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Show Pase 6 Beautiful and historical. Nine Mile Canyon is a special place one of Nine-Mil- e Canyon see there. is those 'special' places you need to see. But it's going to take a little effort and preparation. Imagine a place (40 miles long not nine miles) with thousands of rock art (petroglyphs and pictographs) panels, n ruins and some of the In-d- ic lo.eliest scenery around. That's a thumbnail sketch of e but there's a lot to Nine-Mil- e Man has been using for thousands of years. Early cultures such as the ancient Basketmaker culture and others, called it home, plus they used it as an access route from one side of the state to the other. It then became the home to the prehistoric Fremont culture. And it was the members of this culture that drew many of the thousands of Nine-Mil- Price has a fascinating past Price seems to have a more than most of its neighbors. Part of that could be blamed on its gentile founding fathers and the great influx of foreign workers coming to work the local coal mines. But some credit must go to its location near the San Rafael Swell and Robbers Roost and the fact that it is the largest city near the famous outlaw haven where legal counsel, much needed supplies and of course, payroll money could be found. A trip through Price today reveals a city enjoyed by tourist types, locals and visitors of all kinds. It is a bustling city with coal trucks, drive machines, coal miners plus a fascinating outlaw past. The first stop in uncovering Prices outlaw past is the city cemetery. Here lie honored locals and some of the areas unsavory characters. In the southeast corner of the cemetery is what many call the outlaw section. It is now included in the colorful past four-whe- el present cemetery, but that wasnt always the case. The four outlaws now lying with everyone else were originally buried outside the cemetery, they were not deemed qualified to be buried with the good folks. Tommy Morris, the former cemetery superintendent at the time said it was his responsibility to locate the burials. Officials knew about where they were laid to rest, but the exact locations was unknown. The graves were located on a little hill just outside the fence surrounding the cemetery, Morris told the author before he died. We knew who was buried there, but we didnt know exactly where. Three bodies were found first, then the body of C.L. Gunplay Maxwell was located about 10 feet from the other three. Subsequently, the bodies were all identified by body size, bullet hole locations and one, by the numerous gold teeth he was known to have. The names of the bad guvs-Jo- e Walker, John Montis (also known as Jack Swasey) who was an Indian, and Johnny Herring or Heron. The story surrounding their capture and final internment in Price reveals a fascinating glimpse into the history of the Old West and Carbon County. The tangled story of two of the men begins in 1891 when a short man described as dark haired, small boned and handsome, drifted into Utah from Texas. His name was Joe Walker. Walker was not a true outlaw type. According to his mother, she placed the care of the family ranch to her brother at the time of her husbands death. He was to retain control of the place until her son was old enough to take control. petroglyphs and the few picto- graphs now gracing the canyon walls. These prehistoric farmers and hunters were drawn here by the protection of the towering cliffs lining the green canyon bottom, by the fertile fields and perennial stream. The Fremonts were followed by the historic Ute Indians. There is a great debate raging over who the Utes are. Some archeologists say the Utes are relative newcomers to Canyon, others say they were somehow related to the Fremonts. Whomever they are, the Utes left many panels of rock art of their own. They depict Indians with long, flowing feathered war bonnets riding large graceful horses, some of the Indian warriors carry lances. e was quiet for many until years Anglo farmers moved in, drawn there by the same fertile fields, pure water and wild game that drew the Fremont people. The first visitors were probably trappers and others using the river. An August 16, 1867 date was probably made by a trader or trapper who came through on Nine-Mil- e Nine-Mil- a horse, towing two pack mules behind him. The rock art panel shows someone on continued on page 12 horses. He headed straight for the San Rafael River and its isolated canyons and buttes. law the Normally wouldnt follow an outlaw into that rugged part of the state. To do so would inevitably end with the posse being ambushed and always returning unsuccessfully, but this time a very angry Emery County sheriff, Azariah Tuttle, decided enough was enough. Tuttle took up the chase into the depths of the San Instead of following her wishes, Whitmore removed the cattle to Arizona where he and his partner were killed by Indians. Whitmores son and wife, George and Tobe, then moved to Utah where they prospered and became respected cattle and banking people. When Joe finally followed the trail of his lost inheritance to Carbon County and arrived to claim it, the Whitmores denied ever knowing about the financial arrangement. Much debate followed in town over whether the Whitmores were unaware of the arrangement or whether they were actually attempting to cheat Walker out of his cattle. Whatever the reason, what started out as a long period of harassment of the Whitmores and constant stealing of their horses and cattle by an outraged Walker, ended with an innocent man being killed by an impulsive posse. The private, undeclared war between the Whitmores and Walker turned into an assault on the whole country. As Walker took to nursing his Nine Mile Canyon is swiftly becoming one of the most popular attractions in Utah. Rafael Swell. bruised ego with liquor, he also took to fighting and at one point, used his Colt 45 in a wild shooting spree in downtown Price. During that particular drunken rage, Walker at- tempted to shoot a man named Milburn. When the sheriff attempted to arrest him. Walker ran into the impenetrable Robbers Roost where he eventually joined Butch Cassidy and the Wild Bunch. Walker spent a great deal of time with Butch but he always remember his vendetta against the Whitmores and in March of 1897, he made a daring raid on some Whitmore livestock, driv-in- g off three of their best The sheriffs determination was bolstered because he was led by an outlaw turncoat named C.L. Gunplay Maxwell. . Walker must not have expected to be followed beyond Castle Dale and into the Swell, because he was surprised by Tuttle and the posse near a sweeping bend of the San Rafael River called Mexican Bend. When Walker caught sight of the posse, he fled into a box canyon and prepared for battle. During the resulting exchange of gunfire, Tuttle was hit in the hip and wounded. That unfortunate event ended the gun battle. The fact that the sheriff was wounded, sent the other members of the posse scurrying for cover until the next day, leaving the wounded sheriff to fend for himself. By this time Walker had van- ished after comforting the wounded law enforcement officer. That not only helped him feel better about the entire incident, it also left egg all over the posses face. To make the embarrassment worse, on March 6, 1897, Walker wrote a note to Tuttle that read, Im sorry you got hurt. If you call it square, Ill send you three good horses. You can sell them to pay your doctor bill and if theres any left over, you can send it back to me. In a small box canyon near the Green River, the posse located a portion of the Whitmore cattle trail and one of Walkers own horses. More importantly, they found a fresh trpil. The trail led to Range Valley. They shot and killed the pair and announced it was Butch Cassidy, but it was later proven they were wrong. |