Part of our in-depth series exploring the forts of Apacheria
28 October, 1880; Southwestern Texas: Renegade Mimbres Apache leader Victorio finally met his destruction at the hands of Mexican soldiers at Tres Castillos in Chihuahua on 14 October 1880. Not knowing his fate, about 35 warriors were about to cross the Rio Grande to join him. On the river below Ojo Caliente, south of the Quitman Mountains, the Apaches spotted 12 soldiers. Under Sgt. Charles Perry, the troopers were on picket duty for Capt. Theodore A. Baldwin's detachments of Companies B, I, and K, 10th Cavalry. The Apaches jumped the soldiers and, firing at point-blank range, killed five. The Indians escaped across the Rio Grande with four horses and two mules.
Bill Yenne gives the following version from his book, Indian Wars.
In September, Victorio's band went on the offensive, with a series of major raids across southwestern New Mexico that are often referred to as the Victorio War. On September 4, they attacked the U.S. Army post at Ojo Caliente, killing five soldiers and three civilians while making off with a substantial number of livestock.