A Portal to Paradise: 11,537 Years, More or Less, on the Northeast Slope of the Chiricahua Mountains : Being a Fairly Accurate and Occasionally Anecdotal History of That

Rating:
Summary: Southeastern Arizona History through the Lives of its People
Review: The late Alden Hayes engagingly weaves true stories of the cultures and individuals who have populated the Chiricahua Mountains, from mammoth hunters of the Clovis culture who arrived more than 11,000 years ago down to ranchers and farmers at the beginning of World War II. Various Native American cultures, including the Apaches who had migrated into the Borderlands by about 1600 A.D.; Spanish explorers; and gringo miners, ranchers, outlaws, and homesteaders followed those initial hunters in a swirl of history that at times involved substantial conflict and bloodshed. All but the book's first chapter take place in historic times, with the bulk detailing the years between 1860 and 1920 when figures such as Cochise, Geronimo, the Earps, the Clantons, and "Curley Bill" Brocius were on center stage. Important locations include Fort Bowie, Galeyville, Paradise, Portal, and Rodeo. Hayes' book will be most meaningful to those with at least passing acquaintance with Southeastern Arizona from the Dragoon Mountains east through the Sulphur Springs Valley and Chiricahua Mountains to the San Simon Valley, Peloncillo Mountains, and Animas Valley of New Mexico. If, as I have, you have visited Chiricahua National Monument, gone birding in Cave Creek Canyon, stopped at the monument to Geronimo's surrender in Skeleton Canyon, viewed a staged shootout in Tombstone, or yearned to learn more about the days of the Butterfield Stage and Apache Pass, this is the book for you. Hayes admirably includes a short section describing the geological and ecological setting of Southeastern Arizona, including three maps at various scales. In several sections of the book, Hayes also provides photographs of some of the many people whose lives, difficulties, and adventures he aptly describes. One minor criticism is that even more map detail would have been useful for tracing the exact movements of people through the Chiricahuas and adjacent ranges and valleys down into Sonora and Chihuahua, although sufficient detail is present to see the major outlines of those journeys. I enjoyed Hayes' book because it taught me why Portal, Paradise, and Rodeo are there at all and revealed the human, often tragic, struggles of those who settled (or were displaced from) Southeastern Arizona. I highly recommend this book to those with similar interests.

Rating:
Summary: Portal to Paradise
Review: Very well written,well documented. Much more objective than others of this genre.