Smith Gang

Last updated
Smith Gang
Years active1898-1901
Membership7
Activities Cattle rustling

The Smith Gang was a band of American cattle rustlers who operated in the Southwest during the late 1890s to 1901. The gang was founded by Bill Smith and included six others, mainly Bill's family members. After an encounter with the law in Arizona Territory, known as the Battleground Gunfight, the Smith Gang was forced to escape to Mexico in October 1901. [1]

Contents

History

The gang was formed no later than 1898 and included Bill Smith, his younger brothers Al, George and Floyd, a brother in law named Adam Slagger and two other unidentified men. Before moving to Arizona, Bill was a rustler in the Indian Territory where he worked with the Dalton Gang. In 1898 the Smith brothers were living with their mother and sisters at a ranch located near the Blue River in northeastern Graham County, Arizona. That year the brothers were arrested for stealing unbranded calves from ranchers Henry Barrett, a former Rough Rider, and Bill Phelps. Bill assumed full responsibility for the crime so his brothers were released. Bill spent the next several months in jail at St. Johns and he was said to have developed a grudge against Henry Barrett. Eventually Bill planned to make his escape from police custody. The jailer at St. Johns, Tom Berry, found Bill to be such a hard sleeper that it was necessary to enter his cell every morning to wake him up. One morning when Berry walked into the cell, Bill Smith revealed a .45 caliber revolver which had been smuggled to him by his brother Al. Bill then locked Berry in the cell and escaped to New Mexico Territory for a year. By 1900 the gang was well known in the Southwest for their thievery along the Mogollon Rim. [2]

Battleground Gunfight

In the first week of October 1901, the gang was spotted near Springerville with fifteen to twenty stolen horses. According to informants, the group was on their way home from Utah where they allegedly robbed a train. A few days later Henry Barrett, in company with another cowboy, were confronted by Bill Smith and his brother Al in the Big Cienega range. During which Henry Barrett was held captive for some time and Bill threatened to kill him but eventually Barrett was released and he informed the local sheriff at St. Johns. On the next day the sheriff organized a posse to go after the Smith Gang. It was to be led by his deputy, Hank Sharp, who would ride with Henry Barrett and two other ranchers. At Greer the posse met up with the Arizona Rangers Carlos Tofolla and Duane Hamblin who were also looking for the Smiths. The two forces decided to combine their strength and they followed the outlaws' trail to a crossing at the Little Colorado River. There they decided to detour east to the ranch of Lorenzo Crosby to ask for his help in pursuing the gang, to which Crosby agreed. [3] [2]

The brothers Arch and William "Bill" Maxwell also lived on the Crosby ranch and they were considered to be great at tracking, both of them joined the posse as well. After that the lawmen continued on the outlaws trail which led to their camp, just within the western border of the Fort Apache Reservation. The camp was located along a creek, within a deep canyon, near the Black River, and the posse confronted the gang from the canyon's western opening on the afternoon of October 8. In the gunfight that followed, the posse had to fire into the setting sun while the position of the outlaws was shaded. Initially the rangers Tofolla and Hamblin demanded that the gang surrender, Bill Smith replied that he would, but when Bill made his appearance, he opened fire with his rifle. The first three shots fired by Bill Smith hit Tofolla twice in the chest and the deputized rancher Bill Maxwell in the head. Maxwell died instantly but Tofolla returned fire with his revolver. For the next couple of hours the two sides skirmished until it was too dark to continue fighting. [2]

Tofolla later died that night and he and Bill Maxwell were the only casualties on the posse's side. One or two of the gang members may have been wounded by Barrett who carried a Spanish Mauser that could shoot through trees. During the gunfight, Ranger Duane Hamblin scattered the gang's horses which forced them to have to retreat from the canyon on foot. The posse did not pursue any further though so the Smith Gang escaped to New Mexico and then Texas, stealing horses, guns, and food, from settlers, along the way. Another posse was organized to go after the Smith Gang, and the United States Army dispatched two Apache Scouts, Chicken and Josh, to help in the search, but the scouts lost the outlaws' trail at the Rio Grande, the international border between Texas and Mexico. Following this the Smith Gang ceased to exist as a criminal enterprise in the United States but they may have continued their life of crime in Mexico. [2]

