King Woolsey was away from his Agua Fria ranch, which was located around present-day Dewey. Instead, he was with Governor John Goodwin along the Verde when a messenger came with disturbing news. Fifty Native Americans “made a descent on [his] herd at mid-day, and before the herders could alarm the men at the ranch, they succeeded in driving off all the animals but one or two, which they killed,” the Arizona Miner described. Except for three yoke of oxen that were actively plowing the land, 30 head of livestock were lost.
This was not the first large loss Woolsey experienced, and he vowed to wreak revenge. “He will organize a company to hunt and punish the thieves, and if it is as successful as the party he headed [previously], which slaughtered twenty or more of them, he will have a good revenge,” the paper continued. “He is one of our most daring and skilled Indian fighters, and believes fully…in the extermination policy. And in view of the importance of the expedition, the Governor has made Mr. Woolsey an aide upon his staff, with the rank of Lt. Colonel.” The chance of capturing the 50 Natives who actually made the raid was so slight, it was never even considered, so revenge it was.
Meanwhile, Robert Groom, the surveyor responsible for mapping Prescott’s first streets, and a group of miners and others were furnished provisions to pursue the Natives, “but for some reason, the party did not go further than to Woolsey’s ranch," the paper stated. They may have decided to join forces with Woolsey’s expedition, which then went to Ft. Whipple, and volunteered to lead a company of 60 men in a campaign of from 30 to 50 days against the Pinal Apaches,” the Miner reported.
RELATED: Pioneer Surveyor / Miner Robert W. Groom
Biography of the man for whom Groom Creek was named. Robert Groom also surveyed and plotted-out the towns of Prescott and Wickenburg, AZ.
When the expedition left on March 29th, the group had grown to “100 men representing all of the main mining and ranching districts, and [was] a very formidable movement,” the Miner explained. They were familiar with mountain travel, and “moreover, they have had much experience in Indian fighting, and having suffered greatly from the recent depredations, they are eager to chastise the wily foe.”
Just a few days in, they “jumped a rancheria [and] killed fourteen.” One of Woolsey’s men was wounded by two arrows, but fully recovered. The expedition sent word requesting more provisions to continue.
Woolsey’s expedition covered large portions of the Arizona Territory, including marching his men from the San Francisco mountains all the way down to the Salt River.
Provisions were sent consisting of flour, bacon, and coffee for 60 men for 30 days. Donations were taken around Prescott for the expedition to purchase more provisions at Antelope. “We are glad to know that many liberal donations have been made, and we earnestly urge all to give freely,” the same paper declared.
One of Woolsey’s men, Henry Clifton, kept an account of the campaign that he later related to the Miner: “A party of about 100 miners left Col. King S Woolsey’s Aqua Fria ranch at 10 [PM] March 29th for a campaign against the Apaches. Each mess had one pack animal and 10 days rations.” One group of men headed southerly to Black [Canyon] and attacked some rancherias in that locality. Clifton’s group headed east, but as night fell, it became impossible to navigate the ”dim trail”, and they stopped at 2 AM and waited for daybreak. They would wander for 3 days without finding any signs of Natives. On the fourth day, the expedition’s advanced scouts did see some signs as well as a flowing creek a mile away. They advanced to the creek and sent scouts all about, but they found no further sign. Eventually, they came upon some wigwams, but they were deserted.
They continued on, marching to within 15 or 16 miles of where they believed some Natives were dwelling. “Col. Woolsey wished to make a forced march that night, and surprise the [Natives], or at least find their whereabouts before daybreak,” to initiate a surprise attack. They had dinner and rested for the overnight march. Only 30 to 45 minutes into the march, they were divided into three companies, and each company was split into two squads. Company A went eastward, and Company C went southwest, while Company B brought up the center. The companies were separated by about a mile.
They marched until 9 AM when they discovered a rancheria. Companies B and C were closest. “The boys of Company B succeeded [in] getting within very good rifle-shot distances before they were discovered.” At which point they immediately charged, first firing their rifles, then their pistols.
The Natives were caught by surprise and began running up the canyon. Still, they were unaware that they were fleeing directly toward Company C. “An Indian [fell] at nearly every shot, but many were able to get up and continue fleeing. After the fight was over, 14 dead Natives were found, “and there must have been a number badly wounded,” Clifton wrote. No Caucasians were injured. Investigating the rancheria, they found “a thousand arrow-points ready for use, and a large amount of mescal prepared for roasting,” which was destroyed.
Days later, 30 men set out to scout for three days. Clifton observed that they returned to camp a weary and hungry lot, with few of the men did not appear until after dark, “having almost entirely given out. Some of them would have perhaps perished had it not been for the aid of Richard Gird, who eased them of their loads by carrying their rifles and encouraging them to push on to camp. Some of them had been traveling for twenty hours without a morsel of food, and some had their feet exposed to the sharp cutting points of the lava rock.” They did discover two rancherias and killed 16 Natives, as well as destroying “a large amount of tanned deer skins, mescal,” and anything else they deemed as being valuable to its owners.
The fact that the Native Americans were now keeping an eye on Woolsey’s men was illustrated when a guard at the camp was ambushed and hit with two arrows. He survived, but the Natives got away before they could be pursued in force.
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ALSO ENJOY: Ft. Whipple 1869: Futile Campaigns & Public Diversions
A description of the happenings at Fort Whipple, Arizona in 1869. Hapless at locating the Indians, the undermanned force reached out to the local community to boost the morale of both.
Toward the end of the campaign, several wigwams were spotted at a distance, but the Caucasians built a fire, and their position was revealed. The Natives kept an eye on them and stayed clear. “Our tramp had been fruitless,” Clifton wrote.
An inventory of provisions was taken, and it was found that they had less than two days' worth. So they started the long walk back to Woolsey’s Agua Fria ranch, where they found a good, hearty meal. For Woolsey and his men, the expedition was long, exhausting, and finally over. At a minimum, 44 Natives were killed, with many more presumed to be wounded. For every two heads of livestock chased off of Woolsey’s ranch, nearly three Native Americans were killed.
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SOURCES:
Arizona Miner:
3/9/1864; Pg. 2, Col. 3.
3/23/1864; Pg. 2, Col. 1.
4/6/1864; Pg. 2, Cols. 1 & 2.
5/11/1864; Pg. 3.
5/25/1864; Pg. 4, Col. 2 & 3.
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