Suppliers to the Vulture Mine cut down most of the nearby ironwood trees for fuel. One of those that remained stood outside Henry Wickenburg’s old cabin. This tree became known as "The Hanging Tree." The tree wasn’t very tall, but it had the main requirement: it had branches several inches taller than its victims.

We know that men were hung on this tree for committing rape and murder. There are persistent tales of men being hung for highgrading, but there are no actual records. The names of most of the men and their crimes are not remembered; no one wrote them down. But legend says that at least eighteen men ended their lives on the Hanging Tree at Vulture City.