ETHEL MACIA-FIRST LADY OF TOMBSTONE

Whenever the name "Tombstone" is mentioned, the gun fights, the lawmen and the wild cowboys of the early days come to mind. Ever the sordid, ever the sensational! But Tombstone had another side. Here good, hard-working men and women lived normal, peaceful lives, rearing their families, serenely ignoring the rougher elements. Children went to school, played their games, performed their appointed tasks, attended church and Sunday school and matured to be solid, stable citizens, a credit to their upbringing.

No one who grew up in early Tombstone exemplifies this better than Mrs. Ethel Macia, who was born here in the early rip-roaring days of the old mining camp. She has lived here through its many "ups and downs" and today, at the age of 76, is still a busy, alert and leading citizen. Her life's story is, to my mind, every bit as exciting as that of the gun fighter. He came and went quickly, but Mrs. Macia is still around, as lively as ever.

Her story starts in Leadville, Colorado, where, on October 19, 1880, Alice Roberson and Chris Robertson -she just added a "T" to her name-were married. Three days later they left by wagon train for the new silvercamp in Southern Arizona. On Christmas eve, 65 days later, they arrived and set up housekeeping in their wagon on an open lot where the historic Cochise County Court House stands today. The young husband started at once to build a crude board house on the east side of town. It was here, on August 16, 1881, that a daughter, named Ethel, was born to the tiny sixteen-year-old bride, who was but five feet tall and never weighed over 105 pounds. During her short lifetime-Alice died when she was 31-this small woman bore eight children, five of whom reached maturity. She found time not only to care for her family, doing the multitudinous tasks that fell to the lot of the pioneer woman, but also to take painting lessons and to do the finest of embroidery on her little girls' dresses. When, for a short time, the family lived on a ranch at South Pass in the Dragoon Mountains, she was even capable of protecting her little family, by keeping them absolutely quiet for hours, while bands of maurauding Apaches passed close to the ranch house on their raids into Mexico. Never were they molested but she lived with fear every hour.

camp in Southern Arizona. On Christmas eve, 65 days later, they arrived and set up housekeeping in their wagon on an open lot where the historic Cochise County Court House stands today. The young husband started at once to build a crude board house on the east side of town. It was here, on August 16, 1881, that a daughter, named Ethel, was born to the tiny sixteen-year-old bride, who was but five feet tall and never weighed over 105 pounds. During her short lifetime-Alice died when she was 31-this small woman bore eight children, five of whom reached maturity. She found time not only to care for her family, doing the multitudinous tasks that fell to the lot of the pioneer woman, but also to take painting lessons and to do the finest of embroidery on her little girls' dresses. When, for a short time, the family lived on a ranch at South Pass in the Dragoon Mountains, she was even capable of protecting her little family, by keeping them absolutely quiet for hours, while bands of maurauding Apaches passed close to the ranch house on their raids into Mexico. Never were they molested but she lived with fear every hour.

In November, 1895, Alice Robertson died after the birth of her eighth child, a little boy who lived but a few weeks. Ethel, then 14, was forced to leave school, where she was in the eighth grade, and take over the mothering of her two sisters, Edith and Olive, and ofher two brothers, Ralph and Curtice, the latter only two years old.

A short time later, realizing that the new mining town of Pearce offered better opportunities to support his family, Chris Robertson moved his family across the desert, acquired property there and set up a livery stable. It was during these days that Ethel had a chance to attend the preparatory school at the University of Arizona in Tucson, which was the equivalent to our modern high school. This was a happy time for the youngster who had shouldered a woman's burdens at a too tender age. Early in her second year at the University, however, her father admitted that both he and the children needed her so she returned to Pearce.

Then, in 1899, tragedy struck again. Ethel's father was murdered on the streets of Pearce. A nineteen-yearold peace officer, Sid Page, after picking a quarrel with his unarmed victim, shot him down in cold blood. Testimony at the murder trial showed that Chris had been a witness to part of a recent train robbery near Cochise Station. The robbers, fearing his recognition of them, had egged on young Page-himself a member of the gang-to do the shooting. He paid for his crime with many years in the penitentiary, but that did little to bring comfort to the five orphans in the Robertson home.

Ethel, just 18, became head of the family and, although their father had left them fairly well off, financially, there were four youngsters to care for and Curt was barely six. Things became more difficult. Times were not too easy as the lawyers and the guardians appointed by the courts took more than their share of the money left in their trust.

