The Powder River County examiner and the Broadus independent. [volume] (Broadus, Mont.) 1919-1935, 1921-12-16
INDIANS NEARLY
GOT JOE M'KNICHT
PIONEER OF NORTHERN MON.
TANA HAD NARROW ESCAPE
FROM REDS IN 1866
Built One OF First Build.
ings in Great Falls and Died 1t
Havre in 1908; Was . Trader at
Many of the Frontier Army Posts
in Montana,

Contact with the Indians about two
years after his arrival in Montana
from St. Louis came very near bring
ing to an early end the existence Of
one of the best known of the pioneer
business men of Great Falls, who had
been an early day trader at various
army posts in the territory, including
those along the Missouri river and
that at old Fort Shaw.
This was ]. H. Mcknight, who
came up the river in 1854, who spent
his life in the trading and merchan-
dising business in central and nor
thern Montana, who established a
business in Great Falls, built one Of
its earliest buildings, the Mcknight
block which was destroyed by fire
nearly two years ago long after 1t
had passed into the ownership of the
Paris Dry Goods company, and who
died in Havre in January, 1903.
How Doc Mcknight was compelled
to run for his life in the Indian days
and how he escaped by only narrow
margin was related after Meningitis
death by w. s. Stocking, one of the
pioneers of the Fort Benton section.
"Just before Christmas in 1885,"
said Mr.. Stocking, I went out with
two men from Camp Cook, (later
known as Clagett) on hunting trip
and killed buffalo. We poisoned
the carcass and next morning we had
43 dead wolves, which we immedi-
ately began to skin. I accidentally cut
my hand and, leaving the other men
to finish the skinning, went out on
horseback to look after the oxen. In
loking around through my field glass
I discovered two war parties of In
dfans-one above and the other be-
low me-and not wishing to meet Wis
itOrs of that kind rode back to camp
where we yoked up, gathered the
skins and struck out for Camp Cook.
ION our way there we met J. H.
Mcknight with two horses and light
wagon and with him was a French
man, BAIL. and his squaw and two
children, and an old Indian named
Strangled Wolf. Mcknight said he
was going to Benton and I told him
of good camp on Eagle crek where
we had left wood but I warned him
of the Indians. The Indians had q
trap set for US but we slipped out
and Mcknight slipped in. When
they started their campfire the In
dams fired upon them and Strangled
Wolf was killed. BAIL, the French
man, was shot in the shoulder, but
got out and ran, and Mcknight pre-
pared to follow him. Mcknight had
a pistol that hung on a hinge and
when he drew it out of the scabbard
it became loosened. He made dash
for cover and when he ran through
the Indians and tried to shoot the
barrel of his gun was pointing to the
ground.
HE escaped, however, and made
his way on foot to Fort Benton, q
distance Of 80 miles, and troops were
sent out to look for the woman and
children. The search was unsuccess-
full and it was supposed the Indians
had taken them to camp. The wea-
Their turned very cold at that time,
but some IS days later the mail car
rier arrived with news that he had
found the woman and children camp
ed in the brush and living on rose-
buds. They were brought to the
fort, but the woman lost both feet
from freezing and one of the chill
dren was also badly frozen. The
woman had escaped the Indians by
hiding in the brush and making for
the Missouri rivor''