Echoes of the Southwest

Mary Katherine Horony, Big Nose Kate, was born November 7, 1850 in Pest, Hungary. She was the long-time companion/common law wife of gunfighter Doc Holliday. She was the second oldest daughter of a Hungarian physician, Dr. Michael Horony. In 1860, he and his second wife Katharina and children traveled to the United States on board the ship Bremen. Her father was appointed the personal surgeon of Mexico’s Emperor Maximillian in 1862. After leaving that position and some traveling, the family made their home in Davenport, Iowa in a largely German community. Kate’s parents both passed away within a month of each other in 1865. After being moved around from place to place, Kate and her younger siblings ended up in foster care. At the age of 16, Kate took off from the foster home and snuck onto a riverboat headed for St. Louis, Missouri. She met a dentist named Silas Melvin, had a child, but sadly lost both of them in the same year. She stayed there until 1874 when she set out for Dodg

Tucked away amongst the rugged and mysterious Superstition Mountains lies an unfathomable ancient stone wall shaped in a circular pattern. This profound structure has a pinwheel appearance labeled as an “Indian Medicine Wheel”, and can be found about 54 miles east of Phoenix. The wall is a remarkable 3 feet thick, relatively high and is seen in an uninterrupted circle that is estimated to be about 440 feet in length. The only entries are small access points scattered throughout the wall. The wall has a slight elliptical shape lending to the theory that it could be an ancient calendar or clock of some kind. Those who have studied it have noticed a possible sun alignment especially after the ruin was precisely mapped. Here is how they describe the shape and theory: “The shape of the overall circle in the dimensions north-south as opposed to east-west. This has the effect of providing an additional, 90-degrees opposed diameter, which “doubles-up” the linear and circumference codes

More than 50 paranormal enthusiasts, along with their ghost hunting gear, converged on the known haunted Hotel San Carlos in downtown Phoenix, AZ, this past Saturday night. Debe Branning hosted an informal investigation “Spirit Photo Workshop” where we got the opportunity to experience the ghostly activity that has been reported at the hotel. At 3:00 pm we all met by the pool located on the third floor after dumping all our stuff in our rooms. Our room was on the fourth floor where the ghost children have been heard running up and down the halls late at night.  After the meet and greet and quick swim, we broke out in three separate groups for dinner. Three restaurants known for their paranormal activity were chosen. Our little group went to the George and Dragon that I wrote about earlier.  We met up with others that picked this fine English pub to have dinner. After dinner it was back to the hotel where we split up in two separate grou

Tombstone seems to have an endless supply of stories from the notorious bad-boys, sultry women, famous lawman and places around town. Everyone knows plenty about the Earps, especially Wyatt, but I find that the lesser know people of this once booming mining town have the more interesting stories. They have also carved their names in the history books of the American Wild West. Curly Bill Brosius is another of those slightly mysterious outlaws that you may know little about. William “Curly Bill” Brocius (or Brocious) has left his mark in American Old West history as an outlaw, gunman and a member of “The Cowboys” outlaw gang of Tombstone during the early 1800’s. He was born in 1845 in Crawfordsville, Indiana and his middle name was Graham. There is only one known picture of Curly Bill (above picture) and that one hangs in the Bird Cage Theatre Museum in Tombstone. He is described as a tall stocky man with freckles and dark curly hair. As part of the Cowboys, Curly Bill was known

There is a quaint little place in downtown Phoenix that reflects the look and feel of a genuine English Public House or “Pub”. The George and Dragon Pub opened its doors in 1995 and deliver that remarkable one of a kind ambiance that is usually seen in English pubs. The George offers the finest collection of imported Ales, Stouts and most exceptional Scotches that has any world traveler feeling like they are back at home. Along with the generous array of drinks, the George also offers up the best lunches, and dinners, along with a side of ghosts. The owner of the George and Dragon, David, said that many of paranormal activity have been witnessed by employees and patrons of the pub. There are claims of glasses being thrown, people hearing they names being called out, women being grabbed by unseen hands, and bottles of beer exploding in midair. Other reports are of disembodied voices, moaning, footsteps, and the towel dispenser in the men’s room clanking. Eyewitnesses have claims o

Tombstone has many famous legends that once walked the dusty streets and left their mark in the Wild West history. One of the lesser known legends was that of a dancer named Gold Dollar. She was first known as Little Gertie but with her long golden blonde hair, fair complexion and earning a gold dollar as payment for services bestowed, she was given the moniker “Gold Dollar”. She danced at the Crystal Palace saloon which was located near the Bird Cage Theatre. This woman was tiny in stature but very feisty and not to be messed with. Most of the women of this era were very protective of their men and Gold Dollar was no different. Gold Dollar had taken a shine to a local gambler, Billy Milgreen, who passed himself off as someone influential. They lived together and she considered him to be her man. She threatened harm to any woman that touched and flirted with him. The women of Tombstone were afraid the petite prostitute and stayed away from Billy. Trouble came to town in the name