Qualla: Bisbee Massacre

Bisbee Massacre: Introduction

Wed, 04 Feb 2026 00:00:00 GMT

Photo credit Grombo, CC BY-SA 3.0. On the evening of December 8, 1883, John Heath opened his new dance hall behind the Goldwater & Castaneda Mercantile store in Bisbee, Arizona. It was no coincidence. Heath knew that the Copper Queen Mine's $7,000 payroll was supposed to arrive at that store the same day, and he had arranged for five members of the Cochise County Cowboys to rob it. They timed the heist wrong. The payroll had not yet arrived. What followed was a bloodbath that netted the outlaws less than $3,000 and cost five innocent people their lives, launching one of the Old West's most dramatic pursuits of justice.

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Image: Grombo | CC BY-SA 3.0

Bisbee Massacre: Death on Main Street

Wed, 04 Feb 2026 00:00:00 GMT

Photo credit Marine 69-71, CC BY-SA 4.0. "Tex" Howard made a critical mistake: he forgot to wear a mask. With "York" Kelly and "Billy" Delaney, he entered the mercantile while "Red" Sample and "Big Dan" Dowd stood guard outside with Winchester repeating rifles. Inside, they forced open the safe only to find the payroll ...

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Image: Marine 69-71 | CC BY-SA 4.0

Bisbee Massacre: The Hunt

Wed, 04 Feb 2026 00:00:00 GMT

Photo credit Marine 69-71, CC BY-SA 4.0. Howard's bare face made identification easy. Deputy Sheriff William "Billy" Daniels pieced together the other names and began tracking. Daniel "York" Kelly was caught near Deming, New Mexico. Howard and Sample blundered by returning to their old haunts in Clifton, Arizona, where ...

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Image: Marine 69-71 | CC BY-SA 4.0

Bisbee Massacre: Two Trials, Two Verdicts

Wed, 04 Feb 2026 00:00:00 GMT

Photo credit Mosamiazaz, Public domain. The trial in Tombstone moved with frontier efficiency. Beginning February 17, 1884, it lasted three days. Four of the five robbers had been recognized during the crime. The jury deliberated one hour and returned guilty verdicts for first-degree murder. Daniel Kelly reportedly rem...

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Image: Mosamiazaz | Public domain

Bisbee Massacre: Mob Justice at the Telegraph Pole

Wed, 04 Feb 2026 00:00:00 GMT

Photo credit Unknown author, Public domain. Life imprisonment did not satisfy Cochise County. On February 22, 1884, a lynch mob of 50 to 150 men removed John Heath from jail. They marched him down Toughnut Street and hanged him from a telegraph pole at the corner of Second and Toughnut. Heath strangled slowly until he stop...

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Image: Unknown author | Public domain

Bisbee Massacre: The Grandstand and the Gallows

Wed, 04 Feb 2026 00:00:00 GMT

Photo credit Marine 69-71, CC BY-SA 4.0. The execution of the remaining five outlaws on March 28, 1884, became a public spectacle. Sheriff Ward sent formal invitations. A local businessman built a grandstand outside the jailyard and sold tickets for $1.50 per seat. Nellie Cashman, a local philanthropist, found this ghou...

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Image: Marine 69-71 | CC BY-SA 4.0