Apache Campaigns - Fort Huachuca - U.S. Army

miles on each side of the trail that we were to follow.
About the same time the herd was brought in, caught up, and groomed. Then we had
breakfast, bedding was rolled and delivered to the packers, and by five-thirty or six o’clock the
command was on the road. The train came along as soon as the packs were on, sometimes a
half-hour later, to overtake the command at the first authorized halt. But with hostiles known
to be in that vicinity, the pack train was kept close to the command and with a strong rear
guard at all times. 37
Cruse, Thomas, Brig. Gen., 1897. Photo from Arizona Historical Society. Thomas Cruse
graduated from the U.S. Military Academy in 1879 and joined the 6 th Cavalry at Fort Apache,
Arizona Territory. In command of an Indian Scout company, he saw action repeatedly during
the 1880 Victorio campaign and again during the 1881 fight at Cibicu. He took time out from
his Indian fighting to marry Beatrice Cottrell in Kentucky, returing with his bride to Fort
Apache. He took part in the Big Dry Wash engagement on 17 July 1882, earning the Medal of
Honor for rescuing a wounded soldier under fire. He was eventually promoted to brigadier
general in 1916 and retired in January 1918. His memoirs, Apache Days and After, give a
action-packed picture of service on the Mexican border during the Apache campaigns. He died
in 1943.
A MAGAZINE OF THE FORT HUACHUCA MUSEUM
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