Bisbee daily review. [volume] (Bisbee, Ariz.) 1901-1971, 1917-12-09
OLD timer TELLS
Of BISBEE'S PAST
(By James F. Duncan

Since the article was published
written by me about Joseph Nalcro
there have been different inquiries
of early times in the Mule Gulch dis
triet, now known as Bisbee. To sat
isfy some of the parties making the
inquiries, l send the following:
1877
II should be remembered: Tha
Jack Dunn discovered the first ore IL
Mule Gulch in the Warren district
August l. 1877.
That Lieut.. ]. A. Rucker, John Dunr
and T. d. Byron located the frs,
mine In Mule Gulch (Warren district
and called it Rucker mine on August
2, 1877. Recorded In Pima county
Book of Mines, page 695. Transcribed
records of Cochise county, Book oil
Mines No. l, page 100.
1878
That D. Z. Ray. Warner Buck and
George Warren operated the first
smelter In the Warren district in the
early part of the year. They took
ore from the Hendricks mine and
sent the matte TO New York. but that
was the last of the venture. The last
named is the one the district is named
for.
That the first deaths that occurred
IN Mule Gulch in August, 1878. were
Joseph Herring, brother of Col. Viii
liam Herring. and Paddy Dyer, broth
er Of Joseph Dyer. Their remains
were buried in the back yard of the
Williams house
That NJ. +. Herring, known as "Old
kentuck," and George Eddleman
jumped the Nalcro mine and called it
Copper Queen.
That Marcus F. Herring, George
Eddleman, Joseph Dyer, Charles Vim
cent, William H. Minniger and James
r. Duncan spent Christmas in camp
and there was no church there. either.
That was 3S years ago. All these
men are now dead, except the last
named.
That Ed Riley, in April, came in
camp and procured bond on the
Copper Queen and interested John
ballard and w. St. Martin in the ven
ture.
That Lewis Williams, Alexander
Stillman and chuckle-headed Dutch
man came into camp, June IA, as the
advance for Ballard and Martin.
That George Toles was the first
blacksmith.
That James F. Duncan was appoint
ed justice of the peace, the first in
Mule Gulch, in August
That Orrin House was appointed
deputy sheriff and Preston Standifer
was made notary public. Mule Ouch
then showed up as a law-sbiding COM
munity
That Preston Standifer opened the i
first saloon on the Fourth of July, |
1880.
That the smelter of the Copper
Queen was first started on ore on the
goth day of August. Before a run
was made the smelter froze, which
stopped proceedings for a while.
That the first murder was COM
mitted about the last of August, the |
killing of a Mexican while eating
supper by a bad man. who was
never captured
That the records of the postoffice |
in Washington, ID. c., 4
show that the first postofflce in Bis
bee was named September z. Horace |
c. Stillman was named as the first
postmaster, and from the postoffice
being named Bisbee the town took its
name.
That Kinnear and Walker were the
first to carry the mail by contract for
the United States government.
That Ben Morgan and Jessie Dun
can were the first couple to be mar
ried in Bisbee The ceremony was
performed by James f. Duncan. JUS
tice of the peace 1t was hard hard to
tell which was the worst scared-the 1
Justice OF the peace or the groom.
1881
That the first white female child |
was born in July. Charles West and
wife were the proud parents.
That the first white male child was
Ben Stillman. Horace c. Stillman and |
Mrs. Stillman were the parents of the |
child. who at this time is serving the
country with the United States boys. /
Ben Stillman was born October 80, |
1881.
That Walk Williams operated the
first butcher shop.
That Clara Stillman opened the first
school in Bisbee. II was successfully
operated. The start at that time
might appear today as insignificant
by the teachers of the present day.
Clara Stillman proved to be a num-