I was just wondering about him this afternoon! I found that same story while looking for Colby on Find a Grave. I had never heard anything about him before that I've noticed, but being from Az everyone knows the Show Low story. It's interesting for sure and I wonder he ties in.
Sent from my iPhone
On Apr 3, 2013, at 8:13 PM, "Mary Lou Cooley" <mlcooley_at_q.com> wrote:
> Did anyone ask about Corydon Cooley? This is from Find A Grave:
>
> Corydon Eliphalet Cooley
> Birth: Apr. 2, 1836; Loudoun County, Virginia, USA
> Death: Mar. 19, 1915; Navajo County, Arizona, USA
>
> Western Frontiersman and Folk Figure. He came to the White Mountains in the
> early 1860s after serving two years as a Lieutenant in the 2nd New Mexico
> Infantry Regiment. He came as a prospector and was one of the first white
> men to extensively explore the mineral wealth of the region. He loved and
> respected the Apache people and married two daughters of Pedro, an Apache
> band chief in the Forestdale area. He and his wives established a ranch in
> the area that is now the city of Show Low. Martha Summerhayes, author of
> Vanished Arizona, a book of her memories of life as an officer's wife on the
> Arizona frontier, had been intrigued by the story of Cooley living with two
> Apache women. On a journey between forts, Martha and her husband were
> overnight guests of the Cooleys. When she asked her husband which of the
> attractive young women was Cooley's wife, he said, "I don't know. Both of
> 'em, I guess". Refined Victorian lady that she was, Martha tried to
> rationalize the situation, writing, "Now this was too awful, but I knew he
> did not intend for me to ask any more questions." One of the wives soon died
> during childbirth, leaving him to live as a monogamist. Their ranch was one
> of the most noted stopping places in eastern Arizona and guests were
> unanimous in their appraisal of Molly as a tidy and gracious housewife and
> Cooley as a generous and notable host. With his vast knowledge of the White
> Mountains, the Apache people and their ways, and his ability to speak the
> very difficult Apache language, he was acknowledged for many years as one of
> the great and famous Indian scouts of the Arizona Territory. He was Chief of
> Scouts off and on for General George Crook, probably the greatest Indian
> fighter the United States Army ever knew. With the possible exception of his
> good friend Al Sieber, he was Crook's most trusted scout. There was great
> respect between Crook and Cooley. John G. Bourke, General Crook's
> aide-de-camp for 11 years and author of the book On the Border with Crook,
> notes that Cooley's influence was always on the side of peace and
> understanding between the Indian and the white man. The following quote
> about Cooley is from the July 1996 issue of Arizona Highways. "Always hungry
> for adventure and danger, Cooley gladly accepted appointment in 1877 as
> deputy U.S. marshal for huge Yavapai County, from which Apache and Navajo
> counties were later carved. He ranged far and wide in his new job, risking
> his life more than once to bring in outlaws who had flocked to wild Arizona
> Territory. In one especially notable raid, he captured and jailed two
> desperadoes who were threatening to take over the new settlement of
> Springerville. Scarcely had he left the town, however, when a lynch mob
> stormed the jail, and in the words of Cooley's report to Gov. John Hoyt,
> "disposed of the prisoners according to frontier law." One great legend
> involves Cooley and Marion Clark. They were partners in a 100,000 acre
> ranch. At some point the two decided that the area just wasn't big enough
> for the two of them and one had to leave. They couldn't decide who should
> leave, so they played a game of cards with the winner to take all. They
> played a game called "seven up" throughout the night and into the early
> morning with no winner. Finally Clark told Cooley, "Show low and you take
> the ranch". Cooley turned over a deuce of clubs and walked away with a
> reported 100,000 acres of land, all the cattle and the buildings. Clark went
> on his way and was not to be heard from again. However, in March of 2007 a
> local reporter found an article in the October 24, 1910 Washington Post that
> indicates some errors in the legend. The card game actually occurred, but,
> by the time it happened, Clark had already moved on and the game was between
> Cooley and a man named Henry Huning. Cooley told the Post the game was six
> to five in Huning's favor and Cooley, holding the trey, was certain he had a
> winner. He told Huning to show low to win and Huning held the deuce. By 1888
> Cooley started ranching a few miles south of where the Hondah Casino now
> stands. Mormon settlers moved into the area, bought the ranch land, cattle
> and buildings from Huning for $13,500. They divided the land into four and
> one half shares, split the cattle, and occupied the buildings. They called
> the settlement Show Low and the main street through town is now named "Deuce
> of Clubs". There is some serious dispute about the accuracy of this
> Washington Post article and some evidence to support the original version of
> the legend. His year of death is actually 1917 and not 1915 as stated on the
> plaque on his headstone. (bio by: Tom Todd)
>
> Family links:
> Spouse:
> Molly Cooley (____ - 1920)*
> Children:
> Albert W Cooley (____ - 1924)*
> Belle Cooley Amos (1873 - 1966)*
> Cora Agnes Cooley Pettis (1875 - 1944)*
> Lillie R Cooley Penrod (1876 - 1968)*
> Charles Paul Cooley (1882 - 1940)*
> Corydon Carelton Cooley (1891 - 1954)*
> *Calculated relationship
> Search Amazon for Corydon Cooley
> Burial: Fort Apache Cemetery; Navajo County, Arizona, USA
> Maintained by: Find A Grave
> Originally Created by: Tom Todd
> Record added: Apr 17, 2007
> Find A Grave Memorial# 18994311
>
> Mary C.
>
> --
> <a href="http://newsummer.com/distlist">distlist 0.9</a>
> See http://ancestraldata.com/listarchive/johncooleylist/ for list information.
Received on Wed Apr 03 2013 - 22:26:22 MDT