Bill Smith and his brother Al made their way to Galveston, Texas, where they took a boat to Argentina. Bill Smith later returned to Douglas, Arizona, where he became involved in a gunfight with Douglas Arizona Constable Tom Vaughn and Constable Dayton Graham May 16, 1903. [4] [5] Smith managed to escape after killing Vaughan and severely injuring Graham. [6] After Dayton recovered he spent several months tracking down Smith in Southern Arizona. On July 5, 1903, Dayton found Smith in a saloon at a monte table in Douglas, Arizona, and killed him. [7] [8] [9]

George Smith returned to Arizona in 1909 and surrendered himself to Sheriff Jim Parks of Graham County. However, since the only charges against him had been filed in Apache County, he was released from custody and returned to his mother's ranch on the Blue River. [10]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wild Bunch</span> Gang of outlaws in central USA in 1890s

The Wild Bunch, also known as the Doolin–Dalton Gang, or the Oklahombres, were a gang of American outlaws based in the Indian Territory in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. They were active in Kansas, Missouri, Arkansas, and Oklahoma Territory during the 1890s—robbing banks and stores, holding up trains, and killing lawmen. They were also known as The Oklahoma Long Riders because of the long dusters that they wore.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">John Horton Slaughter</span> American soldier, lawman, cowboy, rancher, and gambler (1841–1922)

John Horton Slaughter, also known as Texas John Slaughter, was an American lawman, cowboy, poker player and rancher in the Southwestern United States during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. After serving in the Confederate States Army during the American Civil War, Slaughter earned a reputation fighting hostile Indians and Mexican and American outlaws in the Arizona and New Mexico territories. In the latter half of his life, he lived at the San Bernardino Ranch, which is today a well-preserved National Historic Landmark in Cochise County in far southeastern Arizona. In 1964, he was inducted into the Hall of Great Westerners of the National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">William Brocius</span> American gunman, rustler, and outlaw (1845–1882)

William Brocius, better known as Curly Bill Brocius, was an American gunslinger, rustler and an outlaw Cowboy in the Cochise County area of the Arizona Territory during the late 1870s and early 1880s. His name is likely an alias or nickname, and some evidence links him to another outlaw named William "Curly Bill" Bresnaham, who was convicted of an 1878 attempted robbery and murder in El Paso, Texas.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ike Clanton</span> Rancher and member of the Cochise County Cowboys, Arizona Territory (1847–1887)

Joseph Isaac Clanton was a member of a loose association of outlaws known as The Cowboys who clashed with lawmen Wyatt, Virgil and Morgan Earp as well as Doc Holliday. On October 26, 1881, Clanton was present at the Gunfight at the O.K. Corral in the boomtown of Tombstone, Arizona Territory but was unarmed and ran from the gunfight, in which his 19-year-old brother Billy was killed.

<i>3:10 to Yuma</i> (1957 film) American western film by Delmer Daves

3:10 to Yuma is a 1957 American Western film directed by Delmer Daves and starring Glenn Ford and Van Heflin. Based on a 1953 short story of the same name by Elmore Leonard, the plot concerns an impoverished rancher who takes on the risky job of escorting a notorious outlaw to justice.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pete Spence</span> American outlaw (1852–1914)

Pete Spence was a small-time criminal known for his association with outlaw Cowboys Frank and Tom McLaury, and Ike and Billy Clanton, of Tombstone, Arizona Territory. Spence was also a suspect in the assassination of Morgan Earp. His wife Marietta Duarte testified that Spence and several friends had talked about killing Morgan, but the judge ruled her testimony inadmissible. Spence was first suspected of robbery in 1878 in Goliad County, Texas. He was suspected of stealing mules and later a suspect in a stagecoach robbery outside Bisbee, Arizona. While a deputy sheriff, he pistol-whipped and killed a man for which he served 18 months of a five-year term before the governor pardoned him.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Newman Haynes Clanton</span> American outlaw (c. 1816–1881)

