Elfego
Baca and the Cowboys
By: Regis McCafferty
Prolog
A lot has been written about Elfego Baca, lawman, southwestern gunman, and
member of the bar, but the one incident that made him famous bears retelling.
There are so many sources of information, all telling basically the same story,
that to mention them would take more space than the article itself and
since most are in public domain, there is no need. One source however, does
deserve mention. In July, 1936, several years before his death, Janet
Smith conducted an interview with Elfego Baca. That interview will comprise part
II of this article. Her interview notes can be found at the Library of Congress,
Manuscript Division, WPA Federal Writers' Project Collection.
Part I
Elfego Baca was born in 1865, and the story of his
birth, true or not, makes for entertaining reading. It is said that his mother,
almost nine months pregnant, was playing ball, jumped into the air, came down
hard, and Elfego entered the game! His entry into law enforcement, and the
beginning of becoming a legend in his own time, began at age nineteen was almost
as dramatic.
Silver was discovered in the Magdalena Mountains west
of Socorro in 1867. That event and the coming of the railroad, created a
boomtown environment. By 1890, Socorro was the largest city in New Mexico with
over 3000 miners living, gambling, and drinking in the city. Law and order were
almost non-existent.
Baca wanted to be a lawman. His father, though not a lawman, was certainly a
pistolero or shootist and had killed two cowboys in a gunfight. And though
details are sketchy, he was convicted and sentenced to a long term in prison.
Elfego worked in a store in Socorro, but eventually tired of the daily routine
and decided if Socorro County needed a Sheriff, he'd appoint himself. Armed with
a mail order badge and two pistols, he appointed deputies and sought indictments
of known criminals in the county. His approach to making arrests was unique. He
would send a letter to each of the accused, that read, "I have a warrant
here for your arrest. Please come in by (Date) and give yourself up. If you
don't, I'll know you intend to resist arrest, and I will feel justified in
shooting you on sight when I come after you." It was extremely effective
and many of the wanted men came into town, turned in their guns, and stood
trial.
About 120 miles south of Socorro was a small town known
as Frisco where area cowboys and those traveling through on cattle drives from
Texas would come to drink, gamble, and generally raise hell. In October 1884,
some cowboys from the local Slaughter Ranch came into Frisco to do some serious
drinking and have a little fun at the expense of some of the Mexicans who lived
there. It's been said they did some "cruel" things to two Mexicans; a
man known as El Burro and his friend, Epitacio Martinez. What those things were
is vague and the specifics are lost to history.
The Frisco deputy sheriff, Pedro Sarracino, being outnumbered
and a man of common sense, rode to Socorro to seek help from Elfego Baca.
Together, they rode back to Frisco and sought warrants for the cowboys arrest
from a local Justice of the Peace. Being also a man of common sense, and aware
the cowboys numbered 150 or more, the Justice of the Peace turned them down.
Baca, not being one to be detoured by minor legalities, promptly arrested one of
the trouble making cowboys. When a large crowd gathered and demanded the
cowboy's release, Baca shot into the crowd, hitting one cowboy. They dispersed,
but the following day, about 80 showed up again, intent on freeing the arrested
cowboy - or killing Baca, whichever came first.
When Baca refused the demands of the cowboys to release
their arrested friend, the gunfight began. Baca, dragging his prisoner with him
ran to the house of Geronimo Armijo and barricaded himself inside. The house had
thick log walls and a sunken dirt floor, providing protection for the bullets
that were being fired in his direction. First, the cowboys tried to set fire to
the roof but it was covered with dirt and wouldn't burn. Next they tried
dynamite on one corner but with little success.
The battle raged for 33 hours and when it was over,
Elfego Baca, unwounded, had killed four cowboys and wounded eight. Eventually
Baca agreed to give himself up to the Justice of the Peace but refused to turn
over his guns. He was tried for murder but acquitted after the door of Aemijo's
house was entered as evidence. It had over 400 bullet holes in it.
There are many more stories about this southwestern
lawman, including one of how he once stole a gun from Pancho Villa. Villa
reportedly put a thirty thousand dollar price on Baca's head, but it was never
collected. He went on to become a marshal, district attorney, school
superintendent, and mayor and died at age 84 in 1945.
Elfego Baca and the Cowboys Part II