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| Harshaw, Arizona, circa 1880s |
Today, Harshaw, Arizona, is a ghost town. What's left of the town of Harshaw can be found off on Harshaw Road in Santa Cruz County. Actually, if you go to Patagonia on Highway 82 and then turn East onto Harshaw Road and follow it South-East for about 8 and a half miles, you'll come to where the old Harshaw townsite sits. That area is Harshaw Canyon.
On the East side of the road is the ruins of a single adobe building. On the West side of the road, you'll find the Harshaw Cemetery. For a ghost town, there isn't that much there in the way of old buildings. But the Harshaw Cemetery is pretty large and looks as if it may be maintained to a certain extent. As for the graves, it's interesting to note that some families are still burying their loved ones there. Or at least did into the 1980s.
If you make the trip to Harshaw, you have to be very careful, and I recommend being armed. First, it is only about 9 miles from the Mexican Border and is a route used for drug smuggling and for Illegal Aliens to enter Arizona. In fact, there is at least one sign posted to warn Americans that drug smuggling and Illegal Alien traffic may be encountered in that area.
As for the name Harshaw? The town was settled in the 1870s, in what was then the Arizona Territory. And the story of its name is a lot like that of other towns in the Old West. It's named after someone who may or may not have been the first to settle in that area. In this case, David Harshaw was a Sergeant in the 1st Regiment of Infantry of the California Column.
The 1st Regiment was a key component of the California Column because it was ordered to secure the Southwest and prevent the Confederate Army from advancing into California from the South. There were a lot of Democrats in Southern California who sympathized with the Confederate cause, were for slavery, and wanted to destroy the Union. One objective for the Confederacy during the Civil War was to take California from the South. It saw the riches coming out of California as important if the South was to even successfully win the war.
The California Column, under the command of Colonel James H. Carleton, also included cavalry and artillery units. The California Column's march through Arizona was a notable feat, covering 900 miles of desert terrain. They faced challenges like dehydration and skirmishes with Native American tribes. Yes, some who were armed by the Confederate Army.
The 1st California Infantry established and garrisoned several posts in Arizona, including Fort Yuma, Camp Wright, and others. They also participated in expeditions and scouts, including those near Tucson, Fort Goodwin, and the Gila River. After their march across Arizona and New Mexico, the 1st Regiment had various companies stationed at different posts, and most were involved in further expeditions and skirmishes with Indians.
The 1st California Infantry mustered out of service between March 6 and October 19, 1866. Sergeant David Harshaw mustered out of the Army and returned to his previous occupation of ranching.
The 1st California Infantry established and garrisoned several posts in Arizona, including Fort Yuma, Camp Wright, and others. They also participated in expeditions and scouts, including those near Tucson, Fort Goodwin, and the Gila River. After their march across Arizona and New Mexico, the 1st Regiment had various companies stationed at different posts, and most were involved in further expeditions and skirmishes with Indians.
The 1st California Infantry mustered out of service between March 6 and October 19, 1866. Sergeant David Harshaw mustered out of the Army and returned to his previous occupation of ranching.
He had been ordered off of Apache land by Indian agent Tom Jeffords in early 1873 for illegal grazing, and he settled later that year in the area that was to become Harshaw to find new pastures for his cattle. While ranching in what is now Harshaw Canyon, he prospected and staked claims to several deposits of silver ore, one of which he sold to the Hermosa Mining Company around 1879.
Soon, besides the Hermosa Mine, the town of Harshaw saw the construction of a twenty-stamp mill designed to process or "stamp" the silver ore into fine powder in preparation for smelting, and opened a Post Office in 1880 under the name Harshaw in order to honor its founder. As for its mail, the town received mail service by way of the Southern Pacific Railroad from Tombstone three times a week.
By the 1880s, Harshaw was home to about 200 buildings, 30 of them commercial, which included 8 general stores, 2 hotels, 2 blacksmiths, 3 stables, 4 breweries, 3 dance halls, and several saloons. So yes, besides mining, the town's merchants did a good trade. And as for its mining, it is said that at the town's peak, Harshaw's mining and milling of silver was performed cheaper than in any other mining town in the Arizona Territory. As for silver production, the mines were considered rivals of the Tombstone mines. Sadly, though, as was the way of things in the Old West where boom towns can go bust out of the blue, such was the case for Harshaw.
