CHIRICAHUA APACHE HOMELAND IN THE BORDERLAND SOUTHWEST*

The creation of the present United States‐Mexico boundary in the mid‐nineteenth century interrupted and disregarded the traditional territorial space of the Chiricahua Apache, whose ancestral homeland transcended this new line. As a result of their land claims, the United States created a reservation for the Chiricahua Apache, but it was later withdrawn. Today members of this group officially reside among Mescalero Apache in New Mexico and Fort Sill Apache in Oklahoma. This essay assesses the historic and contemporary impact of geographical borderland changes for the Chiricahua Apache and discusses the legacy of a transformed homeland.