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117-618: The Sand Creek massacre of Cheyenne people on November 29, 1864 intensified Indian reprisals and raids in the Platte River valley. (See Battle of Julesburg ) After the raids, several thousand Sioux, Cheyenne and Arapaho congregated in the Powder River country, remote from white settlements and confirmed as Indian territory in the 1851 Treaty of Fort Laramie . The Indians perceived the Bozeman Trail, blazed in 1863 through

234-634: A battle. “ I went to different lodges to shake hands with Black Kettle, Little Robe, Bear Tongue, Red Moon and lot of my friends that I was with at battle of Sand Creek that were going back with Black Kettle (George Bent to George Hyde, 1/12/1906). I am not a big war chief, but all the soldiers in this country are at my command. My rule of fighting white men or Indians is to fight them until they lay down their arms and submit to military authority. They are nearer to Major Wynkoop than any one else, and they can go to him when they get ready to do that. On June 15, 1864, Major T.I. McKenny, Assistant Adjutant-General of

351-645: A brave and numerous foe. Within weeks, however, witnesses and survivors began telling stories of a possible massacre. Several investigations were conducted—two by the military, and one by the Joint Committee on the Conduct of the War . The panel declared: As to Colonel Chivington, your committee can hardly find fitting terms to describe his conduct. Wearing the uniform of the United States, which should be

468-600: A major's uniform coat during the sack of Julesburg in January 1865 and wore it throughout this campaign.) Sawyers agreed to give the supplies, which included a wagon full of sugar, bacon, coffee, flour, and tobacco. When the wagons began moving again, the Natives attacked again, killing Privates Anthony Nelson, and John Rawze. The soldiers fired back, killing two warriors, and the Native Americans quickly withdrew from

585-747: A new treaty. On February 18, 1861, six chiefs of the Southern Cheyenne and four of the Arapaho signed the Treaty of Fort Wise with the United States, in which they ceded most of the lands designated to them by the Fort Laramie treaty. The Cheyenne chiefs included Black Kettle , White Antelope (Vó'kaa'e Ohvó'komaestse), Lean Bear , Little Wolf , and Tall Bear; the Arapaho chiefs included Little Raven , Storm, Shave-Head, Big Mouth , and Niwot , or Left Hand. The Cheyenne warriors denounced

702-594: A peace parley held in Denver in September 1864. After a while, the American Indians were asked to relocate to Big Sandy Creek , less than 40 miles northwest of Fort Lyon, under the threat of their safety. The Dog Soldiers , who had been responsible for many of the attacks and raids on whites, were not part of this encampment. Most tribal warriors stood their ground, refusing to leave their home under

819-525: A separate band of Cheyenne and Lakota warriors. They took as their territory the area around the headwaters of the Republican and Smoky Hill rivers in southern Nebraska, northern Kansas, and the northeastern Colorado Territory. By the 1860s, as the conflict between natives and encroaching whites intensified, the Dog Soldiers and military societies within other Cheyenne bands countered the influence of

936-409: A single regret." The newly arrived Regular Army soldiers of the 18th Infantry constructed a log stockade around the unprotected garrison buildings, complete with log bastions on the northwest and southeast corners. They also built a sturdy adobe commanding officer's quarters. In 1867, the post was renovated and expanded. The garrison ranged from 125 to a high of 300 soldiers. The second battalion of

1053-648: A wagon train full of supplies, left Fort Laramie , Dakota Territory on August 1, 1865, to unite with Cole's and Walker's columns. One of his guides was mountain man Jim Bridger . Connor's column proceeded northward, and in August established Fort Connor on the upper Powder River. On August 13, 1865, Captain Frank J. North of the Pawnee Scouts was riding with some of his men near the Crazy Woman's Fork of

1170-562: A wagon train, would move toward the Powder River with the goal of establishing a fort near the Bozeman trail. All three columns were to unite at the new fort. Connor's orders to his commanders were as follows, "You will not receive overtures of peace or submission from Indians, but will attack and kill every male Indian over twelve years of age." Connor's superiors, Generals John Pope and Dodge attempted to countermand this order, but it

1287-508: A woman's private parts out and had them for exhibition on a stick. I heard of one instance of a child, a few months old, being thrown into the feed-box of a wagon, and after being carried some distance, left on the ground to perish; I also heard of numerous instances in which men had cut out the private parts of females and stretched them over their saddle-bows, and some of them over their hats." During these investigations, numerous witnesses came forward with damning testimony, almost all of which

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1404-794: A wooden fort established on August 15, 1865 by the United States Army in Dakota Territory in present-day Johnson County, Wyoming . The fort was built to protect travelers on the Bozeman Trail from Native American tribes . One of the primary goals of the Powder River Expedition of 1865 was to construct a fort on the Powder River in Montana Territory or Dakota Territory . The expedition's left, or western column of about 650 men under

1521-553: A wounded warrior. At 2:00 a.m. on August 16, 1865, the Captain and his Scouts caught up with the group on the Powder River about 50 miles north of Fort Connor. The Cheyennes had made their camp for the night and were asleep, and North decided to wait until dawn to attack. In the morning, his group closed in on the camp. Spotting the scouts, the Cheyennes mistook North's party for friendly Cheyennes, and made no hostile moves. Then,

1638-524: Is unknown. It is likely higher. George Bent, a Dog Soldier in Black Kettle’s camp, wrote about going on wagon train raids. “Cheyennes made good many raids towards Denver” (Bent to Hyde 5-3-1905). George Bent, a half-Cheyenne, who was a Dog Soldier(Warrior) in Black Kettle’s camp at Sand Creek, wrote letters to historians about the Cheyenne way of life and his experience at Sand Creek. He called Sand Creek

