The Hashknife Outfit

When it comes to Arizona cattle ranches, one famous spread had the unsavory reputation of having “the thievinist, fightinest’ bunch of cowboys in the United States.” Or, so said author Frazier Hunt. The Aztec Land and Cattle Company was organized in the early 1880s and had its headquarters across the Little Colorado River from the present site of Saint Joseph (they later moved to Holbrook). Better known as The Hashknife Outfit, in addition to the shady character of its cowhands, the Hashknife was also a huge ranch, 90 miles long and 40 miles wide. Although the ranch is long gone, today the Navajo County Hashknife Sheriff’s Posse proudly carries the name and the brand into the present day.