Larcena Pennington
Encyclopedia
Larcena Pennington Page, or Larcena Ann Pennington Page Scott, (January 10, 1837-March 31, 1913) was a member of a well known family of American
pioneer
s. She is most remembered for her kidnapping by hostile Apache
natives
in Arizona
. Larcena was captured on March 16, 1860, with her young student, near Madera Canyon
and left for dead later that day. She then managed to survive in the wilderness for sixteen days until finally making it to safety. After her kidnapping, Larcena was indirectly involved in several other incidents with Apaches, much of her family were either killed by the natives or died of disease.
, she was the daughter of Elias and Julia Ann Pennington. Her father, Elias, was the son of Elijah Pennington, a soldier who served under General George Washington
at Valley Forge
during the American Revolutionary War
. Larcena had a total of seven sisters and four brothers. After Julia Ann Pennington died, the surviving Penningtons moved to an area near Keechi
, Texas
. In 1857, with the promise of economic prosperity, they traveled west, origionally with the intention of settling in California
. From Keechi the Penningtons headed west with three wagons, pulled by oxen and mules, and a herd of cattle
. The wagon train forded the Pecos River
, where several of the cows drowned, then continued on to Paso del Norte
. From there they followed the Rio Grande
up to Mesilla
and then went west towards Tucson
, passing by many prominent locations in New Mexico and Arizona history, such as Cooke's Canyon
, Doubtful Canyon
, San Simon Valley
, Apache Pass
, Sulphur Springs Valley
, the San Pedro
and Dragoon Springs
. In June of 1857, the Penningtons had to temporarily settle at Sonoita Creek
, next to Fort Buchanan
, because their animals were either exhausted, or had been stolen by Apaches, and Larcena had attracted malaria
. The men got contracted by the government to supply the fort with hay
, while the women sewed
soldiers' uniforms. When the contract was finished, the Penningtons moved west to Calabasas
, along the Santa Cruz, and had taken up residence in the former home of Governor
Manuel Maria Gandara
by September of 1859.
Sometime at Fort Buchanan Larcena met the lumberjack
John Hempstead Page and fell in love. The two were married on December 24, 1859, becoming the first couple of American citizens to be wed in Tucson, which was then only a small town of a few hundred people.
. Canoa Ranch was owned by John's employer, Bill Kirkland, and he lived there because it was only thirteen miles west from Madera Canyon and the Santa Rita Mountains
. John and his partner William Randall had a small lumber mill at Madera Canyon where they would cut down pine
trees and then transport them to Tucson by wagon. Larcena also worked for Kirkland, she was a teacher for his eleven-year-old ward, Mercedes Sais Quiroz. Eventually Larcena moved to Canoa Ranch with Mercedes but shortly after she became ill, possibly a recurrence of malaria. Because of this John decided to move his wife and Mercedes out of the desert and into a cabin near the "Big Rock" at the lumber mill. It was thought that the higher elevation would help Larcena recover. On March 15, 1860, John and Randall arrived in a wagon to pick up Larcena, Mercedes and their dog for the trip to the cabin. From the ranch, the wagon headed west, through the Santa Rita foothills, towards Madera Canyon. They had nearly made it to their destination when it was decided to stop and rest for the night. The location was two miles south of the "Big Rock" and the present day Madera Kubo Gift Shop. Unbeknown to them, five Pinal Apaches
were watching the camp from concealed positions in the surrounding hills. On the next morning, Randall went out to hunt for breakfast and at around 10:00 am John went up the canyon to check on a load of lumber at the mill. This left Larcena and Mercedes alone at camp with the Apaches. Larcena was sitting on a rocking chair in her tent when the dog began to bark, then suddenly she heard Mercedes scream. A moment later Mercedes was captured and the Apaches were at the door of the tent. Larcena grabbed her husband's revolver
but it was taken out of her hands before she could fire it.
The Apaches were armed with lance
s and bows, four were young men but the fifth was older and spoke a little Spanish
. For whatever reason, the older Apache man told Mercedes that he killed John while he drank from a nearby spring so when the girl told Larcena she became upset and started screaming. At that point one of the Apaches put his lance up to Larcena's breast and threatened to kill her if she would not stop. After stealing "whatever they could" and cutting open the Page's sacks of food, the Apaches took the two captives northeast, roughly along the base of the Santa Rita Mountains, towards one of their strongholds along the San Pedro River. They stopped a short distance from the camp because the Apaches wanted to tear apart a feather bed they had been trying to carry off. Larcena screamed once more and again she was told to be quiet or be killed. Robert H. Forbes, author of Penningtons: Pioneers of Early Arizona, says that up to that time neither of the captives had been molested in any way, except when the Apaches "pre-tended to ambush them from behind trees or play-fully pointed the captured pistol at them." One of the Apaches also talked about how all the land in that area was once part of their domain until the white man came. The journey to the San Pedro was rough, during the walk both Larcena and Mercedes tore off pieces of their clothing and bent twigs to make an easily recognizable trail. Forbes says; "One of the Apaches melted snow in his hands for them [the captives] to drink. Mrs. Page was pushed or pulled up steep places in the trail and Mercedes was carried pick-a-back. Their hats were restored to them from the plunder and fair progress was made...."
