The Unnecessary War by Zina Abbott

 

Once the American Civil War ended, the U.S. Army turned its attention back to dealing with the hostilities between the white Americans and Plains tribes. Part of their effort involved making treaties where the tribes –primarily Cheyenne, Arapaho, Sioux, Comanche, Kiowa, or Plains Apache—gave up rights to certain lands in exchange for reservation land plus annuity payments in food, hunting weapons, and ammunition. White Americans did not really care about any territory rights the tribes still held. Native tribes retaliated when the perceived whites had violated the treaties.

An incident on the Kansas frontier in 1867—now known as Hancock’s War—is an example of the disasters that took place due to incompetence, intolerance, and misunderstandings. It is also known by some as “The Unnecessary War.”

Part of the misunderstandings came about because generals and other high-ranking officers who performed well in the Civil War were not suited to dealing with the Native Americans. In addition to having an arrogant contempt for tribal people as a whole, they did not understand the Native way of thinking or the way their leadership was organized. In addition, they were disinclined to listen to their own Indian agents who had developed a certain rapport with the different tribes.

After several tribes carried out a series of raids and confrontations because they felt certain treaties had been broken by white Americans (in most cases, true), many generals, including Gen. William T. Sherman, then assigned to oversee the Kansas frontier region, wished to carry out a revenge expedition. Gen. Grant decided against it. Instead, he directed Gen. Winfield S. Hancock to intimidate the people of the tribes into remaining peaceful. Hancock did not have authority to make any new treaties. However, he did intend to restore peace by forcing them into submission. He intended to accomplish this with a display of military might.

Gen. Hancock was confident in his ability to bring the tribes under control and intimidate them into falling into line with United States interests. He raised a force of 1,400 soldiers involving  seven companies of the 37^th Infantry under Capt. John Rsiha, eight companies of new 7^th Cavalry under Col. (brevet Lt. Maj. Gen,) A. J. Smith, a battery of 4^th Artillery commanded by Capt. Charles Parsons (brevit lt. col.) and some Delaware Indian Scouts, also a few white scouts including “Wild Bill” Hickok.

Also, Leavenworth (The man, not the fort, the Indian agent of Kiowas and Comanches) and Wyncoop (the Indian agent of the Cheyenne and Arapaho) came. They repeatedly offered advice regarding the best way to negotiate with the tribal leaders, but were, for the most part, ignored.

Gen. Hancock and his men marched from Fort Riley to Fort Harker, where they were joined by Colonel Custer George a Custer, with four companies of 7th Cavalry and one infantry company. At Fort Harker the Expedition added two more Cavalry troops. Gen. Hancock and his men left Fort Harker on April 3, 1866 and arrived at Fort Larned on April 7, 1866.

From Ft. Larned, Gen. Hancock sent word to the surrounding tribal leaders that he expected them to come to the fort. He wished to speak to them, but he wanted to address them all at the same time. From among the tribes’ leaders, several stood out to officers at Fort Larned by March 1867, including Satanta and Kicking Bird of the Kiowa; Tall Bull, White Horse, Bull Bear, Roman Nose, and Black Kettle of the Cheyenne; and Little Raven of the Arapaho.

A few of the chiefs met with Hancock at Fort Larned. Although they kept insisting other chiefs were on their way, they repeatedly resisted all gathering in one place at the same time.  

Hancock concluded the meeting by indicating that he wanted to meet with the other chiefs. He and his troops rode west of Fort Larned toward a combined Cheyenne and Lakota village at Pawnee Forks. On April 13, 1867, as Hancock and his men approach the village, several chiefs came out to meet them. They said they would meet with the general the following day at the location where the Army set up camp.

Gen. Hancock insisted he wanted to come into their village at Pawnee Forks to talk to the chiefs.

Worried about the fates of their families, the Cheyenne chiefs and their Lakota Sioux allies resisted. It had been only three years since the massacre at Sand Creek where a village of Cheyenne under Black Kettle and some Arapaho were massacred by a unit of Colorado Volunteers.

Insisting on having his way, on April 14, 1867, Gen. Hancock ordered his troops forward. As the army drew nearer the village, a group of about 300 Cheyenne warriors—dressed in full battle array—rode out to meet them, mirroring the army’s display of military strength.