Soon the family returned to Tombstone. They were together and that was all that mattered. Edith, then only 15, and Ethel worked at the Court House each year on the tax rolls. In those days before the general use of typewriters and book-keeping machines, workers were accepted because of the excellence of their penmanship and both girls easily qualified. Soon Edith had a regular position in the County Treasurer's office and her sister took, as boarders, several children who needed a home in town while they attended the local school. Some of these came from Cananea in Mexico where their American parents lived while employed at the mines there. The first break in the family circle came in 1902, when Edith was married. Then Ethel took over her job in the Court House. Things were beginning to ease up a bit: the children were all growing up and they worked together as a perfect team.

About this time there came to Tombstone a crew of young mining men-not ordinary miners-but a trained group to sink the Boom Shaft of the Grand Central Mine in the near-by hills. Among them was a young Yankee of French Canadian descent named James Herbert Macia. It was really "Messier" but the French pronunciation was too much for Western tongues so it became "Macia" and that's the way the family continues to spell it. The crew sank the shaft and moved on, but not Bert Macia! Ethel Robertson had taken his eye, and his heart to boot, so, being a man of action, he married her!

The wedding took place on February 4, 1904 at the bride's home with her family as witnesses. The young couple had a brief honeymoon in El Paso and then returned to their ready-made family-Olive, Ralph, Curt and Sadie. A few years later, Mr. Macia's mother died and the couple, who could always find room for another child in their hearts as well as their home, took in his half-brother, Lockwood, and his sister, Iris. Lockwood, who was in his teens, soon found work elsewhere but Iris stayed with them for seven years until she entered nurses' training in El Paso.

turned to their ready-made family-Olive, Ralph, Curt and Sadie. A few years later, Mr. Macia's mother died and the couple, who could always find room for another child in their hearts as well as their home, took in his half-brother, Lockwood, and his sister, Iris. Lockwood, who was in his teens, soon found work elsewhere but Iris stayed with them for seven years until she entered nurses' training in El Paso.

Three years past and then came the first child of their own-a little girl who was also named Iris. She is now Mrs. Adolph Siek of Tempe who has three children and eight grandchildren of her own, thus providing Mrs. Macia with the distinction of being a great grandmother. Seven years later came another daughter, Jeanne, now Mrs. Burton Devere of Tombstone. It is with this daughter, her husband, and her five children, that Mrs. Macia makes her home in the famous Rose Tree Inn.

About a year and a half later, the only son, James Herbert Macia, Jr., made his appearance and closed the family circle. He, too, is married and has two sons. He is a Colonel in the Air Force stationed at the Pentagon in Washington while living with his family in Arlington, Virginia. His mother visited him last fall, her first trip east of the Rockies. "It was a wonderful experience' she says, "but it was so good to be back in Tombstone."

Colonel Macia was a navigator-bombardier on General Jimmy Doolittle's famed raid on Tokio in World War II. After landing in China and returning safely to this country, he crossed the Atlantic to bomb Italy, North Africa and other strategic areas. These war days were anxious times for the white-haired lady. A grandson, Ted Siek, also gave his grandmother some bad moments as he was pilot of one of our big bombers in the European theatre. His plane was named "Nine Men and a Boy"the boy being Ted who was just 20 at the time.

Shortly before the marriage of Bert and Ethel Macia, the small mines of the Tombstone area were joined together as the Tombstone Consolidated Mines Company. A few years later, Mr. Macia became its superintendent. Water had long been hampering the mining of the rich silver ore and great Cornish pumps had been installed as early as 1882. Still more water came and more modern pumping equipment took up the fight against it. In 1911, the water won out and the mines closed! Many miners and their families left but the roots of the Macia family were too deep in Tombstone soil and they stayed. Mining was in Bert Macia's blood so, after trying ranching for a short time, he began operating mines in Tombstone, Patagonia and Dos Cabezas under lease. In the winter of 1916-17, he took special work at the School of Mines at the University of Arizona.

In a building on the grounds of his home he established a complete assay office for his personal use. Upon his death in 1951 the entire contents of this office was given by his family to the Tombstone Restoration Commission. Today it forms the nucleus of the J. H. Macia Memorial Museum in the old Cochise County Court House. A mining man to the end, he took his last prospecting trip into the Whetstones with an old friend in 1950 when he was 78 years old.