Meanwhile, John, who was not actually dead, returned to the camp and found that Larcena and the girl were gone. He assumed correctly that Apaches were responsible so he found some help and followed their trail. Just before sunset, when the group was about fifteen miles from the camp, east of the present day Helvetia
, one of the natives came running up and told the older Apache man that some people were approching from behind. It was John, Randall, and a few other men from the mill. The pace quickened but Larcena could not keep up. Having walked all day and already weak from her illness, she could no longer hike up and down the steep slopes. While the group was standing atop a ridge, the Apaches made Larcena take off her corset and her skirt and then, as she turned around to continue walking, one of the natives struck her in the back with a lance and she fell over the side of the ridge about seventeen feet until becoming "lodged" against a pine tree. The Apaches followed Larcena down the ridge, thrusting their spears and throwing rocks at her. One of the rocks hit Larcena in the face while she was up against the tree and she went unconscious. After that, the natives dragged her body behind a tree into a snow bank, so as to not be visible from the trail, and then took her boots. Left for dead, Larcena woke up a short time later and could hear her husband's voice coming from the trail. She tried to call to him but was too weak to speak loud enough. Because one of the Apaches was now wearing Larcena's boots, John passed by his wife without ever knowing she was there and followed the Apaches' trail all the way through the Rincon Mountains
and beyond Catalina Mountains
. When John was unsuccessful, he went to Tucson and recruited a posse
for a second attempt at finding his wife. Another posse also formed in Tubac
but it too was unsuccessful.
After John passed by Larcena, she fell unconscious again and remained in the snow bank for about three days before waking up in the middle of the night. First she ate some snow and looked after her wounds, for she had been "bruised with stones and cut with sixteen lance wounds in her back and arms." Then Larcena went further down the ridge and went to sleep until sunrise. On the next morning, when Larcena woke up again, she began looking around to try and find out where she was. Knowing that the camp and the lumber mill were to the southeast, she looked in that direction and sighted a "small sharp-pointed hill," which has been identified as Huerfano Hill, about three miles west of Helvetia. Because of her wounds and loss of blood, Larcena could barely stand so for the next several days she crawled the fifteen miles back to camp, surviving on "seeds, herbage and wild onions, with snow water to drink." According to Forbes; "Night by night (unable to lie on her back because of her wounds) she crouched upon her knees and arms on the ground and dreamed of food; but when in her sleep she reached out for the pot of beans before her, she awoke to find her hands clutching only gravel." One day Larcena came across a bear's nest and wanted to sleep there but she knew it was a bad idea and went away. Ten days after her "terrible journey" began, on March 26, she climbed to the top of a ridge and saw the road that leads to Madera Canyon and the camp. Hearing the sound of voices and wagon wheels, Larcena attached her petticoat to a stick to signal for help. She also screamed but the people in the wagon passed on without seeing or hearing anything. When Larcena reached the camp, two days later, she found a smoldering campfire and some flour and some coffee that was still on the ground from when the Apaches cut open the sacks of food. Using water from a nearby stream, and a piece of her clothing, Larcena prepared some bread on the fire, made some coffee, and then rested for the night.
On the next morning, March 31, Larcena followed the road east to the "Big Rock" and lumber mill. Forbes says that "as she drew near she was seen, but not at first recognized. With clotted hair and gaping wounds, nearly naked, emaciated and sunburned, she was at first mistaken for an unfortunate outcast squaw and the men ran for their guns." It was only when Larcena called out her name that she was recognized. But even then one man, named Smith, insisted that she was a ghost because he coulnd't believe that a twenty-three-year-old women could survive so long under such trying circumstances. One of the men took Larcena into a building and had her fed and washed while another man went to get a doctor in Tucson and inform John, who was preparing for a third expedition to find his wife. On April 2, Larcena was taken to Tucson where she fully recovered under the care of Dr. C. B. Hughes. The young Mexican girl, Mercedes, was later found by the United States Army
and traded for Apache prisoners at Fort Buchanan.
