The white shadow along the Arizona stage line

Four stage drivers who passed along the old Wickenburg route between Phoenix and Prescott, AZ told an interesting ghost tale back in July of 1892.  The spot itself was quite eerie and only added to the bloody memories surrounding the area. 

A ghost could be seen almost any night about half way between the Agua Fria and Hassayampa Rivers.  The sightings by the drivers were supported by eye witness reports from many of the passengers on the stage. 

The stage passed a spot along the road late at night that was known back in 1892 as (sic) Nigger Wells. One of the drivers was startled by a shadowy presence which appeared on the side of the stage coach.  It seemed to touch the coach and traveled along side of the vehicle for quite a distance, and finally diminished a bit at a time.  At first, the driver believed he was hallucinating, but when it occurred over and over again, he finally spoke to another driver about it. 

The second driver had seen the presence as a well.  After comparing notes, it seemed that all the drivers had experienced the phenomena.  After a while, the shadow seemed to become more distinct and began to take the form of a man—still white and shadowy.  Each night the ghost approached the stage coach at the same point and was plainly observed laying his hand on the vehicle.  It always seemed to vanish at the same exact spot.  

One of the drivers swore he would take his shot gun along on the next run and would shoot the fearful white shadow on its next visit.  The ghost appeared that same night, but the driver was too frightened to raise his gun.  

The spot where the spectral shadow appeared and disappeared is the same site where Cyrus Graybill, John Johnson, and Charles Doolittle were murdered in March of 1888.  Graybill was an Englishman and foreman of the Vulture Mine.  One day they started for Phoenix with a gold bar valued at $6,000.  Johnson sat with Graybill in the wagon and Doolittle road on horseback as a scout.  Just how the men died nobody really knows, but their bodies were discovered on the same day they were murdered and brought to Phoenix

A posse was formed to search for the murderers. The men had a hard time at first locating the trail of the killers, but at last one was discovered leading to the north of the Harquahala Mountains. A few times the pursuers were almost in view of the murderers. After three days on the trail, they learned the killers retraced their steps toward Vulture City.  The fugitives decided to depart company south of the camp.  After trying unsuccessfully to divide the gold bar, the murderers buried it and went their separate ways. 

The leader, Inocente Valenzuela, headed north to Vulture. Eluding his pursuers, he dug up the gold bar and traveled south.  One night he arrived at Porters Camp on the bank of the Gila River.  He tried to cross the river but his horse had broken its leg.  He returned back to the camp and tried to hire someone to take him across the river. 

A few minutes later, his pursuers were in sight.  Inocente dropped his Winchester. He grabbed his revolver, the gold bar, and tried to run away on foot.  He was soon overtaken by the posse. They fired upon the man and he died on the spot. 

Two years before this tragedy, station agent Barney Martin, sold his station in Stanton for $3000 and was headed to Phoenix with his wife and child.  They never arrived.  Weeks later their charred bones were found just north of (sic) Nigger Wells.  Francisco Vega was the suspect in the murders, but never was captured.   

The well took its name from the circumstance when a Portuguese Negro dug it for Carlo Parasao.  Parasao was a wealthy Italian in the area who needed the well for irrigation purposes. The Portuguese man met his death in the well. 

Was the white shadowy ghost seen by the four stage coach drivers that of the Englishman Graybill, Barney Martin, or the misfortunate Portuguese man?  Perhaps a visit from modern day paranormal investigators is in order to determine the ghost’s identity!

Debe Branning

MVD Ghostchasers