Fort Bliss Monitor

Guardians of the Pass – the story of the U.S. Army in El Paso

Soon to be triumphant Mexican revolutionary cavalry rides out of the Lower Valley (on the south side of the river) towards Juarez, ca. 1911.

Editor’s note: The birthday of Fort Bliss is approaching and The Monitor will feature a multipart series taken from “Guardians of the Pass, The story of the U.S. Army in El Paso.” We hope the series informs our readers about the longstanding history and friendship Fort Bliss and the El Paso community have shared over the years.

Chapter 8 - Trouble on the border

The 20th of November 1910 marked the beginning of the Mexican Revolution. Its basis was opposition to the often elected (de facto dictator) President Díaz and was largely fought in the northern Mexican states bordering the U.S. El Paso and Juarez were a hotbed of activity with arms and munitions being purchased over the counter, or by the boxcar load, or by being smuggled across the river. With over 1900 miles of border to patrol, the Army, Texas Rangers, U.S. Marshals and Customs Service personnel present for duty at that time, could not begin to exercise control. Francisco Madero was the political leader of the revolution. Pasqual Orozco, Victoriano Huerta, Emiliano Zapata, Alvaro Obregón, Venustiano Carranza and Francisco Villa were also key players in the struggle to wrest Mexico from Díaz. Fighting moved closer to Juarez in January of 1911, and by February revolutionary forces led by Orozco were preparing to attack.

The 4th Cavalry arrived at Fort Bliss on Feb. 8, with 248 officers and enlisted troops bringing the post strength to 538, and immediately began patrolling the border. An additional 165 troopers from the 4th arrived, along with the regimental commander Col. Edgar G. Steever, in March. Reinforcements also reached the federal garrison in Juarez. Orozco withdrew toward Casas Grande and was convincingly defeated in one of the few large force-on-force battles of the revolution. By April, however, he was again menacing Juarez. Steever, commander of the newly designated El Paso Patrol District, was stretched thin by lack of available soldiers to execute the task at hand – security of the border and the city of El Paso.

A truce between the revolutionaries and federal troops in Juarez was agreed to on April 23, and representatives held talks almost daily across the river from the smelter until on May 8 the battle for Juarez began. Stray bullets flew freely into El Paso as Col. Steever’s troops tried to keep the citizens of El Paso from watching the fight from the river bank. Fierce fighting continued until the commander of the federal garrison surrendered on May 10, 1911. With the capture of Juarez, the U.S. War Department lifted the arms embargo for the Madero forces, and on May 22, an agreement was reached between Madero and the Mexican government to allow Díaz to abdicate, elections to be held and an interim president to take charge.

By June, patrols and guards in town at the international bridges were reduced, and activities on post regained a semblance of normalcy. Secretary of War Henry Stimson and the Army Chief of Staff Gen. Leonard Wood arrived in October to inspect post. Col. Edwin F. Glenn had taken command of post on the 6th of August and had already stood a command inspection from Department Commander Brig. Gen. J.W. Duncan. Fort Bliss was getting looked at very closely for the first time. It was decided that the post would convert from infantry to cavalry in response to the increased mission importance of patrolling the border. The 4th Cavalry, with a strength of 15 officers and 334 troopers, became the garrison as the 23rd Infantry was transferred out. Continued unrest in Juarez faced the garrison at Fort Bliss, as Mexicans crossed the river by the thousands; many plotted against the citizens and U.S. forces at the Pass. Orozco, once Madero’s most able military leader, turned against him and led a revolt in the state of Chihuahua.

Arms smuggling became big business again in the El Paso area. The government had agreed to sell Madero munitions, but selling to Orozco’s forces was prohibited. Large amounts of arms and ammunition were purchased and smuggled across the river, however, and border clashes between Army patrols and smugglers were not uncommon. Their vigilance paid off as weapons and ammunition crossing the border was stifled. As a result the Orozquistas were defeated by the federal army at Rellano and Bachimba and were forced back toward Juarez.