was about to begin and Larcena was worried that the Apaches would turn more violent with the absence of military personnel. Larcena and her family soon moved to Patagonia
. Due to the Bascom Affair
, Chief
Cochise
and Mangas Coloradas
were attacking American settlements all across southern New Mexico Territory
. Around this time her brother, Jack, saved a fellow settler from Apaches during the Battle of Cooke's Canyon
and in March or April of 1861, her husband, John, was ambushed and killed by hostiles north of Tucson while transporting a wagon load of goods to Old Camp Grant
. John was buried where he died, "at the top of the hill beyond Samaniego's ranch, on the old road; and all that Mrs. Page ever saw of him was his handkerchief, his purse and a lock of his hair." In September, Larcena gave birth to her daughter, Mary Ann, and shortly thereafter her family moved again, to Tubac
and later to a stone house along the Santa Cruz, about a half-mile from the international border with Mexico. The stone house was located in a dangerous area, infested with hostile Apaches, and at one point Larcena had to flee to Mowry
, a small, fortified, mining town. Constantly moving, by April 1864, the Penningtons had went back to Tubac and were the only residents, the rest having fled during the Apache attack
in 1861. Larcena's young brothers carried very long guns, to protect the family from further attacks.
Tragedy struck again in 1867 when Larcena's sister died of malaria and in 1868 her brother, Jim Pennington, was killed during a persecution of Apache. In June of 1869, her father and another brother were both murdered by Apaches while working at a farm. The remaining members of the Pennington family then went to Tucson, and decided to move on to California. But, about twenty miles outside Tucson, they had to return when Larcena's sister Ellen became gravely ill with pneumonia
. Despite seeking medical help, Ellen also died. After that, the only two Penningtons left were Larcena and her brother Jack. Jack moved on to Texas, but Larcena remained in Tucson.
In August 1870, she married William Fisher Scott, a Scottish
lawyer and judge. Larcena and William had two children, a son and a daughter. Larcena refused to leave Arizona, despite all the hardships she went through there. Larcena became a newborn Christian
and one of the first members of the Congregational Church
in Tucson. She was also named president of the Arizona Historical Society
. Larcena lived a relatively quiet life from then until her death. The people of Tucson honored Larcena and her family by naming a road in the city "Pennington Street."
In the early 2000s, a residential community named Stone House was established southeast of Sahuarita
and named after the Pennington's stone house along the Santa Cruz River.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
pioneer
American pioneer
American pioneers are any of the people in American history who migrated west to join in settling and developing new areas. The term especially refers to those who were going to settle any territory which had previously not been settled or developed by European or American society, although the...
s. She is most remembered for her kidnapping by hostile Apache
Apache
Apache is the collective term for several culturally related groups of Native Americans in the United States originally from the Southwest United States. These indigenous peoples of North America speak a Southern Athabaskan language, which is related linguistically to the languages of Athabaskan...
natives
Native Americans
The term Native Americans may refer to:In its broadest sense, the entirety of the indigenous peoples of the American continents:*Indigenous peoples of the Americas...
in Arizona
Arizona
Arizona ; is a state located in the southwestern region of the United States. It is also part of the western United States and the mountain west. The capital and largest city is Phoenix...
. Larcena was captured on March 16, 1860, with her young student, near Madera Canyon
Madera Canyon
Madera Canyon is a canyon on the northwestern face of the Santa Rita Mountains, located 25 miles southeast of Tucson, Arizona. As part of the Coronado National Forest, the canyon has campsites, picnic areas, and miles of hiking trails. The canyon is used as a resting place for migrating birds, and...
and left for dead later that day. She then managed to survive in the wilderness for sixteen days until finally making it to safety. After her kidnapping, Larcena was indirectly involved in several other incidents with Apaches, much of her family were either killed by the natives or died of disease.
Early life
Born Larcena Ann Pennington, in Nashville, TennesseeNashville, Tennessee
Nashville is the capital of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the county seat of Davidson County. It is located on the Cumberland River in Davidson County, in the north-central part of the state. The city is a center for the health care, publishing, banking and transportation industries, and is home...
, she was the daughter of Elias and Julia Ann Pennington. Her father, Elias, was the son of Elijah Pennington, a soldier who served under General George Washington
George Washington
George Washington was the dominant military and political leader of the new United States of America from 1775 to 1799. He led the American victory over Great Britain in the American Revolutionary War as commander-in-chief of the Continental Army from 1775 to 1783, and presided over the writing of...
at Valley Forge
Valley Forge
Valley Forge in Pennsylvania was the site of the military camp of the American Continental Army over the winter of 1777–1778 in the American Revolutionary War.-History:...
during the American Revolutionary War
American Revolutionary War
The American Revolutionary War , the American War of Independence, or simply the Revolutionary War, began as a war between the Kingdom of Great Britain and thirteen British colonies in North America, and ended in a global war between several European great powers.The war was the result of the...