Cheyenne Warriors

Gen. Hancock and his forces continued to move forward. Before reaching the Cheyenne camp, they were met by a large body of Indians waving a white flag. The Chiefs said they wanted peace instead of War.

Colonel Ned Wynkoop, the Cheyenne and Arapaho Agent at Fort Larned from 1866 to 1868, rode out between the lines to ask the warriors to stay calm and stay put. The warriors agreed. The Army troops marched to within one mile of the village and set up camp.

Fearing that the Army intended to attack their village, the women and children—along with many of the men to protect them—fled the village. They left their lodges and belongings—including most of their food—behind.

Gen. Hancock, talked and acted as though he could not understand of why the people would flee. Offended that they would have the audacity to take independent action, he demanded the return of the villagers. Some of the Cheyenne warriors obliged Hancock and rode to look for the women and children, but returned empty-handed. However, after observing the general’s anger and fearing retaliation, they fled without staying for any “talks.”

Gen. Hancock was far from acting in good faith with the Cheyenne. On the sly, he ordered Col. Custer’s 7th Cavalry to surround the village that night to keep them from running. However, Custer and his men either got there too late, or the villagers escaped past them.

Custer pursued them the next day. He discovered two stations of the Overland Stage Company on the Smoky Hill Trail had been raided and several people killed. He sent back word it must have been the escaping Cheyenne. He later realized it could not have been them (It was the work of the Lakota chief, Little Raven, and his warriors, who left the Cheyenne village shortly after Gen. Hancock and his troops arrived.) By the time Col. Custer sent another message saying, because of timing, it could not have been the Cheyenne, it was too late for the village.

On April 18, 1867, Hancock, contrary to Indian Agent Wyncoop’s advice, confiscates all Cheyenne goods and burned the village. He justified it by claiming the Cheyenne were “a nest of conspirators.”

Enraged, the Cheyenne vowed revenge. They waged war, not only on the U.S. Army, but on any white Americans whose paths they crossed. 1867 was considered an “unprecedented season of violence on the plains of Kansas.”

For more details about his incident, as well as some of the quotes by participants I used as chapter headers, please CLICKHERE.

 

 

I featured this incident in my book, Hannah’s Highest Regard, the second book in the box set, Hannah’s Lieutenant, I recently published. The box set is available in both ebook and print formats.

 

 

Sources:

https://www.nps.gov/fols/learn/historyculture/hancocks-war.htm

https://www.legendsofamerica.com/hancocks-war/

 

 

 

FORT KEARNY - Army Post along the Oregon Trail

Writing about the historical Old West is in my blood!  Why? Because I was born near the Oregon Trail in Kearney, Nebraska. As a young girl, I became interested in the history of nearby Fort Kearny after which my hometown was named and equally fascinated to read about the soldiers, pioneers, and Native Americans who helped create the history of America's growth westward.

Fort Kearny was founded in 1848 along the Platte River and named after then Colonel and later General Stephen W. Kearny.  As an interesting side note, the "e" was added to Kearny by postmen who consistently misspelled the town name.  Also one should not confuse Fort Kearny with the historic Fort Phil Kearny located in Wyoming and named after Kearny's nephew, Maj. Gen. Philip Kearny.

General Stephen W. Kearny

Despite its lack of fortifications, Ft. Kearny served as a way station, sentinel post, supply depot and message center for 49ers bound for California and emigrants traveling to California, Oregon and the Pacific Northwest.  Numbering in the hundreds of thousands, those brave pioneers crossed the continent searching for economic opportunity, and who associated land ownership and farming with freedom. 

Throughout most of its 23-year history, the outpost consisted mostly of wooden buildings surrounding a central parade ground without fortified walls.  Throughout the decades of its use until the completion of the transcontinental railroad, the buildings became slightly more permanent, changing from adobe and sod structures to the wooden frame buildings. 

 As the first U.S. Army post on the Oregon Trail, it grew rapidly into an important trail stop. The fort accumulated large stores of goods for travelers, with the directive of selling them at beneficial cost to the emigrants. The commander of the fort was authorized to sell goods at cost to emigrants, and in cases of hardship, to give goods to them for free.  In 1850, the fort acquired regular once-a-month mail service with the arrival of a stagecoach route between Independence, Missouri and Salt Lake City.  It was the first regular mail service established along the trail. By the 1860's the fort became a significant freighting station and home station of the Pony Express.

