The Superstition Mountains

by Susan Page Davis

View of the Superstitions from the west side

The Superstition Mountains in southern Arizona offer beautiful views and are a popular hiking and rock climbing destination. Not far from Phoenix, the mountains can be seen for many miles.
 

The mountains got their name because early settlers heard of the many stories and myths told about them by the Apache and Pima Indians in the area. Later, the legend of the Lost Dutchman Gold Mine captured the imaginations of many. To read more about the Lost Dutchman’s Mine, see Nancy Farrier’s earlier post on this blog: http://www.hhhistory.com/2013/04/www.nancyjfarrier.com.html .

On the east side of the Superstions, near the trailhead of the Peralto Canyon trail.

The mountains were once known in Spanish as Sierra de la Espuma, mountain range of foam. The most prominent of the range is Superstition Mountain. Other prominent features include Peralta Canyon, Miner’s Needle, Weaver’s Needle, and Flat Iron Peak. Humans have lived in this area for many thousands of years.

Some Apache believe that a hole leading down into the lower world is located in the Superstition Mountains. Winds blowing from the hole are supposed to be the cause of severe dust storms in the Phoenix metropolitan region.

The Pima Indians have a detailed legend about a widespread flood that has similarities to the biblical account of Noah. In this tale, man was created by Cherwit Make, the Great Butterfly, who later became angry because of man’s bad behavior.

Legend of Suha

Suha, a Pima shaman, was warned by the creator, through the voice of the wind, that if people did not change, they would be destroyed by floods. When the people didn’t listen to Suha’s warnings, he and his wife were told to gather spruce gum and make a large, hollow ball. After stocking this structure with water and food, they crawled inside and sealed it.

The flood came, destroying the other people. Suha and his wife eventually landed in their gum ball on Superstition Mountain. Their food was nearly gone, and they were glad to find a prickly pear, or tuna cactus right outside when they opened a hole in the ball. They ate its fruit and waited. When the water subsided, they went down into the valley and created a new civilization.

This view was much like what stagecoach passengers saw in the 1880s.

There is much more to this myth, and you can read about it here.

Another Pima tale tells of Hauk, the “Devil of Superstition Mountain,” who stole one of Suha’s daughters. Suha followed and rescued his daughter, but some people believe the evil spirit still lurks behind Supersition Mountain and will not go there.







Giveaway:  I decided to use the Superstitions as part of the setting for an upcoming book.  If you would like to win a copy of my earlier book set in northern Arizona’s Four Corners area, leave a comment below and include your contact information. Almost Arizona is a historical romance. In it, you will find a sister’s love and her determination to clear her brother’s name when he is accused of murder.

Susan Page Davis is the author of more than sixty published novels. She’s always interested in the unusual happenings of the past. Her newest books include The Twelve Brides of Christmas and The Outlaw Takes a Bride. She’s a two-time winner of the Inspirational Readers’ Choice Award, and also a winner of the Carol Award and the Will Rogers Medallion, and a finalist in the WILLA Awards and the More Than Magic Contest. Visit her website at: www.susanpagedavis.com .

COWBOY SUPERSTITIONS

                                                           

Laurie Kingery here, and this month I thought I'd discuss some superstitions held by cowboys, which were surprising to me because cowboys are usually a clear-thinking lot. Apparently a lot of these superstitions are still rampant among some rodeo folk today—

One of the most widely-held superstitions is that it's bad luck to put your hat on the bed, especially brim-down, as the luck will run out. One practical reason was that back when bathing was infrequent, head lice were common, and placing the hat on the bed spread the nuisance. One remedy is to take the hat outside and stomp on it.

                                                 

Horseshoes have been considered lucky since the days of Celtic Britain, but only if they're put on the wall "heels up," like the letter "U" so the "luck woon't run out, as with hats.

Rodeo folk won't wear yellow in the arena, as it's considered unlucky. So is competing with change in one's pocket, as it might be all you get. Shaving before a performance is lucky—if one cleans up for Lady Luck, she'll favor you. It's a bad idea to eat chicken before a competition, as you are what you eat.

It was considered giving knives could sever the friendship, but misfortune is canceled if the receiver pays for a knife, even a penny. A wedding gift of knives I received once had a penny taped to the wood block into which they were inserted.

There are quite a few superstitions and folk beliefs connected with horses, too.

--If a horse steps on a wolf print, it will be crippled.

--Changing a horse's name is bad luck

--Inhaling a horse's breath is considered a whooping cough cure.

--Eating a hair from the horse's forelock is a cure for worms.

--Placing three hairs from a donkey's shoulders in a muslin bag worn      around the neck cures whooping cough or measles.

--Sitting backwards on a donkey cures snakebites and toothache.

--If you see a white dog you should be silent until you see a white horse.

--To predict the sex of an unborn foal, swing a nail tied from a hair in the mare's tail above her hips. If it doesn’t swing, she's not in foal. If it swings in a circle, it’s a filly; if it swings straight, a colt. 

                                                           

--Horse brasses (those decorative brass pieces on a harness) are there to protect the horses from witches.

                                                        

--Spotted horses are magical. Indians considered them "good medicine," too.

--If you lead a white horse through the house it will banish evil.

--A cure for founder, or lameness was pouring turpentine into a saucer and holding it against the horse's navel. It will be sucked up, and the founder will be gone.

--Warts can be cured by circling them with horse hairs.

What superstitions have you heard related to horses and the old west?

With thanks to "American Cowboy" magazine and Ultimatehorsesite.com, as well as Wikipedia.com

                                    Blessings, Laurie Kingery

    

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