. Larcena had a total of seven sisters and four brothers. After Julia Ann Pennington died, the surviving Penningtons moved to an area near Keechi
Keechi Creek
Keechi Creek is a river in Palo Pinto County, Texas. It originates two miles east of Graford, and empties into the Brazos River northwest of Mineral Wells.-References:**USGS Hydrologic Unit Map - State of Texas...
, Texas
Texas
Texas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in...
. In 1857, with the promise of economic prosperity, they traveled west, origionally with the intention of settling in California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
. From Keechi the Penningtons headed west with three wagons, pulled by oxen and mules, and a herd of cattle
Cattle
Cattle are the most common type of large domesticated ungulates. They are a prominent modern member of the subfamily Bovinae, are the most widespread species of the genus Bos, and are most commonly classified collectively as Bos primigenius...
. The wagon train forded the Pecos River
Pecos River
The headwaters of the Pecos River are located north of Pecos, New Mexico, United States, at an elevation of over 12,000 feet on the western slope of the Sangre de Cristo mountain range in Mora County. The river flows for through the eastern portion of that state and neighboring Texas before it...
, where several of the cows drowned, then continued on to Paso del Norte
El Paso, Texas
El Paso, is a city in and the county seat of El Paso County, Texas, United States, and lies in far West Texas. In the 2010 census, the city had a population of 649,121. It is the sixth largest city in Texas and the 19th largest city in the United States...
. From there they followed the Rio Grande
Rio Grande
The Rio Grande is a river that flows from southwestern Colorado in the United States to the Gulf of Mexico. Along the way it forms part of the Mexico – United States border. Its length varies as its course changes...
up to Mesilla
Mesilla, New Mexico
Mesilla is a town in Doña Ana County, New Mexico, United States. The population was 2,180 at the 2000 census...
and then went west towards Tucson
Tucson, Arizona
Tucson is a city in and the county seat of Pima County, Arizona, United States. The city is located 118 miles southeast of Phoenix and 60 miles north of the U.S.-Mexico border. The 2010 United States Census puts the city's population at 520,116 with a metropolitan area population at 1,020,200...
, passing by many prominent locations in New Mexico and Arizona history, such as Cooke's Canyon
Cookes Range
The Cookes Range is a small 17-mi long, mountain range in the north of Luna County, New Mexico. The north of the range extends slightly north into southeast Grant County...
, Doubtful Canyon
Steins, New Mexico
Steins is a ghost town in Doubtful Canyon of Hidalgo County, New Mexico. It was originally called Stein's Pass after the nearby pass through the Peloncillo Mountains...
, San Simon Valley
San Simon Valley
The San Simon Valley is a broad valley east of the Chiricahua Mountains, in the northeast corner of Cochise County, Arizona and southeastern Graham County, with a small portion near Antelope Pass in Hidalgo County of southwestern New Mexico. The valley trends generally north-south but in its...
, Apache Pass
Apache Pass
Apache Pass is a historic passage in the U.S. state of Arizona between the Dos Cabezas Mountains and Chiricahua Mountains, approximately 32 km E-SE of Willcox, Arizona.-Apache Spring:...
, Sulphur Springs Valley
Sulphur Springs Valley
The Sulphur Springs Valley is a major valley in the eastern half of Cochise County, Arizona. The valley covers an approximated vertical rectangle west of the Chiricahua Mountains–Dos Cabezas Mountains complex; the Chiricahua's have a valley to the northeast, San Simon Valley, and to the southeast,...
, the San Pedro
San Pedro River (Arizona)
San Pedro River is a northward-flowing stream originating about ten miles south of Sierra Vista, Arizona near Cananea, Sonora, Mexico. It is one of only two rivers which flow north from Mexico into the United States. The river flows north through Cochise County, Pima County, Graham County, and...
and Dragoon Springs
Dragoon Mountains
Dragoon Mountains are a range of mountains located in Cochise County, Arizona. The range is about 25 mi long, running on an axis extending south-south east through Willcox.- Geography :...
. In June of 1857, the Penningtons had to temporarily settle at Sonoita Creek
Sonoita, Arizona
Sonoita is a census-designated place in Santa Cruz County, Arizona, United States. The population was 826 at the 2000 census....
