Smuggler's Trail

Accounts of the 1881 killing in Skeleton Canyon disagree widely. Later tellings put the dead at six to nineteen and the stolen silver at $765,000; the Tombstone Epitaph reported that August four dead and a haul of about $4,000. The ambush is usually laid to Curly Bill Brocius, near the jumble of volcanic rock called the Devil's Kitchen. Skeleton Canyon, which crosses the Peloncillo Mountains to the southwest on the Arizona line, has a second history: Geronimo made his final surrender there to General Nelson Miles in September 1886.

What the plaque says

Official Scenic Historic Marker Smuggler's Trail Smugglers once crossed this area with mule trains of contraband from Mexico, to be traded for merchandise in Arizona. In the summer of 1881, a group of Mexi- can smugglers were killed in Skel- eton Canyon by members of the Clanton gang, including Old Man Clanton, Ike and Billy Clanton, and Curly Bill.

Where it stands

More markers nearby

• The Clanton Hideout — steps away
• Playas Siding — 11 mi
• Rodeo Intermediate Field Civil Aeronautics Authority # 57A — 14 mi
• Rodeo Station — 15 mi