Black Legend: George Bascom, Cochise, and the Start of the Apache Wars
(Room Paradise Valley)
03 Jul 19
4:30 PM
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5:45 PM
In 1861, Lieutenant George Bascom confronted Cochise concerning the return of a stolen boy, Felix Ward, and his stepfather’s livestock. In 1869, a self-promoting officer, Reuben Bernard, started the story that Bascom had done something wrong and that he, Bernard, was a hero who had tried to prevent it. Since then, “popular historians” have blamed Bascom for 11 years of warfare with the Apache. The real story is much more interesting and kinder to Bascom. It includes the story of a flying stagecoach, of the first Medal of Honor, and of Felix Ward, who returned to notice in 1872 as an Apache scout called Mickey Free. For more information, see doughocking.com or email doug@doughocking.com.