, next to Fort Buchanan
Fort Buchanan, Arizona
Fort Buchanan, was a United States Army post founded in 1856 three miles west of present day Sonoita, Arizona in what is now called Hog Canyon. The fort was located on the east slope of the canyon and under constant attack by native Americans. It was officially abandoned in 1861 but during the...
, because their animals were either exhausted, or had been stolen by Apaches, and Larcena had attracted malaria
Malaria
Malaria is a mosquito-borne infectious disease of humans and other animals caused by eukaryotic protists of the genus Plasmodium. The disease results from the multiplication of Plasmodium parasites within red blood cells, causing symptoms that typically include fever and headache, in severe cases...
. The men got contracted by the government to supply the fort with hay
Hay
Hay is grass, legumes or other herbaceous plants that have been cut, dried, and stored for use as animal fodder, particularly for grazing livestock such as cattle, horses, goats, and sheep. Hay is also fed to pets such as rabbits and guinea pigs...
, while the women sewed
Sewing
Sewing is the craft of fastening or attaching objects using stitches made with a needle and thread. Sewing is one of the oldest of the textile arts, arising in the Paleolithic era...
soldiers' uniforms. When the contract was finished, the Penningtons moved west to Calabasas
Presidio de Calabasas
The Presidio de Calabasas, also known as Fort Calabasas or Camp Calabasas, was a stone fortress built by Mexico in 1837 near Tumacacori, Arizona...
, along the Santa Cruz, and had taken up residence in the former home of Governor
Governor
A governor is a governing official, usually the executive of a non-sovereign level of government, ranking under the head of state...
Manuel Maria Gandara
Crabb Massacre
The Crabb Massacre was the culmination of the eight day Battle of Caborca. It was fought between Mexico and their O'odham allies against American forces in April of 1857. Due to the outbreak of the Reform War in Mexico, the rebel Ygnacio Pesquiera invited the American politician Henry A...
by September of 1859.
Sometime at Fort Buchanan Larcena met the lumberjack
Lumberjack
A lumberjack is a worker in the logging industry who performs the initial harvesting and transport of trees for ultimate processing into forest products. The term usually refers to a bygone era when hand tools were used in harvesting trees principally from virgin forest...
John Hempstead Page and fell in love. The two were married on December 24, 1859, becoming the first couple of American citizens to be wed in Tucson, which was then only a small town of a few hundred people.
Kidnapping
After marriage, Larcena moved from the fort to Tucson but her husband, John, remained at Canoa Ranch, south of the present day Green ValleyGreen Valley, Arizona
Green Valley is a census-designated place in Pima County, Arizona, United States. The population was 17,283 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Green Valley is located at ....
. Canoa Ranch was owned by John's employer, Bill Kirkland, and he lived there because it was only thirteen miles west from Madera Canyon and the Santa Rita Mountains
Santa Rita Mountains
The Santa Rita Mountains, located about 65 km southeast of Tucson, Arizona, extend 42 km from north to south, then trending southeast. They merge again southeastwards into the Patagonia Mountains, trending northwest by southeast...
. John and his partner William Randall had a small lumber mill at Madera Canyon where they would cut down pine
Pine
Pines are trees in the genus Pinus ,in the family Pinaceae. They make up the monotypic subfamily Pinoideae. There are about 115 species of pine, although different authorities accept between 105 and 125 species.-Etymology:...
trees and then transport them to Tucson by wagon. Larcena also worked for Kirkland, she was a teacher for his eleven-year-old ward, Mercedes Sais Quiroz. Eventually Larcena moved to Canoa Ranch with Mercedes but shortly after she became ill, possibly a recurrence of malaria. Because of this John decided to move his wife and Mercedes out of the desert and into a cabin near the "Big Rock" at the lumber mill. It was thought that the higher elevation would help Larcena recover. On March 15, 1860, John and Randall arrived in a wagon to pick up Larcena, Mercedes and their dog for the trip to the cabin. From the ranch, the wagon headed west, through the Santa Rita foothills, towards Madera Canyon. They had nearly made it to their destination when it was decided to stop and rest for the night. The location was two miles south of the "Big Rock" and the present day Madera Kubo Gift Shop. Unbeknown to them, five Pinal Apaches
Tonto Apache
The Tonto Apache is one of the groups of Western Apache people. The term is also used for their dialect, one of the three dialects of the Western Apache language...
were watching the camp from concealed positions in the surrounding hills. On the next morning, Randall went out to hunt for breakfast and at around 10:00 am John went up the canyon to check on a load of lumber at the mill. This left Larcena and Mercedes alone at camp with the Apaches. Larcena was sitting on a rocking chair in her tent when the dog began to bark, then suddenly she heard Mercedes scream. A moment later Mercedes was captured and the Apaches were at the door of the tent. Larcena grabbed her husband's revolver
Revolver
A revolver is a repeating firearm that has a cylinder containing multiple chambers and at least one barrel for firing. The first revolver ever made was built by Elisha Collier in 1818. The percussion cap revolver was invented by Samuel Colt in 1836. This weapon became known as the Colt Paterson...
but it was taken out of her hands before she could fire it.
