Ominous clouds hovered over Tombstone that January morning in 1882, as the Sandy Bob Stage rambled into town in a cloud of dust. The grey sky gave forewarning of a fast-approaching snowstorm. The passengers arriving that morning were, with one exception, typical— a military officer on his way to Fort Huachuca, an elderly Jewish peddler who told funny stories, a self-styled “millionaire” out to make another fortune…
If Joe Boot had never met Pearl Hart, he might have lived an uneventful life as a miner and businessman. But they did meet, and they did plan a stagecoach robbery. They got caught, and the capture catapulted Pearl Hart into infamy but left Joe Boot totally ignored in the hulabaloo that followed.
In the long run, Billy Stiles fared much better as a criminal than as a lawman. He escaped death many times while running from the law, but died while trying to enforce it. Stiles was born in 1871 and grew up near Casa Grande. He served twice as an Arizona deputy sheriff, but spent much of his early days as a train robber, bank robber and killer.
TUCSON — Dillinger Days are held in this city on the third Saturday of each January, giving the locals and visitors a chance to dress in pinstripe suits, felt fedoras, flapper dresses and moustaches. The annual event at the Hotel Congress commemorates the arrest of John Dillinger, the notorious gangster who became the FBI’s first Public Enemy Number One.
The genesis of Galeyville, on the eastern side of the Chiricahua Mountains, was similar to many other short-lived boom towns in Cochise County.
In this case, it all started in 1880 when John Galey arrived from Pennsylvania to promote a silver mine. Since the prospect was only 60 miles, as the crow flies, from Tombstone’s bonanza, Galey visualized himself as the next silver king of Arizona. He secured some financial backing and laid out a townsite. Before long, Galeyville boasted 11 saloons and some 30 other various and sundry enterprises.
The boom lasted only about a year. The silver played out and Galeyville became another metropolis that didn’t quite metropolis. The story of old Galeyville might have ended right there, had not a pack of outlaws led by Curly Bill Brocius decided to take up residence.
