The Black Legend: George Bascom, Cochise, and the Start of the Apache Wars

By: Doug Hocking

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Synopsis: In 1861, war between the United States and the Chiricahua seemed inevitable. The Apache band lived on a heavily traveled Emigrant and Overland Mail Trail and routinely raided it, organized by their leader, the prudent, not friendly Cochise. When a young boy was kidnapped from his stepfather&’s ranch, Lieutenant George Bascom confronted Cochise even though there was no proof that the Chiricahua were responsible. After a series of missteps, Cochise exacted a short-lived revenge. Despite modern accounts based on spurious evidence, Bascom&’s performance in a difficult situation was admirable. This book examines the legend and provides a new analysis of Bascom&’s and Cochise&’s behavior, putting it in the larger context of the Indian Wars that followed the American Civil War.