1755-552: The 11th Ohio Volunteer Cavalry Regiment , Company F, of the 7th Iowa Volunteer Cavalry Regiment , a detachment of the United States Signal Corps , the Pawnee Scouts and a section of two Model 1841 Mountain Howitzers manned by 14 soldiers of the 2nd Missouri Volunteer Light Artillery Regiment . On August 15, 1865, Colonel Kidd's column selected the site of the fort on a bluff above the Powder River near

1872-663: The 16th Kansas Volunteer Cavalry Regiment , along with a second detachment of the U.S. Signal Corps. Most of these men marched south to Fort Laramie in October, 1865 to be mustered out of the army, leaving the four companies of Michigan cavalry under Colonel James H. Kidd to garrison the fort. The Bozeman Trail, built as a way around the Bighorn Mountains, crossed the Powder River at Fort Connor, offering emigrants traveling on it protection. Buildings constructed at Connor had sod-covered roofs and dirt floors. In October 1865,

1989-480: The 1st Colorado Cavalry Regiment attacked Cheyenne men near Frémont's Orchard without any first attempt at parley or peace. On April 13, a herdsman working for Irving, Jackmann & Company reported that Cheyennes and Arapahos had driven off 60 oxen and 12 horses and mules from their camp south of Denver. George Bent (a half-Cheyenne, half-white man who survived the ensuing Sand Creek Massacre along with other members of his family and tribe) disputes this version of

2106-698: The 6th Michigan Volunteer Cavalry Regiment commanded by Colonel James H. Kidd had recently been transferred from the Civil War battlefields of Virginia, and most of Cole's and Walker's men had been active in the Western Theater during the last years of the war. Few of the men and officers had any experience fighting Indians or traveling on the Great Plains . Procuring supplies was also a problem. Brigadier General Patrick E. Connor and his 675 soldiers, Indian scouts, and civilian teamsters, along with

2223-595: The Battle of South Mountain , Maryland , while commanding the Union IX Corps at Fox's Gap. The name had no connection with Major Marcus Reno , a member of the 7th Cavalry who fought in the Battle of the Little Bighorn . The garrison of the fort endured the harsh winter of 1865–1866, and during this time suffered 33 casualties from desertions, illnesses, one soldier killed by an accidental gunshot, and

2340-489: The Black Hills . He had likewise suffered from shortages of water, and had lost several of his soldiers of the 16th Regiment Kansas Volunteer Cavalry from bad water. The two columns marched separately, but remained in contact as they moved west to Powder River in Montana Territory . By this time, some of the men were barefooted and many of the horses and mules were growing weak. On the morning of September 1, 1865,

2457-934: The Chivington massacre , the battle of Sand Creek or the massacre of Cheyenne Indians ) was a massacre of Cheyenne and Arapaho people by the U.S. Army in the American Indian Wars that occurred on November 29, 1864, when a 675-man force of the Third Colorado Cavalry under the command of U.S. Volunteers Colonel John Chivington attacked and destroyed a village of Cheyenne and Arapaho people in southeastern Colorado Territory , killing and mutilating an estimated 70 to over 600 Native American people. Chivington claimed 500 to 600 warriors were killed. However, most sources estimate around 150 people were killed, about two-thirds of whom were women and children. The location has been designated

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2574-624: The Department of Kansas warned his superior, General Samuel Ryan Curtis that a few more reckless murders of Indians by the Volunteers risked uniting the various tribes into a general war against the US Army: I think if great caution is not exercised on our part there will be a bloody war. It should be our policy to try and conciliate them, guard our mails and trains well to prevent theft, and stop these scouting parties that are roaming over

2691-540: The Pikes Peak Gold Rush . Immigrants flooded across Cheyenne and Arapaho lands. They competed for resources, and some settlers tried to stay. Colorado territorial officials pressured federal authorities to redefine the extent of Indian lands in the territory, and in the fall of 1860, A.B. Greenwood, Commissioner of Indian Affairs, arrived at Bent's New Fort , along the Arkansas River, to negotiate

2808-655: The Sand Creek Massacre National Historic Site and is administered by the National Park Service . The massacre is considered part of a series of events known as the Colorado Wars . By the terms of the 1851 Treaty of Fort Laramie between the United States and seven Indian nations, including the Cheyenne and Arapaho, the United States recognized that the Cheyenne and Arapaho held a vast territory encompassing

2925-465: The Smoky Hill River country of Kansas, along which whites had opened a new trail to the gold fields. Cheyenne who opposed the treaty said it had been signed by a small minority of the chiefs without the consent or approval of the rest of the tribe, that the signatories had not understood what they signed, and that they had been bribed to sign by a large distribution of gifts. Officials took

3042-621: The Tongue River . The next day, August 29, Connor attacked the village, whose leader was Black Bear , with 215 California, Iowa, and Ohio cavalrymen and over 80 Pawnee, Omaha, and Winnebago Scouts. The people in the village were primarily women, children, and old men. Most of the warriors were absent, engaged in a war with the Crow on the Bighorn River . The surprised Indians fled the village, but regrouped and counterattacked, and Connor

3159-645: The "battles and engagements" fought by Colorado troops in the American Civil War . In 2002, the Colorado Historical Society (now History Colorado ), authorized by the Colorado General Assembly , added an additional plaque to the monument, which states that the original designers of the monument "mischaracterized" Sand Creek by calling it a battle. After the actual details of the massacre became widely known,

3276-673: The 18th Infantry, which was renamed the 27th United States Infantry Regiment in 1867, endured the routines of garrison life and the harsh winters and hot summers, occasionally skirmishing with hostile Indians and keeping the southern end of the Bozeman Trail open and passable. In 1868 the Fort Laramie Treaty ended Red Cloud's War and essentially ceded the Powder River Country to the Lakota Sioux . Along with Forts C.F. Smith and Phil Kearny , Fort Reno

3393-449: The 2nd Missouri Light Artillery Regiment. Shortly after leaving the camp, warriors ambushed this party, and in the following battle, five of these seven soldiers became casualties, with two killed, one mortally wounded, and two wounded. Later that night, two unknown U.S. soldiers in a hunting party were killed. The known Sioux Casualties during the battle of Alkali Creek, are four unknown warriors killed, and four unknown warriors wounded. On

