The mid-19th century witnessed a dramatic transformation of the American landscape, as westward expansion brought settlers into increasing contact and conflict with Native American tribes. This era called upon the soldiers of the West, who played a crucial, often controversial, role in defending emigrants, enforcing treaties, and engaging in intense warfare across vast plains and mountains. The narrative of the American frontier is inextricably linked to the campaigns waged by these military personnel, highlighting the brutal realities faced by both sides.
The Lure of the West and Early Conflicts (1849-1861)
Prior to 1851, the vast plains east of the Rocky Mountains were largely recognized as Native American territories, traversed by numerous tribes from Texas to the British possessions. However, the discovery of gold in California in 1849 ignited an unprecedented wave of emigration towards the Pacific Coast. While many braved the perilous sea passage around Cape Horn, thousands more embarked on the overland route across the plains. This journey was fraught with danger, with emigrants enduring weeks and months of arduous travel, facing harsh weather, geographical obstacles, and constant threat from Native American warriors. Many wagon trains that set out from Independence, Missouri, never reached the Pacific, their occupants succumbing to starvation, climate, or fierce attacks, leaving their bones as silent testament to the perils of the frontier.
The burgeoning tide of emigration necessitated treaties with various tribes to establish a broad highway to California and restrict Native Americans within specific boundaries. The government initially agreed to provide annual payments of $50,000 for 15 years in exchange for safe passage across the plains. This treaty assigned significant territories to the Cheyenne and Arapaho in what is now Colorado, while the Crow and Sioux occupied lands along the Powder River route to Montana. However, the discovery of gold and silver in Colorado soon led to hundreds of settlers encroaching upon Native lands, disregarding existing agreements. This relentless pressure led to the Treaty of Fort Wise on February 18, 1861, compelling the Native Americans to relinquish an immense tract of territory and confine themselves to a smaller district along the Arkansas River, near the northern boundary of New Mexico. In return, the government pledged protection, an annuity of $30,000 for 15 years, and provisions of stock and agricultural implements.
Escalating Tensions and Brutal Massacres (1864-1866)
Peace between white inhabitants of Colorado and the Native Americans was short-lived, with difficulties arising by April 1864. Throughout that summer, some warriors began committing depredations and robberies. Colonel John Chivington, commanding troops at Denver, authorized a subordinate to lead a detachment of soldiers of the West to punish the Native Americans. This resulted in an attack on the Cheyenne village of Cedar Bluffs, killing 26 and wounding 30, with the plunder divided among the troops. Hostilities continued until autumn when Native Americans, seeking peace, approached Major Edward Wynkoop, commander of Fort Lyon, Colorado, who assured them protection if they gathered near the fort.
The Sand Creek Massacre (November 1864)
In response to Major Wynkoop’s command and guarantee of safety, approximately 500 Cheyenne men, women, and children assembled at Fort Lyon. Tragically, Colonel Chivington, defying Wynkoop’s assurances, attacked and mercilessly slaughtered them on November 29, 1864. This horrific crime, known as the Sand Creek Massacre, led to an inevitable war with these tribes, diverting 8,000 federal troops and costing the country $30 million. The campaign of 1865, however, saw fewer than 20 Native Americans killed, underscoring the futility of such brutal tactics, much like the conflict with the Seminole tribe decades earlier.
In the autumn of 1865, commissioners were appointed to negotiate an end to the war. In October, they met with chiefs of the Cheyenne, Arapaho, and other tribes at the mouth of the Little Arkansas River. The Native Americans agreed to cede their Arkansas River reservation in exchange for another in Kansas, along with hunting privileges on their former plains. The Senate later amended this treaty to entirely exclude the tribes from Kansas, leaving them solely with hunting rights on the unsettled plains. Nevertheless, the southern tribes largely observed this treaty throughout 1866.
Northern Front: The Powder River War (1866-1867)
To the north, the Sioux had pushed the Crow into Montana, claiming the vast territory initially assigned to both. As southern territories became populous, rumors of rich mines in Montana drew emigrants across Native lands, further narrowing vital hunting grounds, particularly the valley north of the Powder River. With government annuities ceasing, the dwindling hunting ranges became the sole means of subsistence for these Native American communities.
The Fetterman Massacre (December 1866)
Orders were issued on June 15, 1866, to establish and garrison military posts along the new route to Montana, including Forts Reno and Phil Kearny in Wyoming, and Fort C.F. Smith in Montana. From the outset, Native Americans warned that this occupation would be met with resistance, but these threats were ignored, and fighting continued through the summer and autumn. On December 21, 1866, Native Americans attacked a woodcutting wagon train near Fort Phil Kearny. Brevet Lieutenant Colonel W. T. Fetterman was dispatched with 49 men to their rescue. His entire company, including its commander, was ambushed and massacred by the Native Americans in what became known as the Fetterman Massacre. This event sent shockwaves across the nation, highlighting the formidable resistance of the Native American warriors against the soldiers of the West.