Col. Steever was promoted and given command of the Department of Texas in May of 1912. Well aware of the difficulties of ensuring the security of the border in the El Paso Patrol District, Steever increased the number of troops at Fort Bliss. The 2nd Cavalry, with almost 400 officers and men, replaced the 4th Cavalry in June, with 347 more recruits reporting to post later that month.

Orozco was on the run and ordered his forces to break into small groups and leave Juarez to fight another day. Gen. Huerta’s federal troops then occupied Juarez unopposed on Aug. 20. Orozco’s forces captured Ojinaga, southeast of El Paso, then lost it to the Mexican Army a few days later. The U.S. began assisting the Mexican Army by transporting them by rail to the fight. The ongoing rebellion by Orozco convinced the War Department that Fort Bliss was the most important post on the border and El Paso the most important city. It was decided to make Fort Bliss a regimental post and place it in the newly formed Southern Department.

Events took an unexpected turn when Huerta overthrew Madero and had him executed in February 1913. President Woodrow Wilson refused to recognize the Huerta government, and in northern Mexico new revolutionary forces calling themselves Constitutionalists rose to resist him. Francisco “Pancho” Villa captured Torreón, then Juarez, and on Nov. 22 defeated a large federal force at Tierra Blanca. Retreating to Ojinaga, Huerta’s forces were again defeated on Jan. 14 and 5,325 federal troops crossed the Rio Grande to Presidio. These troops and additional civilian refugees were transported to Fort Bliss and held until being shipped to Fort Wingate for internment. The Constitutionalists controlled northern Mexico. Armies under Villa and Obregón moved south and by July 1914 Huerta left Mexico to escape capture.

Villa now fell out with Obregón and the new president, Carranza, and was defeated by federal forces that had so recently been his allies. He withdrew to Chihuahua, then to El Paso, living in exile for several months while reorganizing his forces. Brig. General John J. Pershing arrived with the 8th Infantry Brigade to take command of the El Paso Military District in April 1914 and immediately deployed them in El Paso, increasing security at the bridges and along the river. Conditions along the border were charged. Pershing held a meeting with Obregón and Villa in El Paso and at Fort Bliss in an effort to defuse the situation, but conditions continued to deteriorate. Scott, now Army Chief of Staff after having served as commander of the Southern Department, came back to El Paso and met with Villa twice, in January (persuading him not to attack Naco, Arizona) and August of 1915 (getting him to rescind an order to seize foreign holdings). Villa trusted Scott and hoped the U.S. would give him support. Taking the field against Obregón, Villa’s forces were soundly defeated at Palomas and Sonora; matters were made worse for him, by recognition of the Carranza government and movement of Mexican troops by the U.S. on the north side of the border to reinforce threatened federal garrisons.

The situation in Chihuahua was still unsettled, but the federal government was moving to consolidate their power by reinforcing the garrison in Juarez. Pancho Villa was now on the run after a series of defeats, and violence against foreign nationals and pro-government civilians in northern Mexico intensified. Villa forces took 17 mine employees off a train in Mexico on Jan. 10, 1916, and murdered them. The news quickly reached El Paso, and an angry mob of more than 1,500 Anglos rose up on the Mexicans in the Chihuahuaita area south of downtown and beat them severely. When the police could not control the rioters, a battalion of the 16th Infantry quickly moved in to restore order. Villa denied responsibility for the murders, but was indicted by the American media that had once glorified him.

Reasons are not clear for what happened next, but before dawn on March 9, 1916, Villa’s forces attacked Columbus, N.M. During the attack, 7 soldiers from the 13th Cavalry and 8 civilians were killed. Reacting quickly, the U.S. force killed 67 Villistas, and with two troops of cavalry pursued their attackers back into Mexico, killing an estimated 70-100 more. The attack was a tactical defeat for Villa but a major embarrassment to the United States. The Army was directed to enter Mexico and apprehend Villa, and on March 10, Gen. Frederick Funston, commander of the Southern Department, placed Pershing in charge of forces to conduct the operation that came to be known as “The Punitive Expedition.” On March 15, U.S. forces crossed into Mexico at Columbus and began the pursuit that would last until Feb. 5, 1917. Although not successful in capturing Villa, the United States Army gained valuable training in the field and in mobilizing troops for combat.

