, 1900-07-17
WYOMING
LAST BATTLE OF THE CIVIL WAR
OCCURRED NEAR PRESENT
SITE OF SHERIDAN.
A Strange Story Related by Captain
II. Z. Palmer at the Recent Fourth
of July Celebration at Sheridan
Battle Occurred on the Goth Day of
August, 1865.

few-stranger than all to a vast major
ity OF 1.-The old soldiers'-the last battle
of the civil war was fought in what is
now the state of Wyoming, a few miles
from the present city of Sheridan. Even
the government records are defective
regarding it, giving the date Of August
%. 1865, instead Of August 20. 1865.
1t was the last battle from 1861 to
1865, inclusive, IN which volunteer SOL
diers took part, and the story of it, at
the big Fourth of July celebration in
Sheridan a few days ago by Captain
II. e. Palmer, then acting A. @. M. and
A. C. S. on the staff of General P. E.
Common.
Thirty-fve years ago today, | was
near the corner of Bullock's suffers
store at Fort Laramie talking to James
Bridger. Major Bridger. as he was
called, and Kit Carson were the two
best guides that up to this time had
made their reputation on the plains
and in the mountains of what was
known as the "far west" Bridger was
Fremont's chief guide from near the
Missouri river to California by the CEN
trail route; Carson guided him twice
Ger the southern route. | was making
a verbal contract with Bridger to guide
the Powder River Indian Expedition
at $40 per day and rations. After he
had agreed to accept my offer and my
conversation was finished | was about
to leave him when a well dressed,
| bright-looking sergeant Of the Eleventh
| Ohio cavalry, who had enlisted from
an Ohio college, stepped up and said,
rs this Major Bridger?" The major
answered, Yes"
The sergeant said, You have heen
in this country a long time, major?"
well, yes; forty-three years" an
swered Bridger.
"You have seen many changes in this
| country in that time queried the ser
geant. (Note please that at that time
| Fort Laramie was an old wooden fort,
not a building or fence off the small
| reservation. Just a lodging place in
the wilderness, the nearest habitation
being the few ranches from ten to
twenty miles apart on the South Platte
river, about $50 miles away.
The major in response. after rolling
| his huge quid Of tobacco to the other
cheek, said, well, yes; do you see
that ere peak over there?" (pointing
to Laramie peak, ninety miles away.
Yes" said the sergeant.
WELL" remarked Bridger, when I
first come to this country, forty-three
years ago, that ere peak was a hole in
the ground"
When l first came to this country,
thirty-five years ago, there was not one
civilized h%abitation porth Of Fort Lara
mic to Fort Shaw-a military camp
Just this side Of Boseman, in Montana;
| the Nebraska line, not a settler, and
none west until we reached the Mon
| tana trail. from Salt Lake north to
| Montana.
The change in thirty-five years past
has been greater in my judgment than
that vouched for by Bridger as having
occurred in his forty-three years on
the plains prior to 1865.
But l am not here to tell you of these
changes, this marvellous growth and
development. l am here simply to pre-
sent to the mayor Of this city, as its
chief representative, the zen which
President Mckinley used to sign the
bill establishing a permanent military
post at Sheridan, Wyo. am not quail
fed to intelligently and properly dis
ccss the relative merits OF the pen and
the sword, or to picture to you the
con oination hat can make a fort with
the scratch of a pen. The question is
too deep for one of my attainments-1
simply surrender the pen to the mayor
to be kept by him while in office; the
commencement Of a collection Of Curl
os to become a part Of the Sheridan Ii
brary collection when Mr.. Carnegie
furnishes us the money to buy the IL
brary. 1 guarantee that this pen has
never been used but once, and that
once to inscribe the name of William
Mckinley on our fort bill. Take 1t
Mr.. Mayor, and don't forget. please,
that every man, woman and child liv-