3510-401: The 68-96 or more natives killed, 14 or more wounded, and 18 Arapaho captured. Connor finally united all the components of his expedition on September 24, 1865, at Fort Connor. However, orders transferring him to Utah were awaiting him when he arrived there. The 16th Kansas Volunteer Cavalry remained to staff Fort Connor and all other troops withdrew to Fort Laramie, most to be mustered out of

3627-536: The 6th Michigan and Colonel Kidd turned the garrison of Fort Connor over to Captain George W. Williford, and Companies C, and D, of the 5th United States Volunteer Infantry Regiment , companies of the Galvanized Yankees , and a company of Indian scouts. In November 1865, its name was changed to Fort Reno, in honor of Major General Jesse Lee Reno , who had been mortally wounded on September 14, 1862 at

Powder River Expedition (1865) - Misplaced Pages Continue

3744-465: The Arapaho en route. The Arapaho, who had not been overly hostile before, now joined the Sioux and Cheyenne. Meanwhile, an expedition commanded by Lieutenant Colonel James A. Sawyers consisting of train of 80 wagons, engineers, supplies, and escorting soldiers of Companies C and D of the 5th U.S. Volunteer Infantry was traveling toward the Powder River with plans to continue on to Montana. Sawyers' group

3861-468: The Bozeman trail farther to the north. When Carrington reached the post, only 104 of the original 137 men of Companies C, and D, 5th U.S.V.I. remained, the rest having died mainly of illness and scurvy. Colonel Carrington left Companies B, E, and H of the 18th Infantry to garrison the post, and resumed his march north on the Bozeman trail on July 9, 1866, while the 5th U.S.V.I. traveled south to Fort Kearney, Nebraska to muster out on October 11, 1866, "without

3978-401: The Cheyenne came to Denver to have peace talks with Governor Evans. At this conference, the chiefs were told by Governor Evans that peace was not possible at that point and that "whatever peace they make must be with the soldiers, and not with me." At this council, White Antelope said that he feared the soldiers might kill some of his people while he was there. Governor Evans told him that there

4095-438: The Cheyenne, was among those who were killed. Ochinee and 160 other people, most of whom were children and women, were killed. Grandfather Ochinee (One-Eye) escaped from the camp, but seeing all that his people were to be slaughtered, he deliberately chose to go back into the one-sided battle and die with them. Meanwhile, Chivington and 425 men of the 3rd Colorado Cavalry rode to Fort Lyon arriving on November 28, 1864. Once at

4212-464: The Indians never would eat "tame meat" when they could get buffalo." A small contingent of soldiers, led by Lieutenant Clark Dunn, was sent to repossess the livestock. The ensuing confrontation resulted in the death of four of the soldiers, and the tribes maintained possession of the stolen livestock. Lieutenant George Eayre was also sent to find and demand return of the oxen. If the animals' return

4329-530: The Indians then moved north into Nebraska on their way to the Black Hills and the Powder River Country . Black Kettle continued to speak for peace and did not join in the second raid or in the journey to the Powder River country. He left the camp and returned with 80 lodges to the Arkansas River to seek peace with the Coloradans. Initially, the Sand Creek engagement was reported as a victory against

4446-611: The Joint Committee on the Conduct of the Wars' recommendation, no charges were brought against those who committed the massacre. Chivington was beyond the reach of army justice because he had already resigned his commission. The closest thing to a punishment he suffered was the effective end of his political aspirations. A monument installed on the Colorado State Capitol grounds in 1909 lists Sand Creek as one of

4563-521: The Kansas City or old Santa Fe road. As the conflict between the Indians and settlers and soldiers in Colorado continued, the tribes would make war during the spring and summer months until subsistence became difficult to obtain. The tribes would then earnestly seek to make peace during the winter months, when they would stock up on supplies, arms, and munitions, until fairer weather would return and

4680-468: The Masikota, who by that time had allied, were not present at Sand Creek. Of about 10 lodges of Arapaho under Chief Left Hand, representing about 50 or 60 people, only a handful escaped with their lives. After hiding all day above the camp in holes dug beneath the bank of Sand Creek, the survivors there, many of whom were wounded, moved up the stream and spent the night on the prairie. Trips were made to

4797-531: The Pawnees suddenly charged in on the surprised Cheyennes, quickly killing all 24, including Yellow Woman, the stepmother of George Bent . The Pawnees lost 4 horses, but captured 18 horses and 17 mules, many with government brands showing they had been captured in the recent battles at Red Buttes and Platte Bridge Station on July 26. Connor marched north from Fort Connor, and on August 28, his Pawnee scouts discovered an Arapaho village of about 600 people encamped on

Powder River Expedition (1865) - Misplaced Pages Continue

4914-460: The Powder River. Cole ordered the train, out of the timber and corralled, and the 12th Missouri Cavalry to skirmish through the woods along the river bank, and to drive out a body of Indians in the woods. The soldiers pushed the warriors off the battlefield. Near the end of the engagement, another Private was wounded. At least one Native American was killed in the engagement. A snowstorm during the night of September 8–9, 1865, caused further problems for

5031-437: The Powder River. North and his scouts spotted a small group of Cheyenne warriors, and commenced a chase. During the pursuit, North became separated from his men by about a mile, and the retreating warriors turned on him. One of the Cheyennes wounded North's horse, and the Captain got behind the downed animal and used it as a barricade, from which position he fought off his attackers. Scout Bob White came upon North and joined him in

5148-453: The Sioux, and Dull Knife of the Cheyenne, accompanied by George Bent and his brother, Charles Bent, of the Cheyenne negotiated with Lieutenant Colonel Sawyers for a safe passage of the wagon train in exchange for one wagon's load of supplies. Soldiers of the 5th U.S. Volunteer Infantry reported that at this time that the Cheyenne warrior George Bent was dressed in a United States military uniform. (Bent later reported that he had captured

