Canyon Lake is known for its beauty and recreation, but the canyon above it also holds a painful history: the Skeleton Cave Massacre.
On December 28, 1872, during General George Crook's Tonto Basin campaign, U.S. Army soldiers of the 5th Cavalry and their scouts attacked a band of Yavapai people — men, women and children — sheltering in a cave high in the Salt River Canyon, a short distance from what is now Canyon Lake. Dozens were killed; accounts put the number somewhere between about 50 and more than 70.
The attack came during years of conflict, as Yavapai and Apache peoples faced the loss of their land, broken promises, and forced removal to reservations.
The remains of those killed were left in the cave for decades, which is how it came to be called Skeleton Cave. In 1933 they were moved to Fort McDowell. Today the Yavapai people continue to remember those lost in the canyon.
When you paddle the quiet water of Canyon Lake, take a moment to remember the people who lived here long before us. Knowing this history makes the place mean more — and reminds us to treat this land with respect.
Sources: Skeleton Cave (Arizona), Arizona Highways.
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