Imperial County War
The Imperial County War, also known as the Stencil-Orbuck Feud, the California Camel Conflict, the Camel War of 1908, or the Imperial County Ranch Feud, was a family feud between the rival ranching clans Stencil and Orbuck that consisted of two individual murders and two large scale gun battles.[1][2]. The result of the conflict left eleven members of the families dead, as well as a civilian rancher, Herbert Wilder. Three others involved were executed later. The families were led by patriarchs George Barber Stencil and Jethro Orbuck respectively. The feud occurred in Imperial County, California, and along the western border of the Arizona Territory, namely the city of Yuma, between November, 1908 and April, 1909[3][4]
Feud[edit]
The feud started as a result of the rustling of eleven camels (used for various jobs, including field work and transportation) belonging to the Stencil family[5]. The crime was perpetrated by the first son of Jethro Orbuck, Gideon Cray Orbuck, along with a group of Mexican field hands working on the Orbuck family ranch. The conflict over the camels arose from a legal dispute in November, 1908, during which the Orbuck family claimed ownership of six first-year camels following a sale from northern California rancher Andrew Browne to the Orbuck clan[6]. The sale was supervised by Judge Wilson Rake. The Orbuck family claimed the escape of the six camels from their pen--which was later confirmed by the Imperial County sheriff's office[7]--following the negligence of their handlers. Attempting to locate the camels, the Orbuck clan would find what they claimed to be the camels in the possession of George Stencil, who in turn claimed the unregistered camels were his, stating the unbranded camels belonging to the Orbuck family were most likely dead.
Confronting Gideon Orbuck in the town of El Centro, California[8], George Stencil's nephew Calvin Stencil--the son of George Stencil's only brother, the younger Alexander Stencil--shot Gideon to death near the city livery. Following a swift trial in early January of 1909[7][9], Calvin Stencil was released on the grounds of self defense. Calvin, however, was murdered later that week while walking the streets in El Centro in retaliation for the killing of Gideon Orbuck. He was shot to death from behind. The crime, though never officially solved, was believed to have been committed by the remaining two sons of Jethro Orbuck, the fifteen year old twins Perry and Jon.
The next recorded instance of violence occurred later that month, with a physical confrontation between Jethro Orbuck and George Stencil's nineteen year old nephew Uriah Stencil--the younger brother of Calvin Stencil--at the home of Jethro Stencil that resulted in the stabbing death of Uriah and the shooting death of Jethro[10]. The exact circumstances surrounding the event are disputed.
The Yuma Gunfight[edit]
On March 31st, 1909, Perry and Jon Orbuck, along with their uncle Aaron Orbuck--younger brother of Jethro Orbuck--travelled to Yuma, Arizona Territory to meet with other ranchers from the area, along with George Stencil and his son, George Jr. Near noon at the Bixby Corral[11], the families met and exchanged gunfire in the crowded street following a heated argument. No one knows who fired the first shots. During the gunfight, which was reported to last only thirty seconds, Aaron Orbuck, Perry Orbuck, George Stencil Jr., and a civilian rancher Herbert Wilder were killed. Those involved, namely George Stencil and Jon Orbuck, were subsequently captured by the police force and jailed in Yuma[12].
The Stencil Ranch Massacre[edit]
News of the violence in Yuma reached both the remaining Orbucks and Stencils, and directly resulted in Patrick Orbuck, the first cousin of Jethro and Alexander Stencil, leading a platoon of five of his field hands--Alejandro Santana, Jose Santana, Raul Ray, Francisco Santana (unrelated to Alejandro and Jose), and James Burns--to the Stencil family ranch near El Centro, where Patrick sieged the Stencils' living quarters, which included two houses and barracks for their field hands. During the night, over the 3rd and 4th of April, Patrick Orbuck and his platoon fired routinely on the Stencil's buildings, killing Anne Stencil, Braddock Stencil, and James Stencil, the remaining children of George Stencil. United States Marshals arrived early on April 4th, and Patrick Orbuck was killed in a volley[13][14]. The field hands making up Patrick's platoon were apprehended.