5265-545: The United States federal government sent a blue ribbon commission whose members were respected by the Indians, and the Treaty of the Little Arkansas was signed in 1865. It promised the Indians free access to the lands south of the Arkansas River, excluded them from the Arkansas River north to the Platte River, and promised land and cash reparations to the surviving descendants of Sand Creek victims. However,

5382-466: The United States troops ... I saw one squaw lying on the bank, whose leg had been broken. A soldier came up to her with a drawn sabre. She raised her arm to protect herself; he struck, breaking her arm. She rolled over, and raised her other arm; he struck, breaking that, and then left her with out killing her. I saw one squaw cut open, with an unborn child lying by her side. There was one little child, probably three years old, just big enough to walk through

5499-415: The appointed place. The governor sent his guide, Elbridge Gerry, out to try to find the chiefs. Gerry returned two weeks later saying that a council had been held wherein the chiefs decided not to meet with Governor Evans. Bull Bear offered to meet with the governor, but his warriors would not allow it. At the end of 1863 and in the beginning of 1864, word was received that a coalition was to be formed among

5616-501: The army. Although achieving some successes, the expedition failed to defeat decisively or intimidate the Indians. The Cheyenne warrior, George Bent , a participant in the fighting on September 8, stated that the Lakota would have annihilated Cole's and Walker's columns had they possessed more good firearms. Indian resistance to travelers on the Bozeman Trail became more determined than ever. "There will be no more travel on that road until

5733-730: The attack. Captain Silas Soule , Lieutenant Joseph Cramer and Lieutenant James Connor protested that attacking a peaceful camp would violate the pledge of safety provided to the Indians and would dishonor the uniform of the Army. The following morning, Chivington gave the order to attack. Two officers, Captain Silas Soule and Lieutenant Joseph Cramer, commanding Company D and Company K of the First Colorado Cavalry, refused to obey and told their men to hold fire. However,

5850-503: The battle, the Indians broke up into small groups and dispersed for their summer buffalo hunt. A weakness of Indian warfare was that they lacked the resources to keep an army in the field for an extended period of time. Major General Grenville M. Dodge ordered the Powder River Expedition as a punitive campaign against the northern plains tribes in the heart of their territory. Brigadier General Patrick E. Connor

5967-487: The brains out of little innocent children. You call sich soldiers Christians, do ye? And Indians savages? What der yer s'pose our Heavenly Father, who made both them and us, thinks of these things? I tell you what, I don't like a hostile red skin any more than you do. And when they are hostile, I've fought 'em, hard as any man. But I never yet drew a bead on a squaw or papoose, and I despise the man who would. The natives, lacking artillery, could not make much resistance. Some of

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6084-527: The brutal slaughter of those who supported peace, many of the Cheyenne, including the great warrior Roman Nose , and many Arapaho joined the Dog Soldiers. They sought revenge on settlers throughout the Platte valley, including an 1865 attack on what became Fort Caspar , Wyoming. Following the massacre, the survivors reached the camps of the Cheyenne on the Smokey Hill and Republican rivers. The war pipe

6201-483: The chiefs who signed the treaty and even threatened them with death if they attempted to carry out the treaty's provisions. The new reserve, less than 1/13 the size of the territory recognized in the 1851 treaty, was located in eastern Colorado, between the Arkansas River and Sand Creek . Most bands of the Cheyenne, including the Dog Soldiers , a militaristic band of Cheyenne and Lakota that had originated in

6318-425: The command of Colonel James H. Kidd of the 6th Michigan Cavalry , accompanied by the expedition's overall commander Brigadier General Patrick E. Connor , set out from Fort Laramie , Dakota Territory on August 1, 1865. Army units with the column included Companies L, and M, of the 2nd California Volunteer Cavalry Regiment , four Companies of the 6th Michigan Volunteer Cavalry Regiment , Companies E, and K, of

6435-565: The corralled wagons. After burying Private Nelson beside Nathaniel Hedges, and being unable to locate the body of Private Rawze, the Sawyers Expedition continued on. On September 1, 1865, Arapaho warriors, infuriated by the destruction of their village on the Tongue River, attacked Sawyers' wagon train, killing three men. Two of the Arapaho warriors were killed. The wagon train was held under virtual siege for two weeks when it

6552-542: The country who do not know one tribe from another, and who will kill anything in the shape of an Indian. It will require but few murders on the part of our troops to unite all these warlike tribes of the plains, who have been at peace for years and intermarried amongst one another. I do wish that some prudent, good man could be placed in command of the troops along the roads from Smoky Fork, on the Leavenworth road, to Walnut Creek, and from Cow Creek thorough to Fort Lyon, on

6669-561: The crossing of the Bozeman Trail . Construction began the same day by the four companies of the 6th Michigan Cavalry that had recently been transferred from the Army of the Potomac in Virginia . The new post was named Fort Connor in honor of Brigadier General Patrick Edward Connor , the overall commander of the Powder River Expedition . That month, Fort Connor was the jumping-off point for

6786-506: The death of its commanding officer, Captain George W. Williford, who died of illness on April 29, 1866. Captain George M. Bailey became Williford's successor. On June 28, 1866 Colonel Henry Beebe Carrington and about 700 men of the 18th U.S. Infantry reached Fort Reno, relieving the galvanized yankees . The 18th Infantry had moved into the Powder River country to begin construction of posts ( Fort Phil Kearny and Fort C. F. Smith ) on

6903-579: The emblem of justice and humanity; holding the important position of commander of a military district, and therefore having the honor of the government to that extent in his keeping, he deliberately planned and executed a foul and dastardly massacre which would have disgraced the veriest savage among those who were the victims of his cruelty. Having full knowledge of their friendly character, having himself been instrumental to some extent in placing them in their position of fancied security, he took advantage of their in-apprehension and defenceless condition to gratify

