b'Gunfights continued from page 9Now that weve seen a little bit about their backgroundsPhys boarding house to warn him that Gabriel is in and political differences, we can look at some of thetown. At that, Phy grabs his gun belt and other extenuating circumstances that caused seriousbowie knife and heads for the contention between the two men. Keatings. Once Phy got to theGabriel hadsaloon he peeked in through After Sheriff Gabriels last election in 84, he appointedthe front window. Pete spotted achieved a reputation asJoe Phy to be his deputy. Unfortunately, Phys bad attitudehim and reached for his gun, but a quick gun hand. This wasand quick temper got him in hot water with his bossPhy disappeared from sight. Patrons the sheriff. Pete was forced to arrest his deputy; once forcontinued to come and go reinforced by the absence ofdisorderly conduct and again when he pistol-whipped athroughout the afternoon andhis pistols missing trigger guardman in the street for saying something that didnt sit wellPete moved his hand close with Phy. In the heat of the moment, Joe also blindly tookto the six-shooter in his and front sight on his Colts hardware. a swing at a woman who was trying to make Phy stopbelt every time someone beating the man. Pete had no choice but to fire his deputy.walked in through thesheriffs office. Pete allegedly sent the doctor away Gabriel left the office at the end of his term in 1886 justdoorjust in case. because he had attended to Phy first. Another doctor, as he had planned. He retired to his mine in the DrippingThomas Sabin, was summoned from Sacaton. After Springs Mountains, only occasionally venturing to townHowever, it wasnt untiltraveling four-and-a-half hours, the doctor reached for supplies and to conduct business. 8 p.m. that Phy returned.Petes bedside and told the ex-sheriff the same kind He busted through theof news he had heard one time before, You are shot Over the next two years, Peter Gabriel and Joe Phyfront door with histhrough the intestines and right lungyour condition is only added more fuel to the increasing bad-blood firepistol drawn. Pete yelledhopeless. Pete shrugged this off as he had previously in between them. Gabriel always seemed to be in his cupsout Joe! and both men began firing. One accountLos Angeles. Tough old bird he was and true to his word, and mean as a snake while Joe allowed his hatred tomaintains an errant bullet extinguished the only lightPete was back on his feet within a monthsix months fester over having been arrested and publicly humiliatedin the room and the saloon plunged into darkness. Petelater, he was back in the saddle as a deputy sheriff, by Gabriel. Even so, the pot hadnt boiled over yetbut,followed down the bar toward Phy11 shots were firedhunting the enigmatic stage robber Ham Whitea by golly, it was getting there. through the smoke and darkness. Phy lunged forwardyear later he was a member of the manhunt after the and fired point-blank into Petes chest. The bullet toreinfamous Apache Kid, who was partly (if not mostly) We have all the pieces in place and now we can getinto Petes one remaining good lung. The next slugresponsible for what became known as the Kelvin Grade down to the notorious gunfight itself. There are severalpierced his intestines. Incredibly, he managed to remainMassacre while on the way to Yuma Territorial Prison.different versions of how the shooting unfolded. Andstanding, continuing to move forward as Phy continued as is usually the case most versions differ mainly due toto back out the door, both still shooting. Peter Gabriel finally retired from the law business and what is typical of the eye-witness reports syndrome. . .returned to his mining interests at Dripping Springs.rarely are two testimonies ever exactly the same. One of Petes bullets hit Phy in the left thigh andAfter all he had been through, on July 29, 1898, friends shattered the bone while another slammed into his belly.of Peter Gabriel discovered him dying at his camp. It is May 31, 1888, and Peter Gabriel is making one ofPhy buckled over in pain as he fell through the door ontoIronically, the general belief was that he had died his periodic pilgrimages to Florence down from thethe sidewalkPete moved in and fired the last drinking poisonous water. However, not everybody Riverside area. He is traveling with his friend Mike Riceround at point-blank range. It crashed into Phys rightbought into that story.who later recalled that by the time they reached theirshoulder and drilled down through both lungsJoe let destination, Gabriel was all in, from consuming theout a gasp, Oh, my God, Im down! One of the people who did not was his long-time friend, liquid libation that accompanied them on such trips.Michael Rice, who contended that Pete was too much Almost immediately upon his arrival, he is warnedFor all intents and purposes, Phy should have known heof a miner and desert man to make so stupid a mistake. that Joe Phy is looking to pick a fight. Pete paid littlewas done, but the Bowie knife lashed out defiantly withThe friends who found Gabriel buried the body near attention to the threat and made his way to Johnthe declaration, You murdering SOB! As quickly as ithis camp. The gravesite was never even marked until Keatings Tunnel Saloon for more drinks. From mosthad started, it was over. Owner John Keating stood in the1936 when a group of former friends from Florence witness accounts it seems as though Gabriel was notdoorway of the Tunnel Saloon gazing out at the chaoticgot together and erected a headstone recognizing his looking for a confrontation, but knowing what we know,aftermath. Some of the bystanders carried Joe Phy toaccomplishments as one of the best peace officers to ever he would more than accommodate whatever situationthe stage company corral where a doctor remarkablywear a badge.might be offered up. removed one of the bullets, but couldnt do much more. Phy died from internal bleeding at 12:30 a.m. Well, there you have it. After all is said and done, J. Peter Just as is in most small towns, this kind of newsGabriel and Josephus Phy did fight one of the most gets around fast. Sidney Bartleson, a friend of Phys,Friends carried Peter Gabriel to annotorious gunfights has seen Pete enter the saloon and has rushed toadobe house next to the Pinal Countyin Arizona history. However, there are many more adventures to explore about these two men and the many other early pioneers with whom they associated. And even more than that, the next time youre scratching your head for something to do, keep the town of Florence in mind. Today the whole town is regarded as a National Historic District. It has two museums and over 25 buildings listed on the National Register of Historic Places.For the many visitors that means you can literally step back into an exciting time in our western history and literally walk where they walked as the saying goes. There are some things that just never change. 10 August 2021'