John the Baptist Mountains
Encyclopedia
The John the Baptist Mountains are a small mountain range
in western Pima County, Arizona
, approximately 8.5 miles southwest of the town of Ajo, Arizona
. The range is approximately three miles long and about one mile wide at its widest point. The highpoint of the range is 2,161 feet above sea level and is located at 32°15'24"N, 112°54'24"W (NAD 1983 datum). The bulk of the range lies on lands administered by the Bureau of Land Management
, and a small portion extends westward into the Cabeza Prieta National Wildlife Refuge
.
The range is named for John C. Butala, a hermit who lived for a number of years in a shack on the range's eastern side. Butala was a veteran of the Spanish-American War
and World War I
. He chose to spend the last decades of his life as a hermit living in the desert. There was some belief that he had been gassed and/or shell shocked during his military service. He was known as an eccentric with long matted hair, and most of the year he would wear only tennis shoes and a loincloth made from gunnysacks. He was also known for feeding and befriending a variety of desert wildlife around his camp, and some became so tame that they would eat out of his hand. It is likely that the nickname of "John the Baptist
" derived from this behavior and his appearance as a wild-eyed desert prophet. Despite his eccentric ways, he was known for his mechanical and engineering abilities, and he would regularly be summoned into town to repair automobiles and heavy equipment at the New Cornelia Mine. He died in 1961 and is buried in Ajo.
Mountain range
A mountain range is a single, large mass consisting of a succession of mountains or narrowly spaced mountain ridges, with or without peaks, closely related in position, direction, formation, and age; a component part of a mountain system or of a mountain chain...
in western Pima County, Arizona
Arizona
Arizona ; is a state located in the southwestern region of the United States. It is also part of the western United States and the mountain west. The capital and largest city is Phoenix...
, approximately 8.5 miles southwest of the town of Ajo, Arizona
Ajo, Arizona
Ajo is a census-designated place in Pima County, Arizona, United States. The population was 3,705 at the 2000 census. Ajo is located on State Route 85 just from the Mexican border. It is the closest community to Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument....
. The range is approximately three miles long and about one mile wide at its widest point. The highpoint of the range is 2,161 feet above sea level and is located at 32°15'24"N, 112°54'24"W (NAD 1983 datum). The bulk of the range lies on lands administered by the Bureau of Land Management
Bureau of Land Management
The Bureau of Land Management is an agency within the United States Department of the Interior which administers America's public lands, totaling approximately , or one-eighth of the landmass of the country. The BLM also manages of subsurface mineral estate underlying federal, state and private...
, and a small portion extends westward into the Cabeza Prieta National Wildlife Refuge
Cabeza Prieta National Wildlife Refuge
The Cabeza Prieta National Wildlife Refuge is located in the Sonoran Desert in southwestern Arizona in the United States. The refuge, established in 1939 to protect Desert Bighorn Sheep, is located along of the U.S.-Mexico border, and covers 860,010 acres — larger than the land area of the state...
.
The range is named for John C. Butala, a hermit who lived for a number of years in a shack on the range's eastern side. Butala was a veteran of the Spanish-American War
Spanish-American War
The Spanish–American War was a conflict in 1898 between Spain and the United States, effectively the result of American intervention in the ongoing Cuban War of Independence...
and World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
. He chose to spend the last decades of his life as a hermit living in the desert. There was some belief that he had been gassed and/or shell shocked during his military service. He was known as an eccentric with long matted hair, and most of the year he would wear only tennis shoes and a loincloth made from gunnysacks. He was also known for feeding and befriending a variety of desert wildlife around his camp, and some became so tame that they would eat out of his hand. It is likely that the nickname of "John the Baptist
John the Baptist
John the Baptist was an itinerant preacher and a major religious figure mentioned in the Canonical gospels. He is described in the Gospel of Luke as a relative of Jesus, who led a movement of baptism at the Jordan River...
" derived from this behavior and his appearance as a wild-eyed desert prophet. Despite his eccentric ways, he was known for his mechanical and engineering abilities, and he would regularly be summoned into town to repair automobiles and heavy equipment at the New Cornelia Mine. He died in 1961 and is buried in Ajo.