An in depth look at one man's silent protest against the first World War that turned into the deadliest shootout in Arizona's history.
On the evening of February 9th, 1918 three local lawmen and one federal officer rode into the Arizona wilderness to apprehend four men on counts of draft evasion and murder. The violence that followed has been so steeped in legend, lies, and hearsay, that the facts of what occurred at that remote cabin and why were almost lost to history. Contemporary interviews with historians and family members, archival footage, and original artwork tell the story of the events leading up to and following the deadliest shootout in Arizona's history.—Cameron Trejo
The Power shootout was the deadliest gunfight in Arizona history--four men died in a remote mountain cabin in the winter of 1918. The story is clouded with mystery, especially if we view this event as a relic of the Old West violence. The numerous books that have been written about the gunfight are filled with unsubstantiated rumors and conspiracy theories, as authors have tried to make sense of it all. Why did eight men fight to the death on a cold winters morning in a remote canyon? They must have been feuding over a girl or perhaps over a gold mine. The Power men must have been outlaws, bootleggers, and cattle rustlers, refusing to adhere to the rules of civilized society. Or maybe they were just ignorant throwbacks to a prior century, confused by modern America and reluctant to embrace its many changes. At the time, Americans were buying cars, going to the movies, and embracing modern conveniences, and in 1920, for the first time, more Americans were living in urban areas than in rural areas. A shootout set in a remote and rugged canyon seemed so out of place 1918 as America was becoming a modern society.
