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Chappo (1867-1894) was the first son of Apache leader Geronimo. When he was captured in 1886, he was sent to the Carlisle School in Pennsylvania. After contracting tuberculosis, he was sent back to live with his family at Mt. Vernon, Alabama where he died. Chappo is buried near Mobile, Alabama.
Chappo in Southern Victory[]
Chappo was Geronimo's eldest son and right hand man. He was schooled in both Spanish and English, making an excellent mediator for his father. In 1881, the Mexican provinces of Sonora and Chihuahua were sold to the Confederate States, sparking the Second Mexican War.
After witnessing Confederate General Jeb Stuart out fox the US Commander at Contention City, he was allowed to approach him and offer an alliance between the Apache and the Confederates in order to punish the Yankees who'd been brutalizing his people for so long.
Because he could speak English well, he was often present at Jeb Stuart's side, translating for his father. Stuart noticed that Chappo and his cousin Batsinas were astute observers, easily able to comprehend the tricks of the Confederates and even apply them to his fight against the US Army. This worried Stuart greatly, and it later came back to haunt him. In December 1881, fighting broke out between the Apache and the Mexican locals of the town of Cananea after an Apache named Yahnozha was ambushed by the family of Maria Guerrero, who claimed that Yahnozha had raped her.