While her husband was working his beloved mines, Mrs. Macia reared their children and carried on her other duties as a homemaker-for a time! But, after her active life, it was not enough, so, rather against Mr. Macia's wishes, they purchased the Arcade Hotel and she became its proprietor. This hotel had been in constant operation since the boom days of Tombstone and has recently been featured in Clarence Buddington Kelland's novel, "Tombstone" as "Mrs. Adamson's Boarding House." "It really was just that," says Mrs. Macia. It was a favorite hostelry. Workers in the Court House, mining men, school teachers and other business people lived there. Meals were served family style at big tables and the Macia children, growing up within its gracious walls, furnished the childish prattle and fun so necessary to a real home. During the dark days after the citizens of Cochise moved the county seat to Bisbee and the town withered under its loss, the dining room of the Arcade served, for a time, the only meals to be bought in the town.

wishes, they purchased the Arcade Hotel and she became its proprietor. This hotel had been in constant operation since the boom days of Tombstone and has recently been featured in Clarence Buddington Kelland's novel, "Tombstone" as "Mrs. Adamson's Boarding House." "It really was just that," says Mrs. Macia. It was a favorite hostelry. Workers in the Court House, mining men, school teachers and other business people lived there. Meals were served family style at big tables and the Macia children, growing up within its gracious walls, furnished the childish prattle and fun so necessary to a real home. During the dark days after the citizens of Cochise moved the county seat to Bisbee and the town withered under its loss, the dining room of the Arcade served, for a time, the only meals to be bought in the town.

In the patio of the hotel is a rose tree-a Lady Banksia, which like Topsy, "just growed and growed." Finally it attracted world-wide attention when Robert Ripley declared it the "World's Largest Rose Tree." Inevitably the hotel and the rose tree became one and the same in the visitors' minds, so, in 1936, the ArcadeHotel became the Rose Tree Inn. In 1941, the Macias sold the Inn to their daughter, Jeanne Devere, who, with her husband, followed her parents' footsteps and continued to operate it until 1954. Then it closed its doors to guests. The Inn today is the family home. Mrs. Macia still lives here and the rose tree still grows bigger and bigger in the patio, attracting literally thousands of visitors each year. With luck, the tourist meets the whitehaired lady under the tree and then they get a real taste of Tombstone history.

The activities of rearing two families and of running a successful hotel for many years found Mrs. Macia no slave to the kitchen however. Her energy was too great: her active mind was too interested in the world about her. Tombstone is her town and she has given freely of her time and of herself to its many projects.

As is her right by birth, she has been an active member of the Arizona Pioneer Historical Society, for many years, going regularly to Tucson to attend its annual meetings. For about 30 years she has been the Tombstone representative on the executive board of the Arizona Children's Home in Tucson. On the twenty-fifth anniversary of her service, she was honored at the annual meeting. To this day, she conducts their annual financial drive in this area. Twice Mrs. Macia has served as president of the Tombstone Women's Club, the first time in 1937 at which time the "Candlelighted Tea," which has become a community tradition at Christmas time, was inaugurated. Twenty years later it is still being sponsored each holiday season by the club. During the years of World War II, when every one was working to capacity, she took over the leadership rather than see the club wither and die. Shehas held several offices in the Arizona State Federation of Women's Clubs and, in 1951, as its historian, compiled a history of club work in Arizona for the federation library. In 1937, she wrote a pageant of the coming of the Conquistadores into this area and of the early history of the growing state. This won top honors in its category at the State Convention of the clubs that year. Mrs. Macia is in much demand each year-in an advisory capacity-as the annual Helldorado celebration comes around. She has had plenty of experience in this line. She served on the executive board of the first Helldorado in 1929 and is still a member of the sponsoring organization. Her vast knowledge of the early history of the town and her remarkable memory have been of invaluable assistance to the committees planning the re-enactments and other features of the program. In 1953, she was especially honored and rode with the Mayor at the head of the parade as "Queen of Helldorado."

When, after the first World War, child welfare work in Cochise County became imperative and a Board to direct this work was established, Judge Albert Sames, who had long made his home at the Arcade, appointed his friend, Ethel Macia, to represent this community. This seems to be her only political appointment, but probably this is not strange as Mrs. Macia always has been, and still is, an ardent Republican in this Democratic stronghold in southeastern Arizona. St. Paul's Episcopal Church, founded by a young vicar, Endicott Peabody, who later became famous as the head of the Groton School in Massachusetts, has always been very close to this lady's heart. She still attends services regularly in this oldest active Protestant church in Arizona. For many years she served as its treasurer, although at times, she wondered why they needed one-money was so scarce and the congregation so small! She was a member of the Bishop's Committee of the church for several years but her religious activities have not been confined exclusively to St. Paul's, as she was, for a time, treasurer of the Episcopal Diocese of Arizona. It is often said that Mrs. Macia and her little group of contemporaries kept the church alive during the dark days when the town seemed to be reaching its lowest ebb. There are few who are cognizant of the facts who would dispute that statement. At the present time, Mrs. Macia and a friend are pouring over records preparatory to writing, as their winter pastime, the history of this famous little church.

