Tom Jeffords
Encyclopedia
Thomas Jonathan Jeffords (January 1, 1832 – February 21, 1914) was a U.S. Army scout, Indian agent
, and later a stagecoach driver in the Arizona Territory
. His friendship with Apache
leader Cochise
was instrumental in ending the Indian wars in that region.
Born in Chautauqua County, NY, Tom Jeffords came west to Arizona in 1862 as a scout for the U.S. Army. Warfare with the Chiricahua Apaches
had begun the year before, when Cochise
, one of their chiefs, was accused by the Army of kidnapping an 11-year-old white boy from a nearby ranch. (The abduction was likely the work of Pinal Indians.) Hearing this, Cochise came forward under a flag of truce when summoned by the Army to declare his innocence. The Army chose not to believe him and tried to place him under arrest. Cochise pulled his knife, slashed the wall of the tent in which the meeting was being held, and escaped into the brush. The six men who had accompanied him, including three relatives, were held and then hanged (Lt Bascom Affair).
Cochise, formerly inclined toward peace with the white settlers, now joined other Apache chiefs in hostility to them. It was not long before the Army retaliated, and the war was on.
Jeffords was the superintendent of a mail line that later became part of the famous Pony Express
system. After some of his mail riders were killed by Apache raiding parties, he rode alone into the camp of Cochise to parley. This bravery so impressed the chief that he became friend and blood brother to Jeffords, granting his mail riders safe passage.
President Grant
sent General Oliver Howard
to the Arizona Territory in 1871 with orders to end the Apache wars by negotiating treaties with the tribes. Howard was an apt choice, as he had been head of the Freedman's Bureau, the agency responsible for assisting freed black slaves after the Civil War
. General Howard enlisted the help of Jeffords in concluding these treaties. Learning of his work with the Freedman's Bureau, Jeffords knew that Howard was honorable and would be respected by Cochise, and eventually conducted the general into Cochise’s camp. A treaty was signed in 1872, ending the decade-long war with the Chiricahua Apaches. Cochise requested that his people be allowed to remain in the Chiricahua Mountains and that Jeffords be made Indian agent for the region. These requests were granted, and the Indian raids subsided.
However, certain white residents of the area disapproved of this arrangement because it denied them access to the copper and silver that had been discovered on Apache lands. They branded Jeffords “Indian lover” and wrote scathing reports to politicians back in Washington. In 1875 he was removed as the federal agent and the Chiricahua Apaches were relocated to the San Carlos Reservation
. Cochise was spared this; he had died of natural causes about a year after signing the now broken treaty. The Indian wars began again, but were ended in 1918
Arizona with the Battle of Bear Valley
, between U.S. Cavalry and Yaqui Indians.
Jeffords became a stagecoach driver, a deputy sheriff of Tombstone, AZ and finally a gold prospector. He lived out the last 22 years of his life in the Tortolita Mountains
north of Tucson, AZ, at a homestead near the Owlhead Buttes. He died on February 21, 1914 and was buried in Tucson's Evergreen Cemetery.
The story of Tom Jeffords, General Howard, Cochise, and the Apache wars was told in historically-based but dramatized form in a novel by Elliott Arnold
that was adapted into a 1950 film
and a 1956 television show
that ran for 72 episodes. The novel, movie, and television show were titled Broken Arrow.
Indian agent
In United States history, an Indian agent was an individual authorized to interact with Native American tribes on behalf of the U.S. government.-Indian agents:*Leander Clark was agent for the Sac and Fox in Iowa beginning in 1866....
, and later a stagecoach driver in the Arizona Territory
Arizona Territory
The Territory of Arizona was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from February 24, 1863 until February 14, 1912, when it was admitted to the Union as the 48th state....
. His friendship with Apache
Apache
Apache is the collective term for several culturally related groups of Native Americans in the United States originally from the Southwest United States. These indigenous peoples of North America speak a Southern Athabaskan language, which is related linguistically to the languages of Athabaskan...
leader Cochise
Cochise
Cochise was a chief of the Chokonen band of the Chiricahua Apache and the leader of an uprising that began in 1861. Cochise County, Arizona is named after him.-Biography:...
was instrumental in ending the Indian wars in that region.
Born in Chautauqua County, NY, Tom Jeffords came west to Arizona in 1862 as a scout for the U.S. Army. Warfare with the Chiricahua Apaches
Chiricahua
Chiricahua are a group of Apache Native Americans who live in the Southwest United States. At the time of European encounter, they were living in 15 million acres of territory in southwestern New Mexico and southeastern Arizona in the United States, and in northern Sonora and Chihuahua in Mexico...
had begun the year before, when Cochise
Cochise
Cochise was a chief of the Chokonen band of the Chiricahua Apache and the leader of an uprising that began in 1861. Cochise County, Arizona is named after him.-Biography:...