7020-696: The era report that Cheyenne warriors attacked settlers and committed a number of atrocities in the summer of 1864 including the June 11 Hungate massacre . The beginning of the American Civil War in 1861 led to the organization of military forces in Colorado Territory. However, the attention of the federal government was firmly fixed on defeating the Confederates . As a result, there was no significant military protection of wagon trains, settlers, settlements, communication lines, and supply wagons in

7137-406: The expedition's wagons and Companies C, and I, of the 4th United States Infantry Regiment , under the overall command of Captain Edwin M. Coates. On March 5 Crook's command fought Indian warriors in the Fort Reno Skirmish directly across the river from the abandoned post. Later that year, the army would again use the site as a supply base, eventually establishing the Fort Reno Depot several miles to

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7254-422: The fight. Several more Pawnees arrived, and the small party then shot and wounded several of the warriors who then quickly fled. The fight at Crazy Woman's Fork was the first engagement of the Powder River Expedition . For two days, Captain North and his Pawnee Scouts trailed a band of Cheyennes who were heading north. The trail showed that the Cheyennes had about 40 horses and mules, along with one travoi carrying

7371-429: The final tally was 4 killed and 21 wounded in the 1st Colorado Cavalry and 20 killed or mortally wounded and 31 other wounded in the 3rd Colorado Cavalry; adding up to 24 killed and 52 wounded. Dee Brown wrote that some of Chivington's men were drunk and that many of the soldiers' casualties were due to friendly fire , but neither of these claims is supported by Gregory F. Michno or Stan Hoig in their books devoted to

7488-401: The fort, Chivington took command of 250 men of the 1st Colorado Cavalry and maybe as many as 12 men of the 1st Regiment New Mexico Volunteer Infantry , then set out for Black Kettle's encampment. James Beckwourth , a noted frontiersman who had lived with the Indians for half a century, acted as guide for Chivington. Prior to the massacre, several of Anthony's officers were not eager to join in

7605-931: The government takes care of the Indians," a correspondent wrote. The most important consequence of the expedition was to persuade the United States government that another effort to build and protect a wagon road from Fort Laramie to the gold fields in Montana was desirable. That conviction would lead to a renewed invasion of the Powder River country a year later and Red Cloud's War in which the Sioux, Cheyenne, and Arapaho would emerge victorious. United States Army Powder River Expedition, Brigadier General Patrick Edward Connor , commanding.         Colonel James H. Kidd    Lieutenant Colonel Samuel Walker    Colonel Nelson D. Cole Native Americans Native Americans               Sand Creek massacre The Sand Creek massacre (also known as

7722-425: The guise of a threat, leaving only about 75 men, plus all the women and children in the village. The men who remained were mostly too old or too young to hunt. Black Kettle flew a U.S. flag, with a white flag tied beneath it, over his lodge, as the Fort Lyon commander had advised him. This was to show he was friendly and forestall any attack by the Colorado soldiers. Peace chief Ochinee , who tried to broker peace for

7839-402: The heart of their country, as a threat. Although roads through the Indian territory were permitted by the Fort Laramie Treaty, they harassed miners and other travelers along the trail. At the Battle of Platte Bridge in July 1865, over a thousand warriors attacked a bridge across the North Platte River and succeeded in temporarily shutting down travel on both the Bozeman and Oregon Trails . After

7956-415: The lands between the North Platte River and the Arkansas River , and eastward from the Rocky Mountains to western Kansas . This area included present-day southeastern Wyoming , southwestern Nebraska , most of eastern Colorado , and the westernmost portions of Kansas. In November 1858, however, the discovery of gold in the Rocky Mountains in Colorado, then part of the Kansas Territory , brought on

8073-456: The late 1830s, were angry at the chiefs who had signed the treaty. They disavowed the treaty—which never received the blessing of the Council of 44 , the supreme tribal authority—and refused to abide by its constraints. They continued to live and hunt in the bison -rich lands of what's now eastern Colorado and western Kansas, and became increasingly belligerent over the tide of white migration across their lands. Tensions were high, particularly in

8190-473: The later accounts of survivors. These statements were filed with his reports and can be found in the Official Records of the War of the Rebellion , copies of which were submitted as evidence in the Joint Committee of the Conduct of the War and in separate hearings conducted by the military in Denver. Lieutenant James D. Cannon describes the mutilation of human genitalia by the soldiers, "men, women, and children's privates cut out. I heard one man say that he had cut

8307-504: The little child, but he missed him. A third man came up, and made a similar remark, and fired, and the little fellow dropped. Fingers and ears were cut off the bodies for the jewelry they carried. The body of White Antelope, lying solitarily in the creek bed, was a prime target. Besides scalping him the soldiers cut off his nose, ears, and testicles-the last for a tobacco pouch ... Jis' to think of that dog Chivington and his dirty hounds, up thar at Sand Creek. His men shot down squaws, and blew

8424-701: The massacre were the Wutapiu, Black Kettle's band. Perhaps half of the Hevhaitaniu were lost, including the chiefs Yellow Wolf and Big Man. The Oivimana, led by War Bonnet, lost about half their number. There were heavy losses to the Hisiometanio (Ridge Men) under White Antelope. Chief One Eye was also killed, along with many of his band. The Suhtai clan and the Heviqxnipahis clan under chief Sand Hill experienced relatively few losses. The Dog Soldiers and

8541-625: The massacre. Before Chivington and his men left the area, they plundered the teepees and took the horses. After the smoke cleared, Chivington's men came back and killed many of the wounded. They also scalped many of the dead, regardless of whether they were women, children, or infants. Chivington and his men dressed their weapons, hats, and gear with scalps and other body parts, including human fetuses and male and female genitalia. They also publicly displayed these battle trophies in Denver 's Apollo Theater and area saloons . Three Indians who remained in

