"The White River Ute War Colorado, 1879" Topic
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Tango01 | 28 May 2014 10:12 p.m. PST |
"The last war cry of the Utes of Colorado The conflict between the White River Ute Indians of Colorado and the United States Army was the last Indian conflict in the region. In 1879, the Utes were already living on a reservation managed by Indian agent Nathan Meeker. He was dedicated to converting the tribe to both Christianity and an agrarian lifestyle. Inevitably, he provoked outrage among his charges when he pursued his policy to the extent of ploughing the paddock the Utes used for horse grazing. Foreseeing trouble, Meeker called in the army for support, a contingent of which arrived under the command, and arguably heavy and impetuous hand, of Major Thomas Thornburgh. Despite promising the Utes he would not escalate matters by military force and would keep soldiers off the reservation, Thornburgh ordered the opposite and was immediately discovered by a watchful and suspicious Ute force. This prompted open hostilities, resulting in the Battle of Milk Creek. Tactically outmanoeuvred, Thornburgh's command was held under siege and suffered significant casualties including the death of its commanding officer. The Utes then rose against their overseers on the reservation, slaughtered several men, including Meeker and took three women and two children into captivity. The survivors of Thornburgh's command were by now in a poor condition, pinned down in pits behind insubstantial barricades and surrounded by their dead animals. Annihilation would have been certain but for the timely arrival of relief in the form of the ‘Buffalo Soldiers' from Fort Lewis. Hostilities progressed in the usual manner for the western frontier, once American forces became aware of the situation and applied the resources required for a definitive solution the Utes were defeated. This, irrespective of the merits of their case, was disastrous for the future of the tribe and their displacement from their traditional lands became an inevitability. Leonaur editions are newly typeset and are not facsimiles; each title is available in softcover and hardback with dustjacket; our hardbacks are cloth bound and feature gold foil lettering on their spines and fabric head and tail bands." See here link Also The Wyoming Ranch Letters "An authentic voice from the western frontier Elinore Pruitt Stewart is renowned for her books ‘Letters of a Woman Homesteader' and its sequel ‘Letters on an Elk Hunt,' both of which are included in this Leonaur good value, two-in-one edition. Born in 1876 in the Oklahoma Indian Territory, the oldest of nine children, by the time she was 30 years old she had married Harry Rupert and was the widowed mother of a baby daughter. Three years later Elinore answered an advertisement for a housekeeper for rancher Henry Stewart at Burntfork, Wyoming. She filed a claim on 160 acres of land adjacent to Stewart's property and the couple were married soon afterwards. Elinore's life as the couple struggled to run their ranch and raise their family on the Wyoming prairie, was a harsh one, but her books show it be a life full of encounters with notable and memorable characters and rich in variety and experience. She has left us a rewarding, charming and poignant insight into the lives of American settlers who carved a living and a nation out of the western states. Her story epitomises the spirit of the pioneer women who tamed a wilderness and will resonate with everyone who enjoys reading about the lives of those determined to triumph over adversity." Here link Hope you enjoy!. Amicalement Armand |
kallman | 29 May 2014 8:47 a.m. PST |
Nice find Armand, I will have to order the book. |
Tango01 | 29 May 2014 11:00 a.m. PST |
Happy for you my friend!. (smile). Amicalement Armand |
Henry Martini | 29 May 2014 5:29 p.m. PST |
Many years ago (1970s)there was an article on Milk Creek in 'Battle for Wargamers' magazine. |
goragrad | 29 May 2014 10:14 p.m. PST |
Odd, as I was taught it in school Meeker plowed the tribal race track. A far more heinous deed
It was quite interesting to learn of the Buffalo Soldiers while in junior high back in the 60s. One of those bits of history that seem to slip past the mainstream. |
Grelber | 31 May 2014 8:01 a.m. PST |
The troops for this battle came from Fort Fred Steele, just off I-80 in south central Wyoming. According to some of the signage at the state park there, it took several days for regional headquarters in Chicago to figure out just where the Indians were, and which was the nearest post from which they could dispatch troops. The site of the Meeker Massacre rates a roadsite historical sign in Colorado, indicating the massacre was off across the field beside the road. Grelber |
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