Geronimo Surrender Site
Geronimo Surrender Site | |
Location | 45 miles northeast of Douglas, Arizona |
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Coordinates | 31°35′59″N 109°04′24″W / 31.59972°N 109.07333°W |
NRHP reference No. | 98000170[1] |
Added to NRHP | March 6, 1998 |
The Geronimo Surrender Site is situated above Skeleton Canyon in southeastern Arizona, on a small bluff. Overlooking the canyon, the San Bernardino Valley and San Simon Valley can be seen to the east and west. The actual site is marked by a cairn of rocks, which was erected by Lieutenant Henry W. Lawton, on the spot where Geronimo surrendered to General Nelson A. Miles in 1886.[2]
History
In 1876, in Arizona, the U. S. Government ushered in an era of concentrating Native Americans in reservations, which in turn triggered a wave of violence between Indians and white settlers. In 1872, the Chiricahua, under the leadership of Cochise, signed a peace treaty with General Otis O. Howard, agreeing to cease hostilities in exchange for the government creating a reservation in southeast Arizona. Taza, took over leadership of the Chiricahua in 1874 after Cochise's death. Factions among the tribe were split about whether or not to move to the reservation. In 1876 Indian agent John P. Clum convinced a portion of the tribe to move to the reservation, but approximately 400 of them refused and fled to the Sierra Madre range in Mexico. These were split into three groups, one of which was led by Geronimo.[3]
In April 1877, Clum surrounded the Apache resistors in New Mexico. The Indians, including Geronimo, surrendered and were take to the
Crook then negotiated an agreement with Mexican President
Crook was relieved of his command, replaced by General Nelson A. Miles. Miles planned to remove all the Chiricahua from Arizona, and relocate them to reservations in Florida, thinking that would alleviate their resistance. Miles dispatched Captain Henry W. Lawton and Lt. Charles B. Gatewood to track down and capture the remaining Apaches in Mexico. On August 24, 1886, they caught up with Geronimo, and Gatewood informed Geronimo about the impending relocation to Florida. This deflated Geronimo, and he agreed to surrender, however, he would only surrender to Miles. The U. S. soldiers began escorting the Apache north into Arizona. They met with General Miles in Skeleton Canyon, arriving on August 28. Miles arrived on September 3. Geronimo and Miles met on September 3 and 4, agreeing to the terms of the surrender. After the agreement was signed, Captain Lawton erected the cairn of stones to commemorate the agreement. It was approximately ten feet across at its base and six feet high. Lawton wrote down a list of the officers present at the signing, placed it in a bottle, and put the bottle in the cairn.[8]
The site
While there has been some confusion in the past regarding the exact location of the treaty site. The
The cairn originally stood ten feet across and six feet high. It has since been disturbed by individuals searching to see if it contained anything. It commemorates the signing of the treaty between Geronimo and General Miles, which is considered the most important treaty by the U. S. Government and Indians in Arizona, and effectively ended a forty-year period of hostilities between the two parties in the Arizona Territory.[10]
References
- ^ "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. July 9, 2010.
- ^ "National Register of Historic Places Continuation Sheet". National Park Service. March 6, 1998. p. 6. Archived from the original on October 25, 2021. Retrieved November 18, 2022.
- ^ National Park Service 1998, pages 8-9.
- ^ National Park Service 1998, pages 9-10.
- ^ a b National Park Service 1998, pages 10-11.
- ^ National Park Service 1998, page 12.
- ^ National Park Service 1998, pages 6-7.
- ^ National Park Service 1998, page 8.
External links
- Fardink, Paul. "Lieutenant Charles B. Gatewood: Premier Cavalry Soldier of the American West". ArmyHistory.org. The Army Historical Foundation.