Illustration by Bob Boze Bell
Illustration by Bob Boze Bell

One of the longest posse chases in Arizona history came after the attempted robbery of the Benson Stage on March 15, 1881, when a large posse, consisting of Wyatt Earp, his brothers Virgil and Morgan, Bob Paul, Buckskin Frank Leslie and Bat Masterson, among others, trailed the highwaymen over 400 miles, from the Catalinas (within 15 miles of Tucson) all the way to Columbus, New Mexico without success. One of the posse horses died and one posse member had to ride double back to Galeyville before returning, empty handed, to Tombstone.

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