Great apprehension spread that the conflict would ignite along the Union Pacific Railroad. General George Crook, commanding from Omaha, Nebraska, forbade the sale of arms and ammunition to Native Americans within his jurisdiction. This deepened the resentment of the Cheyenne and Arapaho, who relied on hunting for food. The troops along the Powder River route were exasperated by the Sioux and Cheyenne, who refused negotiations until the military posts were withdrawn. The memory of the Sand Creek Massacre burned fiercely in the hearts of the Cheyenne, Arapaho, Kiowa, Comanche, and Apache. They had been driven from the rich lands of Colorado, left with only the meager privilege of ranging the plains for the rapidly disappearing buffalo and other game. Now, this privilege was rendered worthless by the arms ban, which was also promulgated at the Arkansas River posts in January. Leading chiefs and warriors threatened a general Indian war in the spring.
Hancock’s War and Continued Resistance (1867)
American forces in the Military Division of the Missouri River were under the command of Lieutenant General William T. Sherman. This division was subdivided into three departments: Dakota (north), commanded by General Alfred H. Terry; the Platte River (middle), by General Christopher C. Augur; and the Missouri River (south), by General Winfred S. Hancock. On one occasion, a violent storm prevented a conference. The following day, it was learned that about 1500 Cheyenne were encamped at a village on the Pawnee Fork, Kansas. On the 13th, General Hancock advanced towards the encampment, but was met by chiefs who implored him to keep his soldiers of the West at a distance, fearing a repeat of the horrors of Sand Creek. Thus, the shame of one officer cast a pall over the reputation of another.
General Hancock, however, pressed forward, causing the warriors and their families to flee. In their retreat, they destroyed several stations, killed guards, and took property. In response, Hancock burned the Native American village, consisting of 300 lodges and property valued at $100,000. He then pushed westward, and hearing of constant attacks by hostiles on the Smoky Hill Trail, along the Union Pacific Railroad, he dispatched General George A. Custer with a force of 400 men. Custer sought a friendly understanding with Oglala Sioux War leader, Pawnee Killer, but was unsuccessful. Native American attacks persisted, and Custer, assuming the offensive, rarely managed to engage them directly. Near Fort Wallace, Kansas, 500 Native Americans attacked a wagon train, leading to a fierce engagement in which 12 men were lost before the train reached its destination. Shortly after this, on June 26th, General Custer was recalled from the region.
General Hancock continued his expedition, holding several conferences with chiefs who expressed a desire for peace on equitable terms. In August, Hancock returned to Fort Leavenworth, Kansas, and was succeeded by General Philip Sheridan. The Native Americans, deeply embittered by the burning of the village on Pawnee Fork, continued their depredations throughout the summer. Operations on the Union Pacific Railroad slowed considerably as surveyors and workmen were waylaid and murdered, and stock and materials were stolen or destroyed. Stages and express trains were robbed, stations burned, settlements attacked, and a widespread predatory warfare ensued.
In August 1867, a freight train from Omaha, Nebraska, was derailed near Plum Creek by obstructions placed on the rails by Native Americans. The cars and merchandise were burned, and all but one employee on the train were killed. General Augur sent a detachment of troops to the scene, who, joined by a band of friendly Pawnee, engaged 500 Sioux warriors, killing 60. Most of General Augur’s forces, approximately 2,000 men, had been sent under General John Gibbon to the Powder and Yellowstone River regions, where northern tribes were actively hostile. On August 2nd, a band of woodcutters at Fort Phil Kearny, accompanied by an escort of forty soldiers and about fifty citizens, was attacked by an overwhelming force of Native Americans. A desperate three-hour battle followed, with the whites ultimately saved by the arrival of two companies of Federal troops with a howitzer, who drove off the warriors, inflicting losses of more than 50 killed and a large number wounded.
The Ineffectiveness of Military Force and the Call for Peace
The military operations against these Native American tribes often proved inconclusive and costly. General Sheridan himself acknowledged the immense challenge, declaring that fifty Native American warriors could effectively checkmate 3,000 soldiers of the West. This candid assessment underscored the futility of relying solely on military might to resolve the complex conflicts rooted in land disputes, broken treaties, and cultural clashes. The relentless cycle of violence, characterized by retaliatory attacks and massacres, only deepened animosity and prolonged the frontier wars.
Conclusion
The era of the soldiers of the West was a period of intense struggle and profound change, marked by the inexorable march of westward expansion and the fierce resistance of Native American tribes. From the gold rush fever that spurred migration to the tragic massacres and brutal skirmishes, the conflicts described illustrate a painful chapter in American history. While treaties were made, they were frequently broken, leading to a breakdown of trust and an escalation of hostilities. The experiences of the military personnel on the frontier, alongside the devastating impact on Native American communities, remind us of the immense human cost of conquest and the enduring legacy of these unresolved conflicts that shaped the destiny of a nation and its indigenous peoples.