The National Broadcasting Company, in October of 1955, aroused the town to a frenzy of excitement by announcing that it would stage one of its "Wide, Wide World" television programs as a "live" presentation on a nation-wide hook-up direct from this city. When the script was worked out it included scenes from a real Apache village which was transported "en toto" from the San Carlos reservation; a group of Indian pole dancers from deep in Mexico and the re-enactments of local historical events by the Tombstone Vigilantes. A narrator was needed for the local sequences and Mrs. Macia The National Broadcasting Company, in October of 1955, aroused the town to a frenzy of excitement by announcing that it would stage one of its "Wide, Wide World" television programs as a "live" presentation on a nation-wide hook-up direct from this city. When the script was worked out it included scenes from a real Apache village which was transported "en toto" from the San Carlos reservation; a group of Indian pole dancers from deep in Mexico and the re-enactments of local historical events by the Tombstone Vigilantes. A narrator was needed for the local sequences and Mrs. Macia was chosen. On the day of the show, as composed as any TV star, and with hundreds of spectators crowded around her, she sat before a microphone in Boothill Graveyard and reminisced on personages in the graves about her, some of whom she had known. Then, while the re-enactments went on up town, a mile away, she followed every cue of the director and described them without an error. This has been rated as a remarkable performance for a first-time TV appearance.

Perhaps one of the most valuable things Mrs. Macia will leave to posterity is her outstanding library on Arizona history. Many of her books are autographed copies, inscribed to her personally by the authors. Many contain printed acknowledgements of the help she has given them in proving the authenticity of statements they have made concerning life in the early days. Among such well-known books on her shelves are "Tombstone" by Walter Noble Burns; "Log of an Arizona Trail Blazer" by John Rockfellow; "Helldorado" by Colonel William Breckenridge; "Frontier Marshal" by Stuart Lake; "Good Man with a Gun" by Jeff Milton; "Tombstone's Epitaph" by Douglas Martin and two books by Clarence Buddington Kelland, "Tombstone" and "Arizona." Today the Rose Tree Inn is a mecca for those interested in the fabulous history of Tombstone-and these people seem to be legion. An inquiry that cannot be answered by "the man on the street" is invariably referred to Mrs. Macia. She graciously answers most of the questions. Of course Wyatt Earp is now a top subject for discussion since his appearance on the popular TV program of that name. She has an answer to this query which seems to prove most satisfactory. "Yes, I met him once but it was in Colorado Springs when I was a little girl on my way to visit my grandmother. He Perhaps one of the most valuable things Mrs. Macia will leave to posterity is her outstanding library on Arizona history. Many of her books are autographed copies, inscribed to her personally by the authors. Many contain printed acknowledgements of the help she has given them in proving the authenticity of statements they have made concerning life in the early days. Among such well-known books on her shelves are "Tombstone" by Walter Noble Burns; "Log of an Arizona Trail Blazer" by John Rockfellow; "Helldorado" by Colonel William Breckenridge; "Frontier Marshal" by Stuart Lake; "Good Man with a Gun" by Jeff Milton; "Tombstone's Epitaph" by Douglas Martin and two books by Clarence Buddington Kelland, "Tombstone" and "Arizona." Today the Rose Tree Inn is a mecca for those interested in the fabulous history of Tombstone-and these people seem to be legion. An inquiry that cannot be answered by "the man on the street" is invariably referred to Mrs. Macia. She graciously answers most of the questions. Of course Wyatt Earp is now a top subject for discussion since his appearance on the popular TV program of that name. She has an answer to this query which seems to prove most satisfactory. "Yes, I met him once but it was in Colorado Springs when I was a little girl on my way to visit my grandmother. He recognized my mother and came and spoke to us. He was such a nice man!" And she will not let you down on that other TV personality, "The Sheriff of Cochise." Says she, "I knew an early sheriff of Cochise very well. He was John Slaughter, a family friend and, as a child, I spent many happy days on his San Bernardino ranch." And so comes the end-I started to say of the saga of this remarkable woman, but that statement would be far from true! Ethel Macia, who has played an important part in the life of Tombstone for three-quarters of a century, is, to quote one of her grandsons, "still going strong." May she continue to do so for many a long day!