The Apaches were armed with lance
Lance
A Lance is a pole weapon or spear designed to be used by a mounted warrior. The lance is longer, stout and heavier than an infantry spear, and unsuited for throwing, or for rapid thrusting. Lances did not have tips designed to intentionally break off or bend, unlike many throwing weapons of the...
s and bows, four were young men but the fifth was older and spoke a little Spanish
Spanish language
Spanish , also known as Castilian , is a Romance language in the Ibero-Romance group that evolved from several languages and dialects in central-northern Iberia around the 9th century and gradually spread with the expansion of the Kingdom of Castile into central and southern Iberia during the...
. For whatever reason, the older Apache man told Mercedes that he killed John while he drank from a nearby spring so when the girl told Larcena she became upset and started screaming. At that point one of the Apaches put his lance up to Larcena's breast and threatened to kill her if she would not stop. After stealing "whatever they could" and cutting open the Page's sacks of food, the Apaches took the two captives northeast, roughly along the base of the Santa Rita Mountains, towards one of their strongholds along the San Pedro River. They stopped a short distance from the camp because the Apaches wanted to tear apart a feather bed they had been trying to carry off. Larcena screamed once more and again she was told to be quiet or be killed. Robert H. Forbes, author of Penningtons: Pioneers of Early Arizona, says that up to that time neither of the captives had been molested in any way, except when the Apaches "pre-tended to ambush them from behind trees or play-fully pointed the captured pistol at them." One of the Apaches also talked about how all the land in that area was once part of their domain until the white man came. The journey to the San Pedro was rough, during the walk both Larcena and Mercedes tore off pieces of their clothing and bent twigs to make an easily recognizable trail. Forbes says; "One of the Apaches melted snow in his hands for them [the captives] to drink. Mrs. Page was pushed or pulled up steep places in the trail and Mercedes was carried pick-a-back. Their hats were restored to them from the plunder and fair progress was made...."
Meanwhile, John, who was not actually dead, returned to the camp and found that Larcena and the girl were gone. He assumed correctly that Apaches were responsible so he found some help and followed their trail. Just before sunset, when the group was about fifteen miles from the camp, east of the present day Helvetia
Helvetia, Arizona
Helvetia is a ghost town in Pima County in the U.S. state of Arizona. The town was settled in 1891 in what was then the Arizona Territory.The Rosemont project is a large porphyry copper deposit nearby, which may be developed into a mine as early as 2011.- History :Helvetia was founded in 1891 for...
, one of the natives came running up and told the older Apache man that some people were approching from behind. It was John, Randall, and a few other men from the mill. The pace quickened but Larcena could not keep up. Having walked all day and already weak from her illness, she could no longer hike up and down the steep slopes. While the group was standing atop a ridge, the Apaches made Larcena take off her corset and her skirt and then, as she turned around to continue walking, one of the natives struck her in the back with a lance and she fell over the side of the ridge about seventeen feet until becoming "lodged" against a pine tree. The Apaches followed Larcena down the ridge, thrusting their spears and throwing rocks at her. One of the rocks hit Larcena in the face while she was up against the tree and she went unconscious. After that, the natives dragged her body behind a tree into a snow bank, so as to not be visible from the trail, and then took her boots. Left for dead, Larcena woke up a short time later and could hear her husband's voice coming from the trail. She tried to call to him but was too weak to speak loud enough. Because one of the Apaches was now wearing Larcena's boots, John passed by his wife without ever knowing she was there and followed the Apaches' trail all the way through the Rincon Mountains
Rincon Mountains
The Rincon Mountains are a significant mountain range east of Tucson, Pima County, Arizona, in the United States. The Rincon Mountains are one of five mountain ranges surrounding the Tucson valley...
and beyond Catalina Mountains
Santa Catalina Mountains
The Santa Catalina Mountains, commonly referred to as the Catalina Mountains, are located north, and northeast of Tucson, Arizona, United States, on Tucson's north perimeter. The mountain range is the most prominent in the Tucson area, with the highest average elevation...
