At the turn of the century, smuggling across the international border with Mexico was a serious problem. Arizona became a "dry" state with the banning of alcohol on January 1, 1915. But because Cochise County was bordered by "wet" Mexico and New Mexico, it quickly became a conduit for both American and Mexican alcohol smugglers.
Harry Wheeler, a former Captain of the Arizona Rangers and the Sheriff of Cochise County was an enthusiastic enforcer of the state's ban on the sale and manufacture of liquor. Throughout his tenure in office, Wheeler and his deputies arrested dozens of violators and routinely patrolled the border with New Mexico and the International Boundary with Mexico for smugglers. Several of Wheeler's deputies engaged bootleggers in shootouts throughout Cochise Count
.JPG)