By Georgene Lockwood

(Ed. Note: Scouting and tracking has a history in many lands and over many years. It was especially important in the westward expansion of the United States in the 1800s. It’s an authentic chunk of American History of the old west. A few dozen white men came to master the wilderness and most of them began as trappers, mountain men and hunters. When the Army needed scouts it was an easy transition for these men. More than a thousand Indians, having been brought up to be hunters and warriors, proved to be valuable Army scouts between 1866 and the early 1900s. Qualifying standards were high and to be chosen, wrote a scout "was a great honor." These brave men blazed the path for our country. Scouting and tracking work was demanding and dangerous: the scout was chief pathfinder, head forager for food and water, courier when necessary, provided reconnaissance, gathered intelligence, responsible for safety of his followers, diplomat in negotiations , caregiver and, when necessary, fight. K.Krause)

Al Sieber was born in 1844 in Mingolsheim, Germany (near Heidelberg) and came to Lancaster, Pennsylvania in 1849 and later to Minnesota in 1856. He served in the Civil War at the battles of Antietam, Fredericksburg and Gettysburg. He moved west in 1866 working as a miner and a railroad builder in California and Nevada. He arrived in Prescott around 1868 where he initially managed a ranch in what is now Williamson Valley. By 1871 he was becoming a legend, primarily for his skill at what was called "Indian fighting." He had become an expert in Apache ways and was hired as Army Chief of Scouts by General George Crook that same year and worked out of Fort Whipple in Prescott as well as Camp Verde. General Crook’s philosophy of Apache warfare was to trap Indians with Indians, and his eye fell on Sieber as a likely prospect to lead the way in getting the Indians back on the reservation when they strayed off of it.

Sieber dominated his Indian scouts by out-thinking, out-fighting, out-riding and out-shooting them, all the while treating them with respect and impeccable honesty. In 1872 and 1873, he was involved in most of Crook’s so-called "Tonto Campaign" and, in 1875, helped transfer the Yapapais and the Tonto to the reservation at San Carlos. Sieber was partially responsible for keeping the death toll lower than it might have been on this treacherous journey. Though considered a rough man, he was admired and respected by Apaches and whites alike. His skills as a scout were unmatched and he conducted many missions for the Army until 1885 when he was replaced as Chief of Scouts by Tom Horn who had worked under Sieber and learned many of his skills from him. Interestingly, how did a German from Minnesota learn these skills in the first place?

After scouting for the Army, Sieber worked for the Indian Agency, insuring that the Apaches weren’t cheated by the white men sent out by the Indian Bureau.

On February 19, 1907 he was supervising an Indian work gang attempting to move a large boulder at the construction site of the Roosevelt Dam. After the Indians worked for hours trying to dislodge the boulder, Sieber decided to crawl under it to assess the progress when the boulder abruptly rolled over him, killing him. Accident? Most who knew him believed not. In his previous scouting duties, he would often pit one group of Indians against another to achieve a goal. Was this now "pay-back time"?

Al Sieber is memorialized on General George Crook’s monument at Arlington National Cemetery and also inspired the Charlton Heston character in the movie "Arrowhead."

Tom Horn, also known as James Hicks, was born in Memphis, Missouri in 1860 and hanged in Cheyenne, Wyoming in 1903 for murder. He was a very controversial character during his lifetime working as an interpreter, a scout, a lawman, a Pinkerton detective, a ranch hand, ranch detective and later, a hired killer

As a child, he hated being indoors and rarely attended school. He was raised on a farm and spent most of his time wandering in the woods. Horn had been beaten regularly by his abusive father and at the age of 14 his father beat him so badly that he left and never went back. He appears to have learned his scouting skills almost by osmosis and what he didn’t learn by observation and time spent alone in the woods, he learned from his adopted Indian family and later from Al Sieber. Horn met Pedro, an Indian Chief, and he took Tom into his tribe like he was his own son. Living like an Apache, Horn could speak Apache like a native and Spanish as well. He was actually being paid as an interpreter, but basically he was just hanging out having a good time. He left the reservation when the government decreed that no white man could live on a reservation.

He joined the army as a scout at age 16 and became involved in the Apache wars here in Arizona. He was assigned duty under Chief of Scouts, Al Sieber. Horn was in Tucson with Sieber and his company when they were ordered by General Wilcox to report to Fort Whipple and search for Geronimo, Sieber acting as scout and Horn as interpreter. He actually replaced Al Sieber as Chief of Scouts in 1885 at age 25 and was Chief of Scouts when Geronimo was captured in 1886. He, in fact, negotiated Geronimo’s surrender. He left the Army shortly thereafter to become a ranch hand. He won the steer wrestling championship in the Globe, Arizona rodeo but soon left ranching to become a sheriff in Colorado. He worked for the Pinkerton Detective Agency for four years before becoming involved with hunting and killing cattle rustlers in Wyoming. . Horn saw himself as a benefactor of society. Getting rid of cattle thieves was considered to him on a par with killing a wolf or a coyote. And for his services he received not only financial reward but also the admiration of the stockmen of Wyoming.

In 1898, he again joined the Army to fight in the Spanish American war and was put in charge of the pack trains for the Roosevelt Rough Riders. But he contracted malaria before sailing for Cuba and never saw any combat. He returned to Wyoming where he resumed the life of a hired killer.

Horn met his end as he lived his life – in controversy. He was captured, tried and hanged for the murder of 14-year-old Willie Nickell, son of a rancher he intended to kill some say, although others say Horn didn’t commit the murder at all and was framed. A drunken confession seems to have played a large part in his conviction. To this day you may hear arguments in Wyoming over whether he was guilty or not!

Tom Horn would later be the subject of the two movies: Mr. Horn (1979) a made-for-TV movie starring David Carradine, and Tom Horn (1980), starring Steve McQueen. The McQueen film was not entirely accurate, but it was well received.

The History Channel will air a series including an episode on Tom Horn in December 2009. The series is titled "Cowboys and Outlaws."

Sharlot Hall Museum Photograph Call Number:(po815p) Reuse only by permission.

U.S. Army Chief of Scouts from 1871 to 1885, Al Sieber, with a group of Indian scouts under his command, c.1877.

Sharlot Hall Museum Photograph Call Number:(po813pb) Reuse only by permission.

Al Sieber at Camp Verde c.1877.

Sharlot Hall Museum Photograph Call Number:(Wyoming State Museum) Reuse only by permission.

Rare photo of Tom Horn from the Wyoming State Museum. Tom is said to have prepared his own hanging rope while awaiting execution. He was the Army Chief of Scouts succeeding Al Sieber.