Fort Bliss became the support base for the operation and provided troops for the expedition and for the base camp at Columbus. Tensions remained strained along the border, and now El Paso and Fort Bliss were lightly defended. The units remaining were the 7th Infantry, nine troops of the 8th Cavalry and Battery A, 5th Field Artillery. Upon arrival of the 23rd Infantry Regiment on March 13, and Brig. Gen. George Bell to replace Pershing as El Paso Patrol District commander on the 14th, troop strength increased to 2,700. This number would be greatly increased by President Woodrow Wilson’s mobilization of the National Guard on May 9 and June 18, to protect the border. Of the more than 100,000 called to duty, over 60,000 would be assigned and receive training in the El Paso area.

Relations with the Mexican government became stormy with the incursion of the Punitive Expedition into Mexico. President Carranza viewed the pursuit as an affront to the sovereignty of his country while President Wilson had assumed he would appreciate the help. Carranza did see Villa as a problem, but as a Mexican problem, and demanded the immediate withdrawal of the expedition. Negotiations between Minister of War Obregón, Scott and Funston in Juarez did not resolve the crisis, and clashes between forces along the border and in the interior at Parral and Carrizal brought the United States and Mexico to the brink of war.

The danger of war with Mexico would gradually subside as U.S. participation in a larger conflict began to loom large. The war in Europe had been grinding on for three years, and increased German belligerence and intrigue had almost pushed this country from its stance of neutrality. President Wilson ordered the Punitive Expedition brought to a close and the last troops left Mexico on Feb. 5, 1917. Pershing was welcomed back to El Paso and command of the patrol district with a large parade and promotion to major general. Within days, Funston died in San Antonio, and Pershing was named to replace him as commander of the Southern Department.
“Guardians of the Pass – The story of the U.S. Army in El Paso” will continue in next week’s edition of The Monitor.



www.bliss.army.mil	Published for the Fort Bliss/El Paso, Texas Community	November 10 , 2004