Newman Haynes Clanton, also known as "Old Man" Clanton, was a cattle rancher and father of four sons, one of whom was killed during the Gunfight at the O.K. Corral. Two of his sons were involved in multiple conflicts in Cochise County, Arizona Territory including stagecoach robbery and cattle rustling. One witness identified his son Ike Clanton as a participant in the murder of Morgan Earp. Billy Clanton and Ike were at the O.K. Corral. "Old Man" Clanton was reportedly involved with stealing cattle from Mexican ranchers and re-selling them in the United States. Records indicate he participated in the Skeleton Canyon Massacre of Mexican smugglers. In retaliation, Mexican Rurales are reported to have ambushed and killed him and a crew of Cowboys in the Guadalupe Canyon Massacre.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Earp Vendetta Ride</span> Search by Wyatt Earp for outlaw cowboys

The Earp Vendetta Ride was a deadly search by a federal posse led by Deputy U.S. Marshal Wyatt Earp for a loose confederation of outlaw "Cowboys" they believed had ambushed his brothers Virgil and Morgan Earp, maiming the former and killing the latter. The two Earp brothers had been attacked in retaliation for the deaths of three Cowboys in the Gunfight at the O.K. Corral on October 26, 1881. From March 20 to April 15, 1882, the federal posse searched southeast Cochise County, Arizona Territory for the men they believed were responsible for the attacks on Virgil and Morgan. Several suspects had been identified and were charged, but were soon released by the court, owing in some cases to legal technicalities and in others to the strength of alibis provided by the Cowboy gang. Wyatt subsequently pursued the suspects with a federal warrant.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Harvey Logan</span> American outlaw and gunman (1867–1904)

Harvey Alexander Logan, also known as Kid Curry, was an American outlaw and gunman who rode with Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid's infamous Wild Bunch gang during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Despite being less well-known than his fellow gang members, he has since been referred to as "the wildest of the Wild Bunch", having reputedly killed at least nine law enforcement officers in five shootings and another two men in other instances. He was involved in numerous shootouts with police and civilians and participated in several bank and train robberies with various gangs during his outlaw days.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Perry Owens</span> American lawman and gunfighter of the Old West

Commodore Perry Owens was an American lawman and gunfighter of the Old West. One of his many exploits was the Owens-Blevins Shootout in Arizona Territory during the Pleasant Valley War.

The Jesse Evans Gang, also known as The Boys, was a gang of rustlers and robbers led by outlaw and gunman Jesse Evans, which lasted from 1876 until 1880. The gang was formed after Evans broke with the John Kinney Gang. After breaking away, he brought along with him Billy Morton, Frank Baker, Tom Hill, Dolly Graham, George Davis, Jim McDaniels, Buffalo Bill Spawn, Bob Martin, Manuel "Indian" Segovia and Nicholas Provencio.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Harry C. Wheeler</span> American lawman (1875–1925)

Harry Cornwall Wheeler was an Arizona lawman who was the third captain of the Arizona Rangers, as well as the sheriff of Cochise County, serving from 1912 into 1918. He is known as the lead figure in the illegal mass kidnapping and deportation of some 1200 miners and family members, many of them immigrants, from Bisbee, Arizona to New Mexico in 1917. Beginning on July 12, 1917, he took total control of the town of Bisbee, controlling access and running kangaroo courts that deported numerous people.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cochise County Cowboys</span> Informal confederation of rustlers and robbers in Old West Arizona

The Cochise County Cowboys is the modern name for a loosely associated group of outlaws living in Pima and Cochise County, Arizona in the late 19th century. The term "cowboy", as opposed to "cowhand," had only begun to come into wider usage during the 1870s. In that place and time, "cowboy" was synonymous with "cattle rustler". Such thieves frequently rode across the border into Mexico and stole cattle from Mexican ranches that they then drove back across the border to sell in the United States. Some modern writers consider them to be an early form of organized crime in America.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cochise County in the Old West</span> Aspect of Arizona history

Cochise County in southeastern Arizona was the scene of a number of violent conflicts in the 19th-century and early 20th-century American Old West, including between white settlers and Apache Indians, between opposing political and economic factions, and between outlaw gangs and local law enforcement. Cochise County was carved off in 1881 from the easternmost portion of Pima County during a formative period in the American Southwest. The era was characterized by rapidly growing boomtowns, the emergence of large-scale farming and ranching interests, lucrative mining operations, and the development of new technologies in railroading and telecommunications. Complicating the situation was staunch resistance to white settlement from local Native American groups, most notably during the Apache Wars, as well as Cochise County's location on the border with Mexico, which not only threatened international conflict but also presented opportunities for criminal smugglers and cattle rustlers.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Battleground Gunfight</span> 1901 gunfight in Arizona

