Feared by both American & Mexican soldiers, Geronimo was the last of the great, courageous & determined Apache war leaders, who rebelled against the reservation system through a long bloody history of warfare. He led his band against the forces of the U.S. Army for 18 years & finally surrendered to General Nelson Miles on September 4, 1886. Photo by Ben Wittick, 1885. Duotone. Geronimo, Spanish for Jerome, was called Goyathlay (one who yawns) to his native people. A medicine man and prophet of the Chiricahua Apache, Geronimo acquired notoriety through his opposition to the authorities in the late 19th century. Born about 1834 at the headwaters of Gila River, New Mexico, He became a warrior at a young age, but it was the slaughter of his family that turned him from a peaceful Indian into a bold warrior. Soon, he joined a fierce band of Apaches known as Chiricahuas. Geronimo would fight through the decades to avoid living on a reservation.