. When John was unsuccessful, he went to Tucson and recruited a posse
Posse comitatus (common law)
Posse comitatus or sheriff's posse is the common-law or statute law authority of a county sheriff or other law officer to conscript any able-bodied males to assist him in keeping the peace or to pursue and arrest a felon, similar to the concept of the "hue and cry"...
for a second attempt at finding his wife. Another posse also formed in Tubac
Tubac, Arizona
Tubac is a census-designated place in Santa Cruz County, Arizona, United States. The population was 949 at the 2000 census. The place name Tubac is an English borrowing from a Hispanicized form of the O'odham name, which translates into English as "rotten". The original O'odham name is written...
but it too was unsuccessful.
After John passed by Larcena, she fell unconscious again and remained in the snow bank for about three days before waking up in the middle of the night. First she ate some snow and looked after her wounds, for she had been "bruised with stones and cut with sixteen lance wounds in her back and arms." Then Larcena went further down the ridge and went to sleep until sunrise. On the next morning, when Larcena woke up again, she began looking around to try and find out where she was. Knowing that the camp and the lumber mill were to the southeast, she looked in that direction and sighted a "small sharp-pointed hill," which has been identified as Huerfano Hill, about three miles west of Helvetia. Because of her wounds and loss of blood, Larcena could barely stand so for the next several days she crawled the fifteen miles back to camp, surviving on "seeds, herbage and wild onions, with snow water to drink." According to Forbes; "Night by night (unable to lie on her back because of her wounds) she crouched upon her knees and arms on the ground and dreamed of food; but when in her sleep she reached out for the pot of beans before her, she awoke to find her hands clutching only gravel." One day Larcena came across a bear's nest and wanted to sleep there but she knew it was a bad idea and went away. Ten days after her "terrible journey" began, on March 26, she climbed to the top of a ridge and saw the road that leads to Madera Canyon and the camp. Hearing the sound of voices and wagon wheels, Larcena attached her petticoat to a stick to signal for help. She also screamed but the people in the wagon passed on without seeing or hearing anything. When Larcena reached the camp, two days later, she found a smoldering campfire and some flour and some coffee that was still on the ground from when the Apaches cut open the sacks of food. Using water from a nearby stream, and a piece of her clothing, Larcena prepared some bread on the fire, made some coffee, and then rested for the night.
On the next morning, March 31, Larcena followed the road east to the "Big Rock" and lumber mill. Forbes says that "as she drew near she was seen, but not at first recognized. With clotted hair and gaping wounds, nearly naked, emaciated and sunburned, she was at first mistaken for an unfortunate outcast squaw and the men ran for their guns." It was only when Larcena called out her name that she was recognized. But even then one man, named Smith, insisted that she was a ghost because he coulnd't believe that a twenty-three-year-old women could survive so long under such trying circumstances. One of the men took Larcena into a building and had her fed and washed while another man went to get a doctor in Tucson and inform John, who was preparing for a third expedition to find his wife. On April 2, Larcena was taken to Tucson where she fully recovered under the care of Dr. C. B. Hughes. The young Mexican girl, Mercedes, was later found by the United States Army
United States Army
The United States Army is the main branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for land-based military operations. It is the largest and oldest established branch of the U.S. military, and is one of seven U.S. uniformed services...
and traded for Apache prisoners at Fort Buchanan.
Later life
In 1861 the American Civil WarAmerican Civil War
The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...
was about to begin and Larcena was worried that the Apaches would turn more violent with the absence of military personnel. Larcena and her family soon moved to Patagonia
Patagonia, Arizona
Patagonia is a town in Santa Cruz County, Arizona, United States. As of 2010 Patagonia had a population of 913. Patagonia was formerly a supply center for nearby mines and ranches. Currently, it is a tourist destination, retirement community and arts & crafts center. The Nature Conservancy's...
. Due to the Bascom Affair
Bascom Affair
The Bascom Affair is considered to be the key event in triggering the 1860s Apache War. The Apache Wars were fought during the nineteenth century between the U.S. military and many tribes in what is now the southwestern United States...
, Chief
Tribal chief
A tribal chief is the leader of a tribal society or chiefdom. Tribal societies with social stratification under a single leader emerged in the Neolithic period out of earlier tribal structures with little stratification, and they remained prevalent throughout the Iron Age.In the case of ...
Cochise
Cochise
Cochise was a chief of the Chokonen band of the Chiricahua Apache and the leader of an uprising that began in 1861. Cochise County, Arizona is named after him.-Biography:...
and Mangas Coloradas
Mangas Coloradas
Mangas Coloradas, or Dasoda-hae , was an Apache tribal chief and a member of the Eastern Chiricahua nation, whose homeland stretched west from the Rio Grande to include most of what is present-day southwestern New Mexico...
were attacking American settlements all across southern New Mexico Territory
New Mexico Territory
thumb|right|240px|Proposed boundaries for State of New Mexico, 1850The Territory of New Mexico was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from September 9, 1850, until January 6, 1912, when the final extent of the territory was admitted to the Union as the State of...