Aftermath[edit]
Though no agreement was reached between the families, the feud ended following the Stencil Ranch Massacre. In the following months both George Barber Stencil and Jon Orbuck were sentenced to life in prison, despite Jon Orbuck's age. Jon Orbuck was not found guilty on the count of murdering Calvin Stencil. George Stencil died in Folsom State Prison in August, 1915[15]. Jon Orbuck was granted parole in 1930[16]. The field hands faced separate trials. Three were executed by the State of California in 1910: Alejandro Santana, Jose Santana, and Francisco Santana. James Burns and Raul Ray remained in Folsom State Prison until their deaths in 1919 and 1939 respectively[16]. The ranches never recovered from their involvement in the feud, and subsequently the land was divided between smaller landowners.
List of Deaths[edit]
- Gideon Cray Orbuck (first son of Jethro Orbuck) – shot to death.
- Calvin Stencil (nephew of George Barber Stencil, son of Alexander Stencil) – shot to death.
- Jethro Orbuck (patriarch of the Orbuck family) – shot to death.
- Uriah Stencil (son of Alexander Stencil, nephew of George Barber Stencil, brother of Calvin Stencil) – stabbed.
- Aaron Orbuck (brother of Jethro Orbuck) – shot to death.
- Perry Orbuck (son of Jethro Orbuck, twin brother of Jon Orbuck) – shot to death.
- George Stencil Jr. (son of George Barber Stencil, nephew of Alexander Stencil, cousin of Calvin and Uriah Stencil) – shot to death.
- Herbert Wilder (unaffiliated Arizona rancher) – shot to death.
- Anne Stencil (daughter of George Barber Stencil) – shot to death.
- Braddock Stencil (son of George Barber Stencil) – shot to death.
- James Stencil (son of George Barber Stencil) – shot to death.
- Patrick Orbuck (cousin of Jethro Orbuck and Alexander Orbuck, connected through Joshua and Hamilton Orbuck) – shot to death by U.S. Marshals.
Those executed later include:
- Alejandro Santana
- Jose Santana
- Francisco Santana
References[edit]
- ↑ Jacobs, W.T.J. (1982). Accounts of the Old West: Cowboys and Gunfights. St. Paul, Minnesota: Grandville Publishing. pp. 21–29, 46, 106–107. Search this book on
- ↑ "Old West Gunfights". Legends of America. Retrieved October 17, 2017.
- ↑ Brine, Alan (1964). History of the Arizona Territory, 1863–1912. Alan Brine. pp. 241–246. Search this book on
- ↑ Turner, Jim (2011). Arizona: A Celebration of the Grand Canyon State. pp. 198, 234. Search this book on
- ↑ Preston, Roger (1909). "Camels Blamed as Cause For Stencil-Orbuck Feud". El Centro Outlok.
- ↑ Browne, Andrew (1908). "Ranch Accounts, Transactions, Andrew Browne 1908–1909".
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 "Imperial County Sheriff's Office Records". ICSO. Retrieved October 17, 2017.
- ↑ "City of El Centro>Explore El Centro". Cityofelcentro.org.
- ↑ Hamm, Manfred (December 1909). "Stencil Acquitted in Orbuck Murder Trial". El Centro Outlook.
- ↑ Hamm, Manfred (January 1909). "Orbuck and Stencil Feud Claims Two More Family Members". El Centro Outlook.
- ↑ "City of Yuma>Search: Bixby Corral". City of Yuma.
- ↑ "City of Yuma>City Records". City of Yuma. Retrieved October 17, 2017.
- ↑ Lemming, Marten (2009). Last Gunfighters: The Tails of the Last Cowpokes in the West. Xlibris. pp. 19–29. Search this book on
- ↑ Johnson, Andrew (April 1909). "Four Killed at Stencil Family Ranch Following Gun Battle".
- ↑ Ancestry.com http://search.ancestry.com/search/db.aspx?dbid=8833. Missing or empty
|title=(help) - ↑ 16.0 16.1 California Prison Correctional Records 1851–1930. State of California. Search this book on
Further Reading[edit]
Family feuds in the United States
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