The Buchanan County guardian. (Independence, Buchanan County, Iowa) 1858-1864, 1859-12-08
The Murder of Miltimore's Party by the
Indians.

A We are indebted to our friends,
B. F. CLARK and f. M. LEWIS, formerly
of Quasqueton, now of Plumas county,
California, where, we are happy to hear,
they and their companions arrived safe
in September last, after some privations
and difficulties, for files Of California pa
pers. In the Sacramento Union, of Oc-
tober 9th, we find the following p~articu-
lars of the massacre Of the MILTIMoRE
party, most of whom formerly resided at
Fairbank, in this county. The extract
below is from a correspondent of the
Deseret News, who writes from Brigham
City, Utah Territory, under date of Sep
tember 18th. He says
"This morning Milton J. Harrington,
wife and child, of Buchanan county,
Iowa, arrived, survivors of the company
of emigrants lately massacred by the In
dians about the Cd inst, twenty-five miles
west of Fort Hall, between Portneul
bridge and Snake river.
Harrington makes the following state
Our company numbered nineteen persons
six men, three women and ten child
rem, between one and ten years old
some of the company were from Michi-
gan, and the others from Buchanan coun-
ty Iowa.
AT the last crossing of the Sweet Wa
ter we were advised to travel on Lander's
cutoff, being told that that route was near
er, better feed and safe from Indian dep
relations.
Our journey was prosperous until the
night OF the I'd inst, when, as we were
selecting our place for camping and were
making our camp fires, we were startled at
the report of a gun, followed immediate
ly by a number of others. We soon as
certalned that our rear wagons, which
had not yet arrived in camp, were attack
ed by the Indians. A boy about ten years
old came running to us and said the In
dians had killed his father and were kill
ing all the rest. In a moments time we
were surrounded by the savages, whose
hideous yells and constant cracking of
their rifles at this moment rendered the
scene too horrid for description.
Those of us who survived made our
escape by taking. refuge in some rushes
and willows on the bank of the Portneuf
where we remained during the night
Next day we started on our journey on
foot, and after travelling for three days on
scant %rations, we came to Lieut.. Living
ston's company of Dragons. who we're
escorting a company to Walla Walla, Or
egon.
After informing the command of our
distress, Lieut.. Livingston, sent a detach-
ment of nine men, with one of our COM
pany to pilot them to the place of the
massacre. On their arrival they found
the dead bodies of five persons on the
ground. out of the eight that were mis-
sing. The dead were horribly mangled
and scalped. One little girl five years
old, had both of her legs cut off at the
knees her ears were also cut off, and
her eyes dug from out of their sockets,
aud to all appearance the girl, after hav-
ing her legs cut of, had been compelled
to walk on the stumps for the sole pur-
pose of gratifying the hellish propensity
of savage barbarity. Their animals were
taken, and their wagons plundered, ac-
cording to the usual mode of Indian
spoilation.
The names Of the murdered are Ed
ward Miltimore, Sen; James Miltimore,
Jr.; William Miltimore, Mary Ellen Mil
limore and Myron Cline.
Mssing.-Mrs. Miltimore and child
three months old, and Albert Miltimore.
Escoped.-Milton j. Harrington, wife
and child /; George Alonzo, Nelson Mil
timore, Frank Hubbard, Nathan Titus
and William Marsh"