One of the most pervasive myths surrounding the Superstition Mountains to this very day is the legend of the

Black Legion. Does a secret society of present-day warrior Apache still e ist in this day and age! guarding mythical hordes of gold and the sacred "urial places of their ancestors# Do these Apache dress in "lack! wear tennis shoes and stalk the solitary peaks and lonely mountainsides where few white-eyes dare to roam# Do they flock to their sacred areas during certain times of the year and phases of the moon# $ho can say for certain# As with all things having to do with the Black Legion! even the origin of the name is in %uestion. Some think it can "e traced "ack to the Apache Scouts of the &'()s and &'')s who wore "lack tunics and red head"ands to distinguish themselves from the hostile "ands that they helped the *S +avalry pursue. ,he moniker seems to have "ecome a popular one in the mid &-.)s and early &-/)s. One cannot find many references to the Black Legion "efore the &-.)s. $hat "rought on the common usage of the name# During the Depression! several offshoots of the 0u 0lu 0lan were referred to as the Black Legion. 1n fact! a popular film of &-.( with 2umphrey Bogart in one of his first feature roles was called 3,he Black Legion.3 One can4t help "ut wonder if this popular film caught the attention of someone in Ari5ona! someone who perhaps had dealings or run-ins with Amerindians in the Superstitions! and so the name of a legend was "orn. ,he Black Legion has "ecome the stuff of popular culture. 6ictional Apache Legionnaires stalk the pages of novels! comic "ooks and the 1nternet. 7ven video games have gotten into the act as Lara +roft -,om" 8aider encounters the Black Legion 9who have morphed into mystical spirit-warriors that span "oth time and space: in one of her adventures. 1n fact! Black 2awk! Apache $arrior! a mem"er of the fierce Black Legion ,ri"e whose home is the Sacred Mountain in the Ari5ona ,erritory! has "ecome a friend and ally of none other than Batman himself...go figure. $ell! the a"ove is all very nice! "ut does the Black Legion 87ALL; e ist# 1n a word< =O. =ot as the legend e ists. Sorry folks! "ut to my knowledge there are no Apache running around the Superstitions dressed in "lack! wearing tennis shoes and waylaying solitary hikers and prospectors who end up in the wrong place at the wrong time. Stories handed down through the years tell of snakes in hotel rooms! cryptic warnings! campers finding footprints of tennis shoes "eside their tent in the morning! and even car chases involving these mythical 1ndians. Are any of these stories true# >ro"a"ly not. 1f the legend is somewhat trumped up! what a"out the reality# Do A=; Apache have any ties to the Superstitions#

Over the years it is said that various artifacts have "een found in remote areas of the mountains. +rosses! feathers! ritual weapons and the like have all supposedly "een found in the interior of the mountains. 1f this is true! ?ust who has "een leaving these articles in remote! lonely places# Are these offerings to the ,hunder @ods # And what a"out the 3,hunder @ods3# Do Apache "elieve the mountains are their home...or is something entirely different at work here# $ho can say for sure. Do some 3traditional3 Apache families practice the Old $ays in the Superstitions...the worship of ;oosen 9*sen: as handed down through the years "y the descendants of the old warriors# >erhaps. 1 $1LL say this. 1f you are in a remote ! lonely place in the Superstitions and do come upon something that might look =ative-American related! 14d "e respectful! and simply move on. 1f there A87 Mountain Spirits out there! they are pro"a"ly happiest "eing left in peace... And if you ever do end up on a certain mountain! perhaps during the night of a full moon! ?ust "efore moonrise! and happen to 3feel3 something moving near"y...don4t worry! it is only the gentle night wind. 1sn4t it# ;oosen shi4ke4 a gahn de4 ;oosen

Yavapai: People of the Sun

By Forscher
6or some! the Superstition Mountains are the home of the Apache. ,hey hear of ,hunder @ods! the legend of the Black Legion and assume the mountains were the haunt of fierce Apaches intent on the destruction of anyone who would enter their home range. 6ostered "y the term Mohave-Apache! is almost "elieva"le. But its simply not true. ,here were no Apache "ands living in the Superstitions for e tended periods of time unless through marriage. Actually! an entirely different tri"e of people populated the Mountains we all en?oy. ,hese mountains were actually the home of the ;avapai. ,he ;avapai called all of +entral Ari5ona home in the mid-nineteenth century and were divided into four su"divisions. ,he "reath of their influence and impact on the white settlers is reflected in the name of ;avapai +ounty. The Tolkepaya 9$estern ;avapai: included the 2akupakapa! 2akehelapa $iltaikapaya! and 2aka-whatapa "ands. ,he ,olkepaya

lived in the deserts and mountains of western Ari5ona. The Yavepe 9=ortheastern ;avapai: included the;avepe proper and Mat-haupapaya "ands who resided in the area of >rescott. The Wipukpaya are in the northeast part of the State. The Kewevikopaya 9Southeastern ;avapai: included the $alkamepa. A "and which resided in the area along 8oute A) "etween Miami and >hoeni . Also the $iked?asapa who resided from >hoeni to 8oosevelt Dam along the Apache ,rail. As you can see! the 0ewevikopaya ;avapai were the primary residents of our area of interest prior to the early &'()s. So as not to mislead! it must "e pointed out the nature of the ;avapai. All four su"divisions of the tri"e never e ceeded &B)) people and that estimate was well "efore the Anglos arrived. ,he social organi5ation of the ;avapai included several e tended families that would camp together during times of the year when resources could "e gathered! grown and hunted efficiently. 1t was not uncommon for up to ten families to camp and travel together. ,he arrangement of local "ands was fle i"le so that individuals and families who might have disagreements could leave and ?oin other "ands in which they had relatives. Before Anglo-American settlement of the area in the &'A)4s! the ;avapai had active contact with their native neigh"ors. During the early nineteenth century! the ;avapai had hostile relations with their neigh"ors the $alapai and 2avasupai! and their southern neigh"ors the >apago! >ima! and Maricopa. 2ostilities with the people in the south had also "een typical in the eighteenth century. ,he ;avapai did trade mescal and "uckskin for woven "lankets and silver ?ewelry with the =ava?os and 2opi peoples! "ut the meetings "etween the tri"es were less than friendly. 8elations with the Mohave and Cuechan on the +olorado 8iver were relatively peaceful! "ut perhaps their most important relations were with their eastern neigh"ors the Apache. ,here are many similarities "etween the ;avapai and Apache cultures! so much so that the ;avapai have often "een mistaken for Apache. Although the ;avapai were primarily hunters and gatherers! their su"sistence cycle followed the ripening of different wild plant foods. Between &'() and &'(.! the tri"e endured several ma?or defeats in "attle! the most famous of which is the massacre of Skeleton +ave! which occurred in Decem"er of &'(D. By April of (. the tri"e had surrendered en mass and was 8eservation "ound. So when you think of the massacre!the first discovery near Bulldog! the Eulture mine! the Bradshaws! the >eralta mines! and the travels of one Faco" $alt5 also think of the ;avapai. 1n fact! considering the demise of the tri"e in &'(D is possi"le to relate that time frame to $alt5s recovery of gold# Reference Materials:

+olling! Ferold L. 3From Foundations Past." Harmony by Hand: Art of the Southwest