Back in the late 1800’s traveling in what is now known as Arizona was a difficult and dangerous journey . Not only was the terrain often inhospitable for humans, the local natives weren’t always on good terms with the people who were trying to colonizing these lands. Natives were not the only ones who attacked the outposts that sprung up to support the stage lines and those who worked or rode them. In most cases it was a fellow countrymen that attacked and killed them. Such as the massacre at the Dragoon Springs Station which sits on the western slope of the Dragoon Mountains near where Cochise hid from the US Army in what was to be called Cochise Stronghold.
Located not far off of I-10 near the town of Dragoon is the Butterfield’s Dragoon Springs Station at the base of the Dragoon Mountains.
The Dragoon Springs Station site isn’t too far from I-10 near the area known as Texas Canyon where the town of Dragoon is just a short ride from Benson, AZ. if you are thinking of visiting this site, you will first need to have an Arizona Land Trust Permit. Click this link to learn more about obtaining a Recreational Land Use Permit which runs $20 for a family or $15 for an individual.
It is just a seven mile drive from I-10 to the site. The road to the site requires going through a gate…be sure to close the gate after passing through. The road was in fairly good shape up to the turn off to the site. From that point to the site, there were some areas of water erosion, but nothing too serious to prevent even a 2WD pickup or SUV from getting through.
NOTICE: In Arizona, road and trail conditions can change rapidly during inclement weather. Be prepared to turn around to avoid flash flooding areas and heed the warnings DO NOT ENTER when water is standing or flowing across the roadway.
This site has a remarkable history which can be read about HERE. Today, while standing on the site, you are not far away from modern infrastructure such as roads, highways, homes and vehicles. On the day we visited we were accompanied by dozens of cattle that were grazing around the fenced in site. All of them had their eyes on us as we explored the former stage coach station. All one has to do is look around, across the desert and up at the mountains to have some sense of what it was like to have lived there back in the late 1800’s. It wasn’t hard to comprehend the harshness and hard life it was to live and work there. The desert can be a hostile, but beautiful place too.
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