8658-464: The mouth of Mizpah Creek in Custer County, Montana . There, the two Colonels decided to turn back around and retrace their steps south up the Powder River , to search for Connor's left column. The Indians attacked again on September 4 and 5, 1865, in present-day Custer County, Montana . They continued to harass Cole and Walker as the soldiers moved south up Powder River. On September 8, 1865,

8775-401: The murders and ensuing weakening of the peace faction exacerbated the developing social and political rift. Traditional council chiefs, mature men who sought consensus and looked to the future of their people, and their followers, were opposed by the younger and more militaristic Dog Soldiers. Beginning in the 1830s, the Dog Soldiers had evolved from a Cheyenne military society of that name into

8892-523: The natives cut horses from the camp's herd and fled up Sand Creek or to a nearby Cheyenne camp on the headwaters of the Smoky Hill River . Others, including the half-Cheyenne, half-white trader George Bent , fled upstream and dug holes in the sand beneath the banks of the stream. They were pursued by the troops and fired on, but many survived. Cheyenne warrior Morning Star said that most of the Indian dead were killed by cannon fire, especially those firing from

9009-539: The newly established Fort Connor on Powder River east of Kaycee, Wyoming . Cole, Walker and their soldiers arrived there on September 20, 1865. Connor deemed the soldiers unfit for further service and sent them back to Fort Laramie where most of them were mustered out of the army. Connor, Cole, Walker, and Sawyers sustained a combined total loss of 31 killed and 19 wounded. Cole claimed that his soldiers had killed two hundred Indians. By contrast, Walker said, "I cannot say as we killed one." Connor's command inflicted most of

9126-519: The next day, Saturday, September 2, 1865, there were at least three small skirmishes with warriors. In the first, at least one warrior was killed in the fight. In the second, no casualties were reported. In the third, later in the day, two soldiers were killed, while returning to camp after a hunting trip. In desperate need of supplies, Colonel Cole and Walker decided to follow Powder River north, to search for Brigadier General Patrick E. Connor 's column, and his wagon train. The expeditions continued north to

9243-633: The number of men killed. George Bent, the son of the American William Bent and a Cheyenne mother, who was in the village when the attack came and was wounded by the soldiers, gave two different accounts of the natives' loss. On March 15, 1889, he wrote to Samuel F. Tappan that 137 people were killed: 28 men and 109 women and children. However, on April 30, 1913, when he was very old, he wrote that "about 53 men" and "110 women and children" were killed and many people wounded. Although initial reports indicated 10 soldiers killed and 38 wounded,

9360-452: The over 1,400 United States soldiers and civilians, of Colonel Nelson D. Cole's column of the Powder River Expedition , were encamped on Alkali Creek, a tributary of the Powder River . This was in Montana Territory , in present-day Custer County, Montana . In the early morning, over 300 Hunkpapa, Sans Arc, and Miniconjou Lakota Sioux warriors attacked the camps' horse herd. The first of the soldiers to respond were seven men of Battery K, in

9477-498: The over 2,000 United States soldiers and civilians of Colonel Cole's and Walker's column's were marching South, up Powder River in Montana Territory. Unbeknownst to them, a village of Over 2,500 Cheyenne, Sioux, and Arapaho including the Cheyenne chief Roman Nose , were camped less than ten miles away. When discovering this, the Cheyenne, Sioux, and Arapaho warriors, not wanting the soldiers to attack their village, attacked

9594-426: The plains tribes to "drive the whites out of the country." In the spring and summer of 1864, the Sioux, Comanches, Kiowas, Cheyennes, and Arapahos were engaged in active hostilities which led to the murder of numerous civilians, the destruction of livestock and crops, supplies to the region being cut off, and the Colorado settlers in danger of starvation or murder at the hands of the plains tribes. On April 12, men of

9711-437: The position that Indians who refused to abide by it were hostile and planning a war. The Cheyenne started committing minor offenses in 1861. These offenses went unpunished and, subsequently, became more significant. The desire for war was so strong with the Cheyenne that Agent Lorey urged Governor John Evans to treat the Cheyenne anew in 1863. As agreed, Governor Evans went out to meet with the chiefs, but they did not show up to

9828-509: The protection of Major Wynkoop. 652 Arapahos led by Chief Little Raven appeared at Fort Lyon beginning around November 6, 1864, and were subsisted there by Major Anthony who had replaced Wynkoop. Later, when 600 Cheyenne appeared at the fort in a similar manner they were turned away and denied subsistence by Major Anthony. Black Kettle, leading chief of around 163 mostly Southern Cheyenne , had led his band, joined by some Arapahos under Chief Niwot , to Fort Lyon in compliance with provisions of

9945-543: The region. By the summer of 1864, nearly every stage was being attacked, emigrants were being cut off, and settlements were being raided continually. The settlers abandoned their farms and ranches and began seeking refuge in the major settlements such as Denver. A coordinated attack was carried out on August 8, 1864, where all the existing stage lines in the region were attacked. Between August 11 and September 7, Governor Evans sent multiple letters to Secretary of War Edward Stanton in an attempt to furnish military aid, but Stanton

10062-515: The rest of Chivington's men immediately attacked the village. Ignoring the U.S. flag and a white flag that was run up shortly after the attack began, they murdered as many of the Indians as they could. I saw the bodies of those lying there cut all to pieces, worse mutilated than any I ever saw before; the women cut all to pieces ... With knives; scalped; their brains knocked out; children two or three months old; all ages lying there, from sucking infants up to warriors ... By whom were they mutilated? By

10179-412: The sand. The Indians had gone ahead, and this little child was behind, following after them. The little fellow was perfectly naked, travelling in the sand. I saw one man get off his horse at a distance of about seventy-five yards and draw up his rifle and fire. He missed the child. Another man came up and said, 'let me try the son of a b-. I can hit him.' He got down off his horse, kneeled down, and fired at

