OLD WEST LEGENDS

The Bloody Espinosas - Terrorizing Colorado

In the spring of 1863, residents and travelers through Colorado Territory feared for their lives as account after account of vicious murders were reported and lone riders disappeared, only for their bodies to be later found in a remote a gulley or hidden in the brush of the mountainsides. The murders were a mystery. No one knew who was responsible as the perpetrators left no clues. Numerous look-outs were posted throughout the regions of the killings, but they had no idea who to look for -- Indians, a gang, or a lone vagabond desperado. 

The first victim was found in May, 1863, his corpse mutilated and the heart hacked out of his chest. During that summer, twenty-five more people were attacked and killed in a similar fashion. Only when a wagon was attacked along a road to Fairplay, Colorado and the driver was lucky enough to get away, were the murderers finally recognized.

They were Felipe and Jose Espinosa, who led a gang made up of their cousins, who soon took on the nickname of the "Bloody Espinosas." The Espinosas who came from Vera Cruz, Mexico, had witnessed the killing of six family members when their town was shelled by the U.S. Navy during the Mexican-American War.

Living near the village of San Rafael, Colorado the Espinosas were not only embittered by the earlier killing of their family members, but also because they claimed their land grant in Conejos County wasn't being honored and numerous white settlers were squatting upon their property. The Espinosa brothers had earlier been suspected of horse stealing, but now they were wanted for murder.

According to local legend, Felipe Espinosa claimed to have had a vision from the Virgin Mary telling him to kill 100 Anglos for every member of his family lost during the Mexican-American War. Hotly pursued by lawmen, Espinosa sent a letter to Governor John Evans, threatening to kill 600 "Gringos," including the governor, if he and the other members of the gang were not granted amnesty and some 5,000 acres in Conejos County, Colorado. The Governor soon called upon the U.S. Cavalry to help track down the murderers.

Somewhere along the line, Felipe's brother, Jose was killed, but his place was taken by a cousin named Julian Espinosa and their deadly vendetta continued as more and more men were killed. By their own admission, the Espinosas killed some 32 people.

In the meantime, the cavalry called upon well known frontiersman and scout, Tom Tobin, to use his tracking skills to find the murderers and bring them in dead or alive. Following the ambush and murder of a man and his wife on La Veta Pass, Colonel Sam Tappen, commanding officer at Fort Garland, called upon well known frontiersman and scout, Tom Tobin, to use his tracking skills to find the murderers and bring them in dead or alive. Accompanied by a detachment of 15 soldiers, Tobin set out to find the outlaws. A few days later, Tobin left the camp alone, accompanied only by a Mexican boy. Within just a few days, he had tracked the outlaws and when a gunfight erupted he shot both Felipe and his cousin, Julian. He then returned to Fort Garland, with their heads in a sack. Though he anticipated receiving the $2,500 reward on their heads, he only received $1,500.

© Kathy Weiser/Legends of America, updated February, 2008.

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