James Addison Reavis (May 10, 1843November 27, 1914), later using the name James Addison Peralta-Reavis, the so-called Baron of Arizona, was an American forger and fraudster. He is best known in association with the Peralta land grant, also known as the Barony of Arizona, a pair of fraudulent land claims, which if certified, would have granted him ownership of over of land in central Arizona Territory and western New Mexico Territory. During the course of the fraud, Reavis collected an estimated US$5.3 million in cash and promissory notes ($ in present-day terms) through the sale of quitclaims and proposed investment plans.
Under the terms of the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo and the Gadsden Purchase, the United States was required to recognize and honor existing land grants made by either the Spanish or Mexican governments. Reavis used this provision by manufacturing a fictional claim and then generating a collection of documents demonstrating how the claim came into his possession. The documents were then covertly inserted into various records archives. In his initial claim, Reavis claimed title to the grant via a series of conveyances. When serious challenges to this claim developed, Reavis developed a second claim by marrying the purported last surviving lineal descendant of the original claim recipient.
During the course of his deception, Reavis convinced prominent people to support his efforts. He obtained legal and political support from Roscoe Conkling, Robert G. Ingersoll, and James Broadhead. Business leaders such as Charles Crocker and John W. Mackay, in turn, provided financial support. Initial exposure of the fraud occurred when an unfavorable surveyor general report caused the claim to be summarily dismissed. In response to this action, Reavis sued the U.S. government for US$11 million in damages ($ in present-day terms). The suit, in turn, prompted the U.S. government to perform a detailed investigation that fully exposed the forgeries Reavis had planted in a variety of locations.
Early life
Reavis was born the second of five children to Fenton George Reavis and Mary Reavis (née Dixon) on May 10, 1843, in Henry County, Missouri, near the town of Clinton. His father was a Welshman who had immigrated to the United States in the early 1820s. His mother was of Scottish and Spanish descent and proud of her Spanish heritage. The family lived on a small farm and owned a small tannery. Reavis received little formal education, but his mother read Spanish Romantic literature to him, and he developed a grandiose and eloquent writing pattern. In 1857, the family sold their farm and moved to Montevallo, Missouri, where they opened a store.
Following the outbreak of the American Civil War, Reavis enlisted in Hunter's Regiment of the Confederate Army, 8th Division of the Missouri State Guard. Several months later, he went to Springfield and re-enlisted in Captain Lowe's company. Initially holding dreams of glory, the 18-year-old Reavis soon discovered the realities of military life did not match his romanticized ideals. About this time, he accidentally discovered that he could accurately reproduce his commanding officer's signature. Using this new-found skill, Reavis began producing passes to avoid the drudgery of army life, and instead spent time visiting his mother. When his fellow soldiers noticed the frequency and manner by which he obtained his passes, Reavis began selling forged passes to them. When some of his superiors became suspicious of Reavis, he obtained leave supposedly to get married, but instead used it to surrender to Union forces. Following his surrender, Reavis joined the Union Army and briefly served in an artillery regiment.
Following the war, Reavis traveled to Brazil and learned Portuguese. He returned to St. Louis, Missouri, near the end of 1866. There, he worked a series of jobs, including streetcar conductor, traveling salesman, and clerk at a variety of retail stores. Eventually, he found success as a real-estate agent. After several small real-estate deals, Reavis saved enough money to open his own office. He then discovered that the skills he learned forging army passes allowed him to adjust real-estate paperwork and correct imperfect property titles. In one established instance, he aided in this manner a man seeking to purchase a tract of land near St. Louis. Three generations of documents accumulated by the selling family were unable to establish clear title for the land. Reavis was able to produce a yellowed and fading 18th-document that all previous searches had failed to notice. Accepted as valid by all parties to the transaction, this (forged) document allowed his client to complete the transaction.