The Remote Oatman Family Massacre Site and the Story of Olive Oatman

I appreciate videos like this. I'm disabled, poor and couldn't do these walks if I wanted to. Videos like this are the only way I can actually see these places.

As a guy who's kicked around the California and Arizona wildernesses for most of my years, I really appreciate the "Deeper History" you research and bring to light about these places, as a history geek and "Historical Marker Junkie" myself, the familiarity with a lot of these places plus the bonus information you always manage to find, both recall fond memories of the sites and excite my thirst for the "Behind the Scenes" knowledge of these places. Thank you so much for your scholarly approach and hands on guides!

I’m loving these historical stories of your Wild West. Thank you from Scotland 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿

Anyone who is raised wearing shoes, having their shoes removed then forced to walk 60 miles barefoot through the Arizona desert is truly amazing. Thank you for telling this story. It is not hard to see why the trappers, traders, homesteaders and all western pioneers had a negative opinion of the native tribes.

Honestly, there's a lot of little known but important history lessons like this out there. The problem I have is usually the one telling the stories. Too often, people try to turn them into hour long videos, and they add so much filler that the actual story gets lost. I'm very impressed by this video. Thank you for keeping with the storyline.

Thank you. We live in Arizona, and have heard of Olive Oatman, and her family's massacre many times. But your photography and narrative brought it alive.

You are an EXCELLENT narrator - thank you for uploading this.

I've heard of Olive Oatman, but I didn't know the whole story. She was given honor in a show called "Hell on Wheels" which is about the building of the Trans Continental Railroad. One of the characters in the show is loosely based on her story. Thanks once again for your great videos and history lessons.

Thanks for remembering the Oatman family. Very sad story.

I read "Girl with the Blue Tattoo" some years ago. It's very interesting and sad to see the sites where her family was killed. Thank you for sharing this!

Great telling of the story. Of all the telling of this tale you are the only one who pointed out that the south side of the Gila River was then Mexico. That is the reason Lorenzo wasn't able to get help from the military at that time.

Like many who Ride In The Sidetrack Adventures Posse, I too have seen the photo of Olive Oatman and heard and watched many replicated stories about this tragic massacre. Your rendition Steve is by far the Best. You always take a full dive into the researching and come up with information that perfectly connects all the dots. Details such as Olive and her sister having to walk those 60 plus miles barefooted and the tattooing they received so that they eventually reached the Land of The Dead as a Mojave! The amount of detail, work and physical hiking to get the best up close shots for us Fans is never lost on us Steve...Thank You! As a brother, I very much respect young Lorenzo and his fortitude. MOO From COW-lumbus, Ohio 👋🙏

Love your videos and thanks for the time you spend making them. A ancestor of mine, Robert Kelly, was first on scene and helped bury the bodies. He mentioned in his memoirs about how sad and tragic it was. He went to Carlsbad a short time later and ran Rancho Agua Hedionda.

Very well done, Steve! I'd heard of Olive Oatman and had seen her photo, but I learned a lot more from your video. As always, beautiful choice of music and great editing. And I'm always impressed by your steady camera work as you make your way over rough ground!

Steve, that was an exceptional rendering of this sad and somewhat redemptive story. I can't imagine what the survivors endured. I think you have everything in place to do some national and even wordly documentaries.

Thanks very much for this adventure, Steve. I am familiar with the story of the Oatman Massacre and Olive. I've also been to Oatman, Arizona close to half a dozen times. (Viewers: you must visit Oatman!) I have often wondered how easy it might be to visit the massacre site, and I can't tell you how many times I thought of one day trying to visit it when passing the exit close to it off of I 8. Boggles the mind what Olive and her little sister and Lorenzo had to face after the massacre. What strength and resilience! So poignant too how Lorenzo never stopped trying to be reunited with Olive, and that the reunion happened. I hope that the parents died quickly from their injuries as well as the other children. Those westward pioneers were very courageous people in forging forward despite the risks of such attacks. I remember as a school child when one of my classmates brought the braided hair of one of his ancestors who had been scalped by a tribe somewhere in Kansas to school for show and tell! Boy did that make an incredible impression on me. Thanks for the adventure, Steve!

As a native San Diegan and trucker for 30+ years, I have gone past the exit for Oatman countless times without knowing their story. Marvelous presentation and work with your video! Thank you.

I love listening to the story of what happened as you walked through the place where it happened. With such a simple, straightforward delivery, I was captivated by your storytelling.

I live in Toronto Canada. Rented a car a few years back and tried to make it to this site....but road was too rough. So thanks for this video! Very interesting to see the actual spot!

These stories you tell are made so much more interesting because you visit the places while explaining them. Thank you for doing this I enjoy them