akla raided Mexican set-
tlements so ferociously
that he was dubbed Ge-
ronimo (Jerome), the
Spanish transliteration of
his Apache name. Al-
though not a hereditary
chief in the tribal sense,
Geronimo was an impor-
tant leader at the band
level and was also re-
garded as an accom-
plished shaman, or medi-
cine man. With these
attributes, he partici-
pated in the wars of Co-
chiseagainst the Ameri-
cans and won renown
among fellow Indians for
his intelligence, guile,
and ruthlessness.
When the Apaches
were initially subdued by
Gen. George Crook, Ge-
ronimo followed Cochise
onto the San Carlos In-
dian Reservation, where he lived peacefully
for many years. By 1875, however, the Ameri-
can government reneged on its promise to the
Apaches and began relocating them to San
Carlos, Arizona, for reasons of economy.
Geronimo started chafing over the loss of his
nomadic existence, and in 1878 he left the
reservation with a small band of warriors to
resume a traditional lifestyle of raiding and
roaming. In 1881, his band stormed back into
the San Carlos Reservation, freeing a number
of Apaches who desired to leave.
Geronimo’s band next fled to Mexico,
where they raided and massacred settlers on
both sides of the U.S.-Mexico border. He oper-
ated with such impunity that in 1883 Crook
was recalled from the northern Plains to con-
tain him. Aided by Apache scouts, Crook
chased Geronimo’s band into the Sierra
Madre Mountains. That May, while Geronimo
was away raiding, the soldiers captured his
base camp, with all the
women and children.
Concern for his people
forced the Apache chief
to meet with Crook, who
arranged his peaceful
surrender in February- The captives and
their families were trans-
ported back to San Car-
los, where Geronimo,
restless as ever, tried and
failed to adapt to a seden-
tary lifestyle. When the
authorities tried to stop
the Native Americans
from brewing tizwin, an
Apache alcoholic drink,
Geronimo broke out
again with his renegades
in May 1885.
An exasperated Crook
pursued Geronimo once
more to his Sierra Madre
refuge. There he con-
vinced Geronimo to give
up in March 1886, with the understanding
that he and his kinsmen would be shipped
off to Florida as punishment. The Apache
leader agreed at first, but en route to the sur-
render area the Indians encountered a
whiskey trader, got drunk, and entertained
second thoughts. Two days after giving his
word, Geronimo escaped a third time with 41
followers.
At this point, the government replaced
Crook with the unsympathetic Gen. Nelson A.
Miles. Contemptuous of his predecessor’s
practice of employing Apache scouts, Miles
called out 5,000 soldiers and militia to search
for the elusive shaman. Geronimo eluded
them for five months, ranged freely through
his homeland, and struck terror in various
white settlements. Miles was finally com-
pelled to employ Apache scouts under Lt.
Charles B. Gatewood, who parleyed with
Geronimo in May 1886 and induced him to
GERONIMO
Geronimo
National Archives