Robert H. Birch

Robert H. Birch
An illustration of Robert Birch from the Edward Bonney book The Banditti of the Prairies, Or, The Murderer's Doom!!: A Tale of the Mississippi Valley at 18 years old in 1846 being pursued by the law toward the end of his outlaw period with the Midwestern criminals the "Banditti of the Prairie".
Born	Robert Henry Birch c. 1827 New York[1] or North Carolina[2]
Died	c. 1866 (aged 39) Arizona Territory, present-day Arizona
Other names	Robert Birch, Henry Birch, "Three-Fingered" Birch, Robert Harris, R. Harris, R. Haris, Haris, Owin, Haines, Gains, Thomas Brown, Tom Brown, Robert Blecher, R.H. Blecher
Occupation(s)	bandit, burglar, prospector, postmaster, soldier
Employer(s)	Confederate States government, self-employed
Known for	Being an accomplice in the torture-murder of Colonel George Davenport and a member of the notorious Banditti of the Prairie
Military career
Allegiance	Confederate States Confederate Arizona Territory
Service / branch	Confederate Army
Years of service	1862-1865
Unit	Company A, Arizona Rangers Colonel John Salmon Ford's Second Texas Cavalry
Battles / wars	American Civil War

Robert H. "Three-Fingered" Birch, born Robert Henry Birch (c. 1827 – c. 1866), was a 19th-century American adventurer, criminal, soldier, lawman, postmaster, and prospector. He was a member of the infamous "Banditti of the Prairie" in his youth, whose involvement in the torture-murder of Colonel George Davenport in 1845 led to his turning state's evidence against his co-conspirators. Birch was also the discoverer of the Pinos Altos gold mine with Jacob Snively and James W. Hicks. During the American Civil War, he served in the American Southwest with the Confederate forces of the Arizona Rangers and 2nd Texas Cavalry.