10296-566: The site of the camp but very few survivors were found there. After a cold night without shelter, the survivors set out toward the Cheyenne camp on the headwaters of the Smoky Hill River. They soon met up with other survivors who had escaped with part of the horse herd, some returning from the Smoky Hill camp where they had fled during the attack. They then proceeded to the camp, where they received assistance. The massacre disrupted

10413-407: The soldiers first. The soldiers' lead guard, was marching about one quarter of a mile ahead of the column. This command was hit first. Out of the 25 men of the lead guard, two men became casualties. After seeing this first confrontation, Lieutenant Colonel Walker sent a courier back to inform Colonel Cole of the attack. At the time, Cole was overseeing the crossing of his wagon train to the east bank of

10530-456: The soldiers that fought at the Battle of the Tongue River on August 29, 1865 in present-day Sheridan County, Wyoming . The left, right, and center columns of the Powder River Expedition all finally rendezvoused at Fort Connor on September 25, 1865. Army units that arrived in September included companies from the 2nd Missouri Volunteer Light Artillery Regiment, 12th Missouri Volunteer Cavalry Regiment , 15th Kansas Volunteer Cavalry Regiment , and

10647-589: The soldiers, most of whom were now on foot, in rags, and reduced to eating raw horse meat. On the morning of September 10, 1865, Cole's, and Walker's column's were encamped near the confluence of the Little Powder River and the Powder River when Native American warriors appeared. There were volleys and some sporadic firing. On September 11, there was more light skirmishing. On September 13, two scouts from Brigadier General Connor's column found Walker's and Cole's column's on Powder River and informed them of

10764-464: The south bank of the river at the people retreating up the creek. In testimony before a Congressional committee investigating the massacre, Chivington claimed that as many as 500 to 600 Indian warriors were killed. Historian Alan Brinkley wrote that 133 Indians were killed, 105 of whom were women and children. White eyewitness John S. Smith reported that 70 to 80 Indians were killed, including 20 to 30 warriors, which agrees with Brinkley's figure as to

10881-568: The south. In the 1880s, soldiers buried in the post cemetery were reinterred in the Custer Battlefield National Cemetery near Crow Agency, Montana . The parade ground and surrounding area has generally returned to a natural prairie sod cover. The site, approximately 12 miles (19 km) northeast of Sussex, Wyoming , was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on March 28, 1970. There

10998-456: The story. According to Bent, "One day in April some Cheyennes from one of these camps were out hunting and found a number of oxen straying about among the sand hills. As they did not know to whom the animals belonged they drove them to camp, intending to keep them until someone could lay claim to them.... The Indians had no use for the oxen; there were plenty of buffalo on that range that winter, and

11115-476: The traditional Cheyenne power structure, because of the deaths of eight members of the Council of Forty-Four . White Antelope, One Eye, Yellow Wolf, Big Man, Bear Man, War Bonnet, Spotted Crow, and Bear Robe were all killed, as were the headmen of some of the Cheyenne military societies. Among the chiefs killed were most of those who had advocated peace with white settlers and the U.S. government. The net effect of

11232-462: The traditional Council of Forty-Four chiefs who, as more mature men, took a larger view and were more likely to favor peace with the whites. To the Dog Soldiers, the Sand Creek massacre illustrated the folly of the peace chiefs' policy of accommodating the whites through treaties such as the first Treaty of Fort Laramie and the Treaty of Fort Wise. They believed their militant position toward the whites

11349-401: The train, killing Nathaniel Hedges, a 19-year-old civilian employee. Later in the evening of the thirteenth, the wagons were corralled near Bone Pile Creek, and Hedges was buried at the center of the corral. The next morning, the warriors returned and attacked again. The warriors again attacked the corralled wagons on the fifteenth, but they could not overtake the wagon train. Chief Red Cloud of

11466-530: The treaty was abrogated by Washington less than two years later, all major provisions were ignored, and instead, the Medicine Lodge Treaty reduced the reservation lands by 90 percent, located in much less desirable sites in Oklahoma. Later government actions further reduced the size of the reservations. Fort Reno (Wyoming) Fort Reno also known as Fort Connor or Old Fort Reno , was

11583-486: The tribe were camping on their buffalo hunting grounds near Ash Creek . The 1st Colorado Regiment , under the command of Lieutenant George Eayre , approached the group. Positive that this would be a peaceful encounter, Lean Bear went alone to meet the militia to show his peaceful intentions. On his chest, Lean Bear proudly wore his peace medal that he had received on his trip to Washington D.C. in 1863. In his hand, he held an official document signed by Lincoln stating that he

11700-483: The village are known to have survived the massacre: George Bent's brother Charlie Bent, and two Cheyenne women who were later turned over to William Bent. According to western author and historian Larry McMurtry , the son of Chivington's scout John Smith (by an Indian mother) was in the camp, survived the attack and was "executed" afterward. The Sand Creek Massacre resulted in a heavy loss of life, mostly among Cheyenne and Arapaho women and children. The hardest hit by

11817-467: The war could be commenced anew. In July 1864, Colorado Governor John Evans sent a circular to the Plains Indians, inviting those who were friendly to go to a place of safety at Fort Lyon on the eastern plains, where their people would be given provisions and protection by the United States troops. The circular itself was dated June 27, 1864. It was not until three months later, September 28, that

11934-422: The white negotiators at the September 28th meeting were highly contradictory. On the one hand, Governor Evans told the chiefs, "The time when you can make war best is in the summer; when I can make war best is in the winter. You, so far, have had the advantage. My time is just coming." On the other hand, Colonel Chivington told the assembled Chiefs that if they sought peace, they should come to Fort Lyon and be under

12051-526: The worst passions that ever cursed the heart of man. In conclusion, your committee are of the opinion that for the purpose of vindicating the cause of justice and upholding the honor of the nation, prompt and energetic measures should be at once taken to remove from office those who have thus disgraced the government by whom they are employed, and to punish, as their crimes deserve, those who have been guilty of these brutal and cowardly acts. Statements taken by Major Edward W. Wynkoop and his adjutant substantiated

