There have been many books written about Arizona's history of the 1800s. Many are almost completely erroneous and perpetuate tales of incidents or the existence of physical structures in Arizona, such as the location of stage stations that are not true.. For example, one that mentions the history of the Butterfield Overland Mail Company in Arizona, specifically for Cochise County, has little to no accurate information. Above all the book gives no references for its stories. The book is "Sunday Trails in Old Cochise" by Grace McCool and was published in 1967.
First the book mentions that there were four Butterfield stage stations in Cochise County when there was actually five. The station that is not mentioned is the San Simon Stage Station. The book states that a foundation of a Butterfield station can be seen in Apache Pass. This is not true as the present foundation on the site is not that of Butterfield. It is the foundation of a trading post built on the site of the old station, by James Tevis in 1880. The route that the book describes of Butterfield's trail through Cochise County is basically true, but that route only existed for a few months and then took a more direct route due to the improvements made by Butterfield. For instance it traveled the old Emigrant Trail through the pass in the Dos Cabezas Mountains, but that section was abandoned for a more direct route through Sulphur Springs Valley. I might add that there is a monument erected in 2004 placed by a local Cochise County historical society near the original Sulphur Springs identifying it as the Butterfield Stage Station. This is false as it was north of there at the base of Willcox Playa and was named Ewell's Stage Station.
The book mentions that James Tevis became the Apache Pass Stage Station manager. He was not. He participated in the construction of the original station and worked there for only about one year. Late in 1859 he move to the San Pedro River Stage Station for only a short time.
The book mentions that "Wallace" replaced Tevis at the Apache Pass Stage Station. This is also not true. "Big Foot" Wallace was a stage driver for Butterfield and was at the station in February 1861 during the Bascom affair. Charles W. Culver was the station master at this time. There were numerous firsthand accounts, with these details, in the Daily Alta California.
The book states that the Butterfield Stage Station in the San Pedro Valley was at Tres Alamos. It was not. It was built on the east bank of the San Pedro River just opposite present-day Benson. Benson did not exist until about nineteen years after Butterfield closed its operations. The GPS location for Butterfield's San Pedro River Stage Station is 31.9727. -110.2777.
This is just an example of many---too many to give here.
If anyone wishes to address any of these or other historical incidents concerning this subject, I will state references. For detailed references to the subject of Butterfield in Arizona see The Butterfield Trail and Butterfield Overland Mail Company in Arizona, 1858-1861, published in April 2011.
First the book mentions that there were four Butterfield stage stations in Cochise County when there was actually five. The station that is not mentioned is the San Simon Stage Station. The book states that a foundation of a Butterfield station can be seen in Apache Pass. This is not true as the present foundation on the site is not that of Butterfield. It is the foundation of a trading post built on the site of the old station, by James Tevis in 1880. The route that the book describes of Butterfield's trail through Cochise County is basically true, but that route only existed for a few months and then took a more direct route due to the improvements made by Butterfield. For instance it traveled the old Emigrant Trail through the pass in the Dos Cabezas Mountains, but that section was abandoned for a more direct route through Sulphur Springs Valley. I might add that there is a monument erected in 2004 placed by a local Cochise County historical society near the original Sulphur Springs identifying it as the Butterfield Stage Station. This is false as it was north of there at the base of Willcox Playa and was named Ewell's Stage Station.
The book mentions that James Tevis became the Apache Pass Stage Station manager. He was not. He participated in the construction of the original station and worked there for only about one year. Late in 1859 he move to the San Pedro River Stage Station for only a short time.
The book mentions that "Wallace" replaced Tevis at the Apache Pass Stage Station. This is also not true. "Big Foot" Wallace was a stage driver for Butterfield and was at the station in February 1861 during the Bascom affair. Charles W. Culver was the station master at this time. There were numerous firsthand accounts, with these details, in the Daily Alta California.
The book states that the Butterfield Stage Station in the San Pedro Valley was at Tres Alamos. It was not. It was built on the east bank of the San Pedro River just opposite present-day Benson. Benson did not exist until about nineteen years after Butterfield closed its operations. The GPS location for Butterfield's San Pedro River Stage Station is 31.9727. -110.2777.
This is just an example of many---too many to give here.
If anyone wishes to address any of these or other historical incidents concerning this subject, I will state references. For detailed references to the subject of Butterfield in Arizona see The Butterfield Trail and Butterfield Overland Mail Company in Arizona, 1858-1861, published in April 2011.
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