 Although it was in the heart of lands inhabited by Native Americans, and was near the center of hostile action in the 1860's, no direct attack was ever made on the fort.  However, in the summer of 1864, the irritation of the Native Americans at the encroachment by white settlers culminated in violent attacks on wagon trains along the Platte and the Little Blue River.  During this time, soldiers from Fort Kearny began escorting wagon trains and the fort became a center for refugees fleeing from attacks.

The construction of the Union Pacific Railroad across Nebraska starting in 1867 largely marked the end of the need for a fort to protect and supply wagon train emigrants. Following the completion of the transcontinental railroad in 1869, the U.S. Army issued an order for abandonment of the post in May, 1871.

Fort Kearny State Historical Park

In 1960, Nebraska designated the land where the outpost once stood as Fort Kearny State Historical Park.  Archeological exploration has located the building sites that are now marked with interpretive signs. Replicas of the palisade and blacksmith shop were built. An interpretive center presents audio-visual programs and museum displays. The park's 40 acres also acts as a recreational area, providing hiking trails, camping, picnicking and boating.

Fort Kearny played a vital role in the settlement of the American West. I feel fortunate to have spent part of my childhood living nearby and thus, developing a love for our western heritage and more importantly a love of writing about it.

The fort's history was the inspiration for writing Book 1 of the Wheels of Destiny Trilogy, Trail To Destiny,which takes place along the Oregon Trail. 

http://www.amazon.com/Cheri-Kay-Clifton/e/B002BLZOKC/ref=ntt_dp_epwbk_0

https://www.facebook.com/CheriKayClifton

http://cherikayclifton.com/

http://sweetheartsofthewest.blogspot.com

NATIVE AMERICAN RESEARCH BY RUTH ZAVITSANOS

Guest author Ruth Zavitsanos shares some of her research on Native Americans for her latest release, FLIGHT OF LITTLE DOVE.
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Available now from WhiskeyCreek Press

When the concept of my historical romance, FLIGHT OF LITTLE DOVE, came to mind I knew I wanted the story’s setting to be America’s frontier just a few years after the Civil War. I also knew I needed to have some Indian upheaval to make the opening paragraphs work.

A run for the prey. A hunt for the kill.
This was no game of tag. Deer Shadow’s coal black eyes were filled with hunger.

Little Dove drew a deep shuddering breath. She turned to run again. Deer Shadow’s swift muscular legs would easily catch her shorter ones. She mustered up her courage to stop in her tracks just as he was about to tackle her.
A few pages later, Little Dove escapes the night before her tribal ceremony to marry Deer Shadow, the chief’s son, she considers a brother. It was important for Deer Shadow to be from a friendly tribe. However, later Little Dove comes across a stagecoach being attacked by a tribe on the warpath.

Cheyenne family
near tipi

After research, I found the Cheyenne to be the friendlier tribe and the Comanches were the more volatile group of Native Americans living on America’s frontier.




THE WAY IT WAS IN THE USA: THE WEST, By Clarence P. Hornung, became a major book of reference for this story. The book is easy to follow with some terrific sketches from the time periods the author details.

Cheyenne Mother
with baby

A chapter later, when the handsome trail guide comes across the aftermath of the stagecoach attack, he immediately notes the arrows and shape of the footprints.

In comparing the Cheyenne with the Comanche I found several vast differences, including their physical stature (The Comanches were three to four inches shorter than the Cheyenne) "judging from his tall muscular build, Seb figured he was probably Cheyenne.
　

Quanah Parker,
Kwahadi Comanche

There are other details about these two Native American tribes I sprinkle throughout the story, adding a true sense of the people who did not need to claim the frontier but rather belonged to it.

FLIGHT OF LITTLE DOVE is a MUST READ on the Night Owl Review earning 5 stars. It continues to receive a variety of highly favorable reviews and is a June book club selection at a local book shop (outside of Philadelphia) awarded BEST OF THE MAIN LINE.
　

Currently, Ruth is working on the follow-up to FLIGHT. The story takes place outside of Denver at the SISTERS INN (Tentative book title). She is a member of PennWriters, Valley Forge Romance Writers of America, Society of Children’s Writer and Illustrators and has two children’s chapter books published, THE VILLA DOG and THE OLD FORTRESS DOG. For more information, visit her website at www.ruthzonline.com