By the time Viola was eighteen, the Howell family had moved to a ranch near Roswell in the New Mexico Territory.
With her father's blessing, the couple parted the next morning to Tularosa, also in the New Mexico Territory, where they wed on April 16.
John told her that he would send them to Texas to live with his brother, Viola convinced him not to do so because she was already feeling love for the children.
In order to get supplies, such as meat, the Slaughters had to travel through Apache territory, a trip which frightened Viola.
Beginning in the spring of 1883, John took his family on a trip that he thought would land him in Oregon, where he dreamed of having a ranch by Snake River.
She marveled at the views nearby and the fact that, just by walking from one side of the house to the other, she would be crossing countries every time.
She also joined Slaughter on his frequent trips to Mexico; they helped catch a killer there, and usually brought cattle from as far as Hermosillo.
Viola Slaughter would later tell Charles Morgan Wood that she heard one time that John had been killed in Mexico by Apaches, and she got on a wagon and headed towards the frontier.
The family dinners were equally known in Arizona society circles, as these usually included fresh vegetables, jam, cream, and other exquisite ingredients of the era.
The Slaughters were known for being an affable family, and the San Bernardino Ranch became a hang-out place for the rich, the poor, neighbors, friends, and passersby who happened to come along and felt like talking to someone.
In 1939, as the grand marshal of Douglas' town rodeo parade, she rode a horse through the streets of the border city.
On February 27, 1941, Addie Slaughter suffered a fatal heart attack while visiting Viola.