flood of pioneers and prospectors who traveled the southern route in search of the goldfields and promise of California."
"And then came Texas John Slaughter."*
Although Slaughter was born in Louisiana, his family moved to Texas when he was a baby where they were known for their huge cattle ranches. Slaughter
became acquainted with the ways of the Indian growing up and became an excellent tracker and marksman which proved valuable in later life. Slaughter was
small in stature but that did not deter him from becoming a man to be feared and respected by those on the side of the law and those who were not.
When he was elected Sheriff of Cochise County in 1886, just five years after the OK Corral shoot-out, he accepted his responsibility with a passion to rid the
county of the bad element that possessed him until the deed was accomplished. It has been said that he was "judge, jury and executioner" all rolled up into one.
When he told the outlaw to "hit the trail," they left. He is thought to have cleaned up the county of the bad element more than any other sheriff in history. He knew the
Clanton's, Earp's, Johnny Ringo, Pancho Villa and their kind.
In 1822, an original Mexican land grant of 73,240 acres was sold to Ignacio
Perez for 90 pesos plus fees. By 1830, the Apaches had driven him from his land. John Slaughter acquired 65,000 acres of the original grant from his heirs in 1884.
By this time the Gadsden Purchase had divided the land and two-thirds lay in Mexico. He later added and leased adjacent property to establish his 100,000
acre cattle empire. An earthquake in 1887 destroyed the original buildings which Slaughter had built for his in-laws, Amazon Howell and his family, as they
managed the ranch at first. After his second term as sheriff, he moved to the ranch and the present house was built in 1893.
When Viola Slaughter, his wife, first saw the valley, she said "I shall never forget the thrill of knowing that it was all ours. Our future lay within it and it was beautiful."
Little did she realize the impact her husband and this ranch would have for generations to come. It became a beautiful oasis in the desert.
Life was not easy in those early days but something exciting was always happening. There was a constant stream of people stopping as they passed
through, the army camped a few hundred feet from the ranch house which was known as the Slaughter Outpost, surprise weddings, births and deaths, picnics
and parties. In addition to Slaughter's two children by his first wife, Adeline, they became parents to many foster children. Some would stay a few days and some
several years. They always came running when he appeared and he greeted them warmly. Perhaps the most famous of these children was Apache May whose life was very tragic.
Slaughter had helped track a band of Apache renegades responsible for killing the last white man by Indians in Arizona into the mountains where they planned a
surprise early morning attack, however, the Apaches had just abandoned camp. As Slaughter and the men looked around the still warm fire and campsite, he
poked a small bundle which was a baby about 18 months of age. Because of his love for children, he brought her back to raise. She was the apple of his eye and
he was her "Don Juan" until her terrible death at age 6 from severe burns she suffered while playing around a fire one day. It took him many months to recover from this loss.
When you follow Geronimo Trail to the museum, you will see the beauty of the landscape, hear the distant hoofbeats of the past as Indians, outlaws and riders
pass through your imagination. It was on this very trail that the song "Ghost Riders in the Sky" was born in the mind of Stan Jones as a youth when he helped a
hermit, Cap Watts, one day with his horses. He later wrote the theme song for Walt Disney's "Texas John Slaughter", a TV series based on the life of Slaughter.
You can also see Signal Hill, a site for the heliograph during the time when the army was putting Indians on reservations. Much history abounds in this Old West
which really has not changed all that much since Slaughter's time. It is still remote, laid-back and beautiful, as it separates itself from the hectic life of the big city.
Quote from *Arizona Highways Article October-1986 by Catrien Ross
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