, one of their chiefs, was accused by the Army of kidnapping an 11-year-old white boy from a nearby ranch. (The abduction was likely the work of Pinal Indians.) Hearing this, Cochise came forward under a flag of truce when summoned by the Army to declare his innocence. The Army chose not to believe him and tried to place him under arrest. Cochise pulled his knife, slashed the wall of the tent in which the meeting was being held, and escaped into the brush. The six men who had accompanied him, including three relatives, were held and then hanged (Lt Bascom Affair).
Cochise, formerly inclined toward peace with the white settlers, now joined other Apache chiefs in hostility to them. It was not long before the Army retaliated, and the war was on.
Jeffords was the superintendent of a mail line that later became part of the famous Pony Express
Pony Express
The Pony Express was a fast mail service crossing the Great Plains, the Rocky Mountains, and the High Sierra from St. Joseph, Missouri, to Sacramento, California, from April 3, 1860 to October 1861...
system. After some of his mail riders were killed by Apache raiding parties, he rode alone into the camp of Cochise to parley. This bravery so impressed the chief that he became friend and blood brother to Jeffords, granting his mail riders safe passage.
President Grant
Ulysses S. Grant
Ulysses S. Grant was the 18th President of the United States as well as military commander during the Civil War and post-war Reconstruction periods. Under Grant's command, the Union Army defeated the Confederate military and ended the Confederate States of America...
sent General Oliver Howard
Oliver O. Howard
Oliver Otis Howard was a career United States Army officer and a Union general in the American Civil War...
to the Arizona Territory in 1871 with orders to end the Apache wars by negotiating treaties with the tribes. Howard was an apt choice, as he had been head of the Freedman's Bureau, the agency responsible for assisting freed black slaves after the Civil War
American Civil War
The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...
. General Howard enlisted the help of Jeffords in concluding these treaties. Learning of his work with the Freedman's Bureau, Jeffords knew that Howard was honorable and would be respected by Cochise, and eventually conducted the general into Cochise’s camp. A treaty was signed in 1872, ending the decade-long war with the Chiricahua Apaches. Cochise requested that his people be allowed to remain in the Chiricahua Mountains and that Jeffords be made Indian agent for the region. These requests were granted, and the Indian raids subsided.
However, certain white residents of the area disapproved of this arrangement because it denied them access to the copper and silver that had been discovered on Apache lands. They branded Jeffords “Indian lover” and wrote scathing reports to politicians back in Washington. In 1875 he was removed as the federal agent and the Chiricahua Apaches were relocated to the San Carlos Reservation
San Carlos Apache Indian Reservation
The San Carlos Apache Indian Reservation, in southeastern Arizona, United States, was established in 1871 as a reservation for the Chiricahua Apache tribe. It was referred to by some as "Hell's Forty Acres," due to a myriad of dismal health and environmental conditions.-Formation:President U.S....
. Cochise was spared this; he had died of natural causes about a year after signing the now broken treaty. The Indian wars began again, but were ended in 1918
Arizona with the Battle of Bear Valley
Battle of Bear Valley
The Battle of Bear Valley was a small engagement between the revolutionary Yaqui natives and the United States Army on January 9, 1918 in southern Arizona. This skirmish is widely recognized as the final battle of the American Indian Wars.-Background:...
, between U.S. Cavalry and Yaqui Indians.
Jeffords became a stagecoach driver, a deputy sheriff of Tombstone, AZ and finally a gold prospector. He lived out the last 22 years of his life in the Tortolita Mountains
Tortolita Mountains
The Tortolita Mountains are a minor mountain range located northwest of Tucson, Arizona, USA. With a peak elevation of 4,652 feet , the Tortolita Mountains are situated at the northern boundaries of Oro Valley and Marana, two suburbs of Tucson...
north of Tucson, AZ, at a homestead near the Owlhead Buttes. He died on February 21, 1914 and was buried in Tucson's Evergreen Cemetery.
The story of Tom Jeffords, General Howard, Cochise, and the Apache wars was told in historically-based but dramatized form in a novel by Elliott Arnold
Elliott Arnold
Elliott Arnold was an American newspaper feature writer, novelist, and screenwriter.He was born in Brooklyn, New York and became a feature writer with the New York World-Telegram...
that was adapted into a 1950 film
Broken Arrow (1950 film)
Broken Arrow is a western Technicolor film released in 1950. It was directed by Delmer Daves and starred James Stewart and Jeff Chandler. The film was nominated for three Academy Awards, and won a Golden Globe award for Best Film Promoting International Understanding. It made history as the first...
and a 1956 television show
Broken Arrow (TV series)
Broken Arrow is a Western series which ran on ABC-TV in prime time from 1956 through 1958 on Tuesdays at 9 p.m. Eastern time. Repeat episodes were shown by ABC on Sunday afternoons during the 1959–60 season...
that ran for 72 episodes. The novel, movie, and television show were titled Broken Arrow.
External links
- Tom Jeffords and Cochise
- Cochise
- The grave of Tom Jeffords
- Tom Jeffords, Evergreen Cemetery, Tucson, Arizona