Indian Agent John Clum said he would never forget the face of Geronimo. He said he had never seen such a look of hate as when he took Geronimo prisoner and put him in chains.
Indian Agent John Clum said he would never forget the face of Geronimo. He said he had never seen such a look of hate as when he took Geronimo prisoner and put him in chains.
The years after the Civil War were quiet ones for Geronimo. Cochise discouraged him from raiding. To secure the Southwest, the Army built a chain of forts. From these forts, troops chased the Apaches. They had little success. In 1870, the U.S. government faced facts. The soldiers could never wipe out the Apaches. They let them live on in their own lands. The Apaches received tracts at Fort Apache, Camp Verde, Camp Grant, and Ojo Caliente. There they could learn to farm and raise livestock. Troops would protect the Apaches from hostile whites.
In 1871, General George Crook told the Apaches they must move onto reservations. If they did not move by February 1872, he would attack them. Then General O. O. Howard replaced Crook. A few months later, Geronimo agreed to move. The Chiricahua reservation lay just north of the Mexican border. His band could live in their mountain homeland.
At Apache Pass, agents issued rations once a month. Geronimo’s band received twelve steers, plus clothing and supplies. Geronimo did not like being under the eyes of the whites. Soon, he moved his family to join the White Springs Apaches in New Mexico. There, he tired of the peaceful life. Geronimo went to the mountains of Mexico. He lived with Chief Juh and the Nednis. From time to time, he came north to visit friends.
In 1875, the U.S. government had a new plan. All Apaches must live on one reservation. They chose San Carlos in central Arizona. It was an ugly place, located on a gravelly plain. Lines of scrawny cottonwood trees marked the banks of streams. There was little rain. Day after day, dry, hot winds blew dust and gravel. In summer, it reached 110° F in the shade.
The San Carlos reservation in central Arizona. It was an ugly place, located on a gravelly plain.
On April 22, 1877, Geronimo’s band camped outside Warm Springs. Indian Agent John Clum sent them a message. They were to come to Warm Springs for a talk. Clum sat on a porch. Armed police stood on both sides of the Apaches. Clum faced Geronimo and six other leaders. He said they would have to move to San Carlos. Geronimo replied, “We are not going back to San Carlos with you. Unless you are very careful, you and your Apache police will not go back to San Carlos either. Your bodies will stay here . . . to make food for coyotes.”1
Clum gave a signal. From hiding, more police ran onto the parade ground. Their rifles were at the ready. Geronimo’s thumb eased off the hammer of his rifle. Geronimo stared at him with hatred. Clum took the gun. He told them they were prisoners. Geronimo reached for his knife. A policeman snatched it away. Clum took the Apaches to the blacksmith shop. Soon, irons linked by chains shackled their ankles.
The Apaches began the long walk to San Carlos. The trip took three weeks. The shackled men rode in a wagon. At San Carlos, Clum kept the leaders in the guard house. He wanted them tried and hanged. The others were free to live anywhere on the reservation. After a few months, a new agent set the leaders free.
Life was bad at San Carlos. The Apaches had poor housing, no food, and not enough clothing. Many died from smallpox and malaria. In September, over 300 fled. On April 4, 1878, Geronimo followed. It was his first of many breakouts.