The Battleground Gunfight, also known as the Battleground Shootout, was a gunfight between a posse of American lawmen and the Smith Gang. It was fought on October 8, 1901, within Arizona Territory's Fort Apache Indian Reservation, at a clearing in the forest known today as the "Battleground". Nine Arizona Rangers and deputies caught up with the cattle rustler Bill Smith and his gang. During a long exchange of gunfire that followed, Ranger Carlos Tafolla and Deputy Bill Maxwell were killed and one or two of the outlaws may have been wounded. In the end, the Smith Gang escaped the posse and fled into Mexico.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Family feuds in the United States</span> Prominent feuds in the US

Feuds in the United States deals with the phenomena of historic blood feuding in the United States. These feuds have been numerous and some became quite vicious. Often, a conflict which may have started out as a rivalry between two individuals or families became further escalated into a clan-wide feud or a range war, involving dozens—or even hundreds—of participants. Below are listed some of the most notable blood feuds in United States history, most of which occurred in the Old West.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Skeleton Canyon shootout</span> 1896 bank robbery gunfight near Nogales, Arizona

The Skeleton Canyon shootout was a gunfight on August 12, 1896, between members of the High Five Gang and a posse of American lawmen. Following a failed robbery on August 1 of the bank in Nogales, Arizona, the High Fives headed east and split up. The gang's leader, Black Jack Christian, and George Musgrave got away.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Burton C. Mossman</span> American sheriff (1867–1956)

Burton C. Mossman was an American lawman and cattleman in the final years of the Old West. He is most remembered for his capture of the notorious border bandit Augustine Chacon in 1902, though he was also a successful businessman who owned the large Diamond A Ranch in New Mexico.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gleeson gunfight</span> 1917 Old West gunfight in Cochise County, Arizona

The Gleeson gunfight, or the Gleeson shootout, was one of the last gunfights in the Old West, having occurred during the transition period between the "Old" and the "New." On March 5, 1917, the sheriff of Cochise County, Harry C. Wheeler, and his deputy, Lafe Gibson, were ambushed by a gang of Mexican alcohol smugglers near the town of Gleeson, Arizona. During the battle that followed, Wheeler and Gibson fought off the attackers and confiscated their alcohol, wounding at least one man in the process.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bill Downing</span> American Wild West outlaw

Bill Downing a.k.a. William F. Downing was a notorious outlaw during the Wild West era in Arizona. Downing had fled from the Texas Rangers posse who was after him when he came to Arizona. In Arizona, he was involved in the killing of William S. “Slim” Traynor and in various train robberies including the robbery of the Train Depot in the town of Cochise. Downing was so unpopular that even members of his gang couldn't stand him.

References

  1. Hunsacker, pg. 300-301
  2. 1 2 3 4 McKnight, Ray A. (Fall 2006). "The Battleground Shootout - Arizona Rangers Fight Smith Gang" (PDF). American Society of Arms Collectors. Bulletin Number 94. Archived from the original (PDF) on May 22, 2018. Retrieved May 21, 2018.
  3. Aker, Andrea (December 10, 2010). "Legend of the Bill Smith Gang". Arizona Oddities. Archived from the original on May 22, 2018. Retrieved May 21, 2018.
  4. Encyclopedia of Western Gunfighters by Bill O'Neal, p. 290
  5. Bisbee daily review. [volume, May 20, 1903, Image 8]
  6. Arizona republican. [volume, May 19, 1903, Image 1]
  7. Bisbee daily review. [volume, July 09, 1903, Image 7]
  8. Bisbee daily review. [volume, July 10, 1903, Image 5]
  9. Bisbee daily review. [volume, July 10, 1903, Image 5]
  10. "Arizona Rangers". The Spell of the West. Archived from the original on May 22, 2018. Retrieved May 21, 2018.