The town of Harshaw was dealt a death blow when the Hermosa Mine and mill both closed down in late 1881 due to a drop in the quality of silver ore extracted from the property. Along with the Hermosa closures, fires swept through the area and wiped out the town. In 1882, The Tombstone Epitaph noted Harshaw's decline, and wrote that "Over 80% of the town's 200 buildings stood empty with broken windows and open doors."
The following story was syndicated by telegraph wire and published in the Daily Alta California on November 9, 1883:
Bloody Battle Between Rustlers And Stockmen
Tombstone, A. T . November 8th.— V. H. Igo, a prominent stockman, arrived here today and furnishes the following particulars of a bloody, but successful, fight between stockmen and a band of rustlers, near Harshaw on Tuesday last.
On arriving there, the American rustler surrendered, but the Mexicans refused. and the ball opened. The pursuing party got into an adobe house, while the Mexicans intrenched themselves behind adjacent trees.
There were a hundred shots exchanged as rapidly as Winchester rifles and six-shooters could belch them forth. The older of the two Mexicans was finally shot through the heart, but raised and fired three shots before he expired. The other one then, although shot in the abdomen and through the thigh, made a rush for his horse, and amid a perfect hailstorm of bullets succeeded in riding off, but died when he got to San Rafael Ranch. a few miles distant.
The four pursuers then started for Harshaw with the member of the gang who had surrendered, for the purpose of giving him a legal examination, but they soon returned with the report that their prisoner had "got away." It is surmised that he may have got entangled in a rope, the other end of which was attached to some elevated object.
-- end of report from 1883
When looking through the graves at the Harshaw Cemetery, you'll come across the grave of local rancher Angel Soto. His cross says he was born in 1846 and died on December 23, 1899. And there, in a small frame, someone took the time to type up a sheet of paper that tells the story of how he died. As well as I can make out, below is what the paper in the frame says:
A Violent Death
Angel Soto
Harshaw, Az 1899
"The man buried in that place was a rancher who was preparing for the holidays. He intended to sell one of his cows to someone near the Morning Glory Mine. When he reached his destination, his cow was already being butchered. Evidently, an argument arose, and Angel Soto was killed. The killers put him in a buggy and took him to Blue Nose Canyon (south of here). The killers then fled to Mexico ten miles away.
It wasn't until late February of 1900 that Angel's body was found by a woodcutter. Having been covered by snow, the body was well preserved. This allowed his family to give him a Christian funeral.
The mail carrier at the time, Val Valenzuela, was the last known person to see him alive besides his murderers.
When Angel Soto was killed, he left behind a wife and 8 children. They were all grown up. The family consisted of 6 girls and 2 boys. Of his immediate family, the two boys and two girls are buried in this same cemetery. There is a granddaughter and a great-granddaughter. Next to him is his wife, Josefa.
Josefa Torres de Soto died in 1925. She outlived her husband by 25 years. Upon this date, June 1997, there are 24 grandchildren ranging in age from 60 to 90 years old.
We are proud to be descendants of this pioneer family from this area. We ask visitors to respect the graves of the people buried here. Thank you."
-- end of what the letter in the frame on Angel Soto's grave.
Word came from Harshaw that a rancher by the name of Soto has mysteriously disappeared from his home. The last seen of Soto was over twenty-five days ago, when he was seen on a burro near his ranch. The next day, the burro returned to the ranch, but the rancher, up to last Sunday, has not been seen. Parties have been searching for the missing man, but as of this writing, no news of his whereabouts has been learned. Foul play is suspected.
And here's this, reported in The Oasis newspaper a few days later on March 3, 1900:
Sunday, the remains of Soto, the missing rancher, was found near Blue Nose Mine. There is every evidence that the man has laid there the entire time that the man has been missed, and it is thought that he was a victim of foul play.
Such was life for rustlers and ranchers in the Old West. Sometimes rustlers were found and brought to justice by way of a gun or a rope. Other times, rustlers would kill ranchers who caught them in the act. It was a common way of life. Yes, it was a dangerous life in many ways since ranchers never knew who was on their property for what reason. And yes, it was a common way of life -- especially in isolated areas.
As for Angel Soto, he caught rustlers in the act of butchering one of his cows, and the rustlers killed him. They then dumped his body in a place where they thought it wouldn't be found before fleeing back into Mexico. Frankly, it sounds like something that could very well happen today.
And as for the "ghost town" of Harshaw today? Well, as I said before, hardly anything remains other than the ruins of a single adobe building and the Harshaw Cemetery. For tourists who like to venture into such places, a visit to the Harshaw Cemetery would be an interesting visit. Just be safe when you do.
Tom Correa