. Around this time her brother, Jack, saved a fellow settler from Apaches during the Battle of Cooke's Canyon
Battle of Cooke's Canyon
The Battle of Cooke's Canyon was an engagement of the Apache Wars fought in August of 1861, between settlers from Confederate Arizona, and Chiricahua Apaches. It occurred about forty miles northwest of Mesilla, in Cooke's Canyon...
and in March or April of 1861, her husband, John, was ambushed and killed by hostiles north of Tucson while transporting a wagon load of goods to Old Camp Grant
Camp Grant Massacre
The Camp Grant Massacre, on April 30, 1871, was an attack on Pinal and Aravaipa Apaches who surrendered to the United States Army at Camp Grant, Arizona, along the San Pedro River. The massacre led to a series of battles and campaigns fought between the Americans, the Apache, and their Yavapai...
. John was buried where he died, "at the top of the hill beyond Samaniego's ranch, on the old road; and all that Mrs. Page ever saw of him was his handkerchief, his purse and a lock of his hair." In September, Larcena gave birth to her daughter, Mary Ann, and shortly thereafter her family moved again, to Tubac
Tubac, Arizona
Tubac is a census-designated place in Santa Cruz County, Arizona, United States. The population was 949 at the 2000 census. The place name Tubac is an English borrowing from a Hispanicized form of the O'odham name, which translates into English as "rotten". The original O'odham name is written...
and later to a stone house along the Santa Cruz, about a half-mile from the international border with Mexico. The stone house was located in a dangerous area, infested with hostile Apaches, and at one point Larcena had to flee to Mowry
Sylvester Mowry
Sylvester Mowry was an American best known as a pioneer of Arizona and the founder of Mowry, Arizona. He also served as an officer in the United States Army and was arrested as a traitor during the American Civil War....
, a small, fortified, mining town. Constantly moving, by April 1864, the Penningtons had went back to Tubac and were the only residents, the rest having fled during the Apache attack
Siege of Tubac
The Siege of Tubac was a siege of the Apache Wars, between settlers and militia of Confederate Arizona and Chiricahua Apaches. The battle took place at Tubac in the present day southern Arizona...
in 1861. Larcena's young brothers carried very long guns, to protect the family from further attacks.
Tragedy struck again in 1867 when Larcena's sister died of malaria and in 1868 her brother, Jim Pennington, was killed during a persecution of Apache. In June of 1869, her father and another brother were both murdered by Apaches while working at a farm. The remaining members of the Pennington family then went to Tucson, and decided to move on to California. But, about twenty miles outside Tucson, they had to return when Larcena's sister Ellen became gravely ill with pneumonia
Pneumonia
Pneumonia is an inflammatory condition of the lung—especially affecting the microscopic air sacs —associated with fever, chest symptoms, and a lack of air space on a chest X-ray. Pneumonia is typically caused by an infection but there are a number of other causes...
. Despite seeking medical help, Ellen also died. After that, the only two Penningtons left were Larcena and her brother Jack. Jack moved on to Texas, but Larcena remained in Tucson.
In August 1870, she married William Fisher Scott, a Scottish
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
lawyer and judge. Larcena and William had two children, a son and a daughter. Larcena refused to leave Arizona, despite all the hardships she went through there. Larcena became a newborn Christian
Christian Church
The Christian Church is the assembly or association of followers of Jesus Christ. The Greek term ἐκκλησία that in its appearances in the New Testament is usually translated as "church" basically means "assembly"...
and one of the first members of the Congregational Church
Congregational church
Congregational churches are Protestant Christian churches practicing Congregationalist church governance, in which each congregation independently and autonomously runs its own affairs....
in Tucson. She was also named president of the Arizona Historical Society
Arizona Historical Society
The Arizona Historical Society is a non-profit organization whose goal is to collect, preserve, interpret, and disseminate the history of Arizona, the West, and Northern Mexico as it pertains to Arizona. It does this through 4 regional divisions. Each division has a representative museum...
. Larcena lived a relatively quiet life from then until her death. The people of Tucson honored Larcena and her family by naming a road in the city "Pennington Street."
In the early 2000s, a residential community named Stone House was established southeast of Sahuarita
Sahuarita, Arizona
Sahuarita is a town in Pima County, Arizona, United States. Sahuarita is located south of the Tohono O'odham Nation and abuts the north end of Green Valley, 15 miles south of Tucson...
and named after the Pennington's stone house along the Santa Cruz River.