The Mankato free press. [volume] (Mankato, Blue Earth County, Minn.) 1879-1924, 1896-03-06
A "REMINISCENCES.
Garden City People Who Had Ex-
perience in the Indian Outbreak.

| interesting communication in the
Good Thunder Herald, entitled Gre
miniscences of an Early Settler"
from which we take the following:
At the time of the Sioux Indian
outbreak in 1862, it was well known
to the settlers bordering on the Win
nebago reservation that large num-
Der of Winnebago Indians were in
sympathy with the Sioux and were
known to hold. daily communication
with them. This intercourse was
carried on mostly during the LighU,
and the opinion prevailed that if the
Sioux were successful in getting pos
session of Fort Ridgley and New Ulm
that the Winnebagoes would join
them, and when New Ulm was at
tackled it was supposed that Fort
Ridgley had fallen, and great alarm
prevailed among the people living
north and west of the reservation,
well knowing that they would be at
the mercy of these brutal savages.
1t was at this time meeting was
called at Garden City to consult as to
what could be done and it was de-
cided to call for volunteers TO go to
New Ulm the next day and return as
soon as possible and report. leu men
volunteered to go: Ed. P,tter, o.itr-
man Finch, Mr.. Washburn Sen NOW
living at Lake CrysttIl, r. ~ u, The
writer, and five others. Ed. Iotter
was chosen captain. We were well
mounted and each carried ! dluoic
barrelled gun loaded with 3a n-sho..
When we arrived at New Ulm aJOuU
five o'clock, great excitement prevail
ed. They had been fgh Ting Lhat day
and several had been killed and large
number of buildings had been burned
and were still burning. We saw
seventeen dead bodies in one building
of persons killed by Indians in that
vicinity.
There was great confusion all night,
pickets firing their guns and rushing
in with reports of having seen In
dianS.
Most Of the citizens seemed to be
armed with pitchforks. We were glad
when morning came and more than so
to hear the sunrise gun at Fort Ridg-
ley, twelve miles away, which pro-
claimed that ''the flag was still
there" The streets were all barricad-
ed, and strict orders given the guards
to let no one pass out, as an attack
might be expected at any time. We
held a consultation with the officers
in charge and it was finally agreed
that two of our company should re-
turn and report, and our captain was
to choose the men.
Eliphlet Smith and the writer
were chosen. We requested an es-
cort to accompany us through the
timber on the Cottonwood bnt the re-
quest was not granted. We started on
our return a little after sunrise, ford
|
town and entered the timber which
l think was about three-fOurths of a
mile wide. 1t had rained quite a
shower about three o'clock in the
morning and the road was quite
muddy. Soon after crossing the
river Smith drew rein on his horse,
and said, "Look there!" pointing
downwards. And sure enough there
were fresh moccasin tracks in the
mud where quite a number of Indians
had apparently just crossed the road.
We cooked our guns and Smith kept a
look out on one side and | on the
other and our horses made good time
in getting out of that timber. Be-
tween the Big and Little Cottonwood
there is prairie about two miles
When about half way across we saw
mOccasin tracks where two more In
dianshad crossed the road and follow
edsalong the side for thirty or forty
rods and we felt a little shaky when
going throug the brush on the Little
Cottonwood. We arrived at Garden
City along in the afternoon and the
people were on hand to hear our re-
port, which to say the least was not
favorable. We had come to the con-
clusion while at New Ulm that if they
did not get large reinforcements i'm
mediately the Indians would get pos
session of the town either by force or
the evacuation by the people. Either
way the result would be about the
same and general butchery follow,
and an advance on the scattered set
tiers and small towns on the west and
northern borders of the Winnebago
reservation and that the Winnebagoes
would join them in the war. 1t was
decided to move the families to a
place of safety if possible and this
plan was carried out and the whole
population of several towns left their
homes in single day.