	Guardians of the Pass – the story of the U.S. Army in El Paso Soon to be triumphant Mexican revolutionary cavalry rides out of the Lower Valley (on the south side of the river) towards Juarez, ca. 1911. Editor’s note: The birthday of Fort Bliss is approaching and The Monitor will feature a multipart series taken from “Guardians of the Pass, The story of the U.S. Army in El Paso.” We hope the series informs our readers about the longstanding history and friendship Fort Bliss and the El Paso community have shared over the years. Chapter 8 - Trouble on the border The 20th of November 1910 marked the beginning of the Mexican Revolution. Its basis was opposition to the often elected (de facto dictator) President Díaz and was largely fought in the northern Mexican states bordering the U.S. El Paso and Juarez were a hotbed of activity with arms and munitions being purchased over the counter, or by the boxcar load, or by being smuggled across the river. With over 1900 miles of border to patrol, the Army, Texas Rangers, U.S. Marshals and Customs Service personnel present for duty at that time, could not begin to exercise control. Francisco Madero was the political leader of the revolution. Pasqual Orozco, Victoriano Huerta, Emiliano Zapata, Alvaro Obregón, Venustiano Carranza and Francisco Villa were also key players in the struggle to wrest Mexico from Díaz. Fighting moved closer to Juarez in January of 1911, and by February revolutionary forces led by Orozco were preparing to attack. The 4th Cavalry arrived at Fort Bliss on Feb. 8, with 248 officers and enlisted troops bringing the post strength to 538, and immediately began patrolling the border. An additional 165 troopers from the 4th arrived, along with the regimental commander Col. Edgar G. Steever, in March. Reinforcements also reached the federal garrison in Juarez. Orozco withdrew toward Casas Grande and was convincingly defeated in one of the few large force-on-force battles of the revolution. By April, however, he was again menacing Juarez. Steever, commander of the newly designated El Paso Patrol District, was stretched thin by lack of available soldiers to execute the task at hand – security of the border and the city of El Paso. A truce between the revolutionaries and federal troops in Juarez was agreed to on April 23, and representatives held talks almost daily across the river from the smelter until on May 8 the battle for Juarez began. Stray bullets flew freely into El Paso as Col. Steever’s troops tried to keep the citizens of El Paso from watching the fight from the river bank. Fierce fighting continued until the commander of the federal garrison surrendered on May 10, 1911. With the capture of Juarez, the U.S. War Department lifted the arms embargo for the Madero forces, and on May 22, an agreement was reached between Madero and the Mexican government to allow Díaz to abdicate, elections to be held and an interim president to take charge. By June, patrols and guards in town at the international bridges were reduced, and activities on post regained a semblance of normalcy. Secretary of War Henry Stimson and the Army Chief of Staff Gen. Leonard Wood arrived in October to inspect post. Col. Edwin F. Glenn had taken command of post on the 6th of August and had already stood a command inspection from Department Commander Brig. Gen. J.W. Duncan. Fort Bliss was getting looked at very closely for the first time. It was decided that the post would convert from infantry to cavalry in response to the increased mission importance of patrolling the border. The 4th Cavalry, with a strength of 15 officers and 334 troopers, became the garrison as the 23rd Infantry was transferred out. Continued unrest in Juarez faced the garrison at Fort Bliss, as Mexicans crossed the river by the thousands; many plotted against the citizens and U.S. forces at the Pass. Orozco, once Madero’s most able military leader, turned against him and led a revolt in the state of Chihuahua. Arms smuggling became big business again in the El Paso area. The government had agreed to sell Madero munitions, but selling to Orozco’s forces was prohibited. Large amounts of arms and ammunition were purchased and smuggled across the river, however, and border clashes between Army patrols and smugglers were not uncommon. Their vigilance paid off as weapons and ammunition crossing the border was stifled. As a result the Orozquistas were defeated by the federal army at Rellano and Bachimba and were forced back toward Juarez. Col. Steever was promoted and given command of the Department of Texas in May of 1912. Well aware of the difficulties of ensuring the security of the border in the El Paso Patrol District, Steever increased the number of troops at Fort Bliss. The 2nd Cavalry, with almost 400 officers and men, replaced the 4th Cavalry in June, with 347 more recruits reporting to post later that month. Orozco was on the run and ordered his forces to break into small groups and leave Juarez to fight another day. Gen. Huerta’s federal troops then occupied Juarez unopposed on Aug. 20. Orozco’s forces captured Ojinaga, southeast of El Paso, then lost it to the Mexican Army a few days later. The U.S. began assisting the Mexican Army by transporting them by rail to the fight. The ongoing rebellion by Orozco convinced the War Department that Fort Bliss was the most important post on the border and El Paso the most important city. It was decided to make Fort Bliss a regimental post and place it in the newly formed Southern Department. Events took an unexpected turn when Huerta overthrew Madero and had him executed in February 1913. President Woodrow Wilson refused to recognize the Huerta government, and in northern Mexico new revolutionary forces calling themselves Constitutionalists