12168-608: Was abandoned as a condition of the agreement. Shortly after the military left in August, the entire post was destroyed by fire ignited by Cheyenne warriors. During the Great Sioux War , Brigadier General George Crook 's 883 men of the Big Horn Expedition returned to Fort Reno in March, 1876, finding only some adobe walls and building debris. Nevertheless, Crook used the site as a supply base for 15 days, leaving

12285-526: Was chosen to lead the expedition. Dodge ordered Connor to "make vigorous war upon the Indians and punish them so that they will be forced to keep the peace." The campaign was one of the last Indian wars campaigns carried out by United States Volunteers . Connor's strategy was for three columns of soldiers to march into the Powder River Country. The "Right column", composed of 1,400 Missourians and 140 wagons commanded by Colonel Nelson D. Cole ,

12402-472: Was corroborated by other witnesses. One witness, Captain Silas Soule , who had ordered the men under his command not to fire their weapons, was murdered in Denver just weeks after offering his testimony. “Before I got into the creek there were troops upon both sides firing across. It was unsafe for me to take my command up the creek,” Soule testified. He only testified about his concern for crossfire; he never testified that he refused to fight. However, despite

12519-412: Was dissuaded from further pursuit. The soldiers destroyed the village, captured about 500 horses, and 8 women and 13 children who were subsequently released. Conner claimed to have killed 63 Arapaho warriors, a probably exaggerated estimate, at a cost to himself of 2 killed and five wounded. He then marched north on the Tongue River into southern Montana Territory before returning to Fort Connor, harassed by

12636-691: Was finally rescued by Connor's forces. Colonel Nelson D. Cole left Omaha, Nebraska , on July 1, 1865, with over 1,400 Missourians and 140 wagon-loads of supplies. His column followed the Loup River upstream and then marched across country to Bear Butte in the Black Hills , arriving there on August 13, 1865. Cole's command, during the 560 miles (900 km) of traveling, suffered from thirst, diminishing supplies, and near mutinies. Lieutenant Colonel Samuel Walker and his 600 Kansas Cavalrymen left Fort Laramie , Dakota Territory on August 6, 1865, and met up with Cole's Expedition on August 19, 1865, near

12753-425: Was great danger of it, and then he told White Antelope that one of the military chiefs (Colonel Chivington) was present and could tell the tribes what was necessary to secure peace. Governor Evans made clear that the purpose of the circular was not to extend peace, but rather it was an attempt to bring in the Indians who were friendly and were exposed to repudiation by the other tribes as a result. The messages given by

12870-439: Was justified by the massacre. The events at Sand Creek dealt a fatal blow to the traditional Cheyenne clan system and the authority of its Council of Chiefs. It had already been weakened by the numerous deaths due to the 1849 cholera epidemic, which killed perhaps half the Southern Cheyenne population, especially the Masikota and Oktoguna bands. It was further weakened by the emergence of the separate Dog Soldiers band. After

12987-408: Was peaceful and friendly with whites. What Lean Bear did not realize was that Eayre's troops were operating under orders from Colonel John M. Chivington to "kill Cheyennes whenever and wherever found." Eayre ordered his men to shoot Lean Bear, who was wounded and fell off his horse. He was then shot repeatedly by the soldiers as they rode past his body on the ground. Newspaper reports and books from

13104-581: Was refused, Eayre was to attack the camp. Without following the order to first parley, Eayre and his men burned and plundered Crow Chief's camp of seventy lodges, which they abandoned once they were alerted to the approach of Eayre's forces. Eayre's men then found, plundered, and burned Chief Coon's camp (which Coon's band had likewise fled after being alerted of Eayre's approach by their scouts). On May 16, less than 15 months after meeting President Lincoln in Washington, Lean Bear, Black Kettle, and others in

13221-500: Was smoked and passed from camp to camp among the Sioux, Cheyenne, and Arapaho warriors in the area. In January 1865, they planned and carried out an attack with 1,000 warriors on the stage station and fort, then called Camp Rankin, at present-day Julesburg, Colorado . This was followed by numerous raids along the South Platte both east and west of Julesburg, and a second raid on the town of Julesburg in early February. The bulk of

13338-612: Was to construct a new road for the use of emigrants to the Montana gold fields. On August 13, 1865, the soldiers, civilians, and wagon train of the Sawyers Expedition were moving west. The soldiers accompanying the train included a battalion of the 5th U.S. Volunteer Infantry , Companies C, and D, under the command of Captain George Williford. In the evening near Pumpkin Butte, Cheyenne and Sioux Native American Warriors attacked

13455-567: Was to march from Omaha, Nebraska and follow the Loup River westward to the Black Hills , meeting up with Connor near the Powder River. The "Center Column", consisting of 600 Kansas cavalrymen led by Lieutenant Colonel Samuel Walker , was to head north from Fort Laramie and traverse the country west of the Black Hills. The "Left" and "West" Columns of 675 men, personally commanded by Connor and composed of soldiers from California, Iowa, Michigan, Nebraska and Ohio, along with Indian scouts and

13572-400: Was too late, as the three columns had already departed and were out of contact. The expedition was troubled from the start. The number of men to be involved in the campaign was reduced from 12,000 to less than 3,000 because many soldiers were mustered out of the army at the end of the American Civil War . The remaining volunteers were "mutinous, dissatisfied, and inefficient." The companies of

13689-838: Was unable to pull the Second Colorado Volunteers, led by Colonel Ford, off of the eastern Civil War front. As a result of the repeated calls for aid, authorization was granted to call up "one-hundred-days' men" to form the Third Colorado Volunteers. In 1864, before the events of the Massacre of Sand Creek, there were 32 Indian attacks on record. These resulted in the death of 96 settlers, 21 being wounded, and eight being captured. Between 250 and 300 head of livestock were stolen, 12 wagon trains and stagecoaches were attacked, robbed, or destroyed, and nine ranches and settlements were raided. An exact number

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