On April 3rd, 1883, the citizens of Tombstone declared they had no faith in the Army’s ability to contain the Apache. Putting their faith in a “well-known scout” named Texas Charlie, they raised a force of rangers and planned a punitive expedition to the San Carlos Indian Reservation. The group was also well fortified with whiskey. On their way north, the Tombstone Rangers met an old Indian gathering mescal. They fired several shots in his general direction but missed. He fled north; they ran back to Tombstone.
True West September/October 2024