rose to resist him. Francisco “Pancho” Villa captured Torreón, then Juarez, and on Nov. 22 defeated a large federal force at Tierra Blanca. Retreating to Ojinaga, Huerta’s forces were again defeated on Jan. 14 and 5,325 federal troops crossed the Rio Grande to Presidio. These troops and additional civilian refugees were transported to Fort Bliss and held until being shipped to Fort Wingate for internment. The Constitutionalists controlled northern Mexico. Armies under Villa and Obregón moved south and by July 1914 Huerta left Mexico to escape capture. Villa now fell out with Obregón and the new president, Carranza, and was defeated by federal forces that had so recently been his allies. He withdrew to Chihuahua, then to El Paso, living in exile for several months while reorganizing his forces. Brig. General John J. Pershing arrived with the 8th Infantry Brigade to take command of the El Paso Military District in April 1914 and immediately deployed them in El Paso, increasing security at the bridges and along the river. Conditions along the border were charged. Pershing held a meeting with Obregón and Villa in El Paso and at Fort Bliss in an effort to defuse the situation, but conditions continued to deteriorate. Scott, now Army Chief of Staff after having served as commander of the Southern Department, came back to El Paso and met with Villa twice, in January (persuading him not to attack Naco, Arizona) and August of 1915 (getting him to rescind an order to seize foreign holdings). Villa trusted Scott and hoped the U.S. would give him support. Taking the field against Obregón, Villa’s forces were soundly defeated at Palomas and Sonora; matters were made worse for him, by recognition of the Carranza government and movement of Mexican troops by the U.S. on the north side of the border to reinforce threatened federal garrisons. The situation in Chihuahua was still unsettled, but the federal government was moving to consolidate their power by reinforcing the garrison in Juarez. Pancho Villa was now on the run after a series of defeats, and violence against foreign nationals and pro-government civilians in northern Mexico intensified. Villa forces took 17 mine employees off a train in Mexico on Jan. 10, 1916, and murdered them. The news quickly reached El Paso, and an angry mob of more than 1,500 Anglos rose up on the Mexicans in the Chihuahuaita area south of downtown and beat them severely. When the police could not control the rioters, a battalion of the 16th Infantry quickly moved in to restore order. Villa denied responsibility for the murders, but was indicted by the American media that had once glorified him. Reasons are not clear for what happened next, but before dawn on March 9, 1916, Villa’s forces attacked Columbus, N.M. During the attack, 7 soldiers from the 13th Cavalry and 8 civilians were killed. Reacting quickly, the U.S. force killed 67 Villistas, and with two troops of cavalry pursued their attackers back into Mexico, killing an estimated 70-100 more. The attack was a tactical defeat for Villa but a major embarrassment to the United States. The Army was directed to enter Mexico and apprehend Villa, and on March 10, Gen. Frederick Funston, commander of the Southern Department, placed Pershing in charge of forces to conduct the operation that came to be known as “The Punitive Expedition.” On March 15, U.S. forces crossed into Mexico at Columbus and began the pursuit that would last until Feb. 5, 1917. Although not successful in capturing Villa, the United States Army gained valuable training in the field and in mobilizing troops for combat. Fort Bliss became the support base for the operation and provided troops for the expedition and for the base camp at Columbus. Tensions remained strained along the border, and now El Paso and Fort Bliss were lightly defended. The units remaining were the 7th Infantry, nine troops of the 8th Cavalry and Battery A, 5th Field Artillery. Upon arrival of the 23rd Infantry Regiment on March 13, and Brig. Gen. George Bell to replace Pershing as El Paso Patrol District commander on the 14th, troop strength increased to 2,700. This number would be greatly increased by President Woodrow Wilson’s mobilization of the National Guard on May 9 and June 18, to protect the border. Of the more than 100,000 called to duty, over 60,000 would be assigned and receive training in the El Paso area. Relations with the Mexican government became stormy with the incursion of the Punitive Expedition into Mexico. President Carranza viewed the pursuit as an affront to the sovereignty of his country while President Wilson had assumed he would appreciate the help. Carranza did see Villa as a problem, but as a Mexican problem, and demanded the immediate withdrawal of the expedition. Negotiations between Minister of War Obregón, Scott and Funston in Juarez did not resolve the crisis, and clashes between forces along the border and in the interior at Parral and Carrizal brought the United States and Mexico to the brink of war. The danger of war with Mexico would gradually subside as U.S. participation in a larger conflict began to loom large. The war in Europe had been grinding on for three years, and increased German belligerence and intrigue had almost pushed this country from its stance of neutrality. President Wilson ordered the Punitive Expedition brought to a close and the last troops left Mexico on Feb. 5, 1917. Pershing was welcomed back to El Paso and command of the patrol district with a large parade and promotion to major general. Within days, Funston died in San Antonio, and Pershing was named to replace him as commander of the Southern Department. “Guardians of the Pass – The story of the U.S. Army in El Paso” will continue in next week’s edition of The Monitor.