Plentywood herald. [volume] (Plentywood, Mont.) 1908-current, 1930-12-25
POWDER RIVER EXPEDITION WAS UNSUCCESSFUL WHEN THREE
COLUMNS OF TROOPS WE'RE SENT INTO FRONTIER; GENERAL
COMMON RELIEVED OF COMMAND AFTER TROOPS WE'RE LOST
lBy JOHN X.


foot Indians prevented the Astoria
expedition. sent west by John Jacob
Aston, under the leadership of Wilson
Price Hunt, in 1911, from going to
the sources of the Missouri river and
then through the Rocky mountain pass
discovered by the ShCshone Indian
guide, Sacajawea, of the Lewis and
Clark expedition. Hunt and his men
left st. Louis early that year to go to
the mouth of the Columbia river to
establish a fur trading post that was
to be headquarters for Oriental trad
ing.
Warnings were given Hunt by friend
ly Indians when he and his party had
reached, by way of the Missouri, the
country not far from the hunting
grounds of the Blackfeet, that to push
farther up the river would be to in
vite immediate death. Retreat was
not to be considered, advance seemed
unwise; variation from the scheduled
route seemed the means of escape, and
at the same time, a possible method of
continuing toward the setting sun as
Hunt and his men expected to go.
To the southwest the company headed
itself, in place of the trail taken by
the Lewis and Clark expedition. In
a few days they reached what is now
the northeastern boundary of the
Powder river country, which, in a half
century, was to become the bloody field
of fierce and decisive Indian wars.
So far as is known by historians
this was the first time the Powder
river country had been visited by the
whites, although part of the Lewis
and Clark expedition passed through
the northern section on their return
east from Astoria, Oregon.
The Powder River Expedition
During 1864-65 hostile Indians con-
Quoted numerous raids on white set
tiers along the Platte. General Gren-
vile M. Dodge, who commanded the
Department of the Missouri, decided
the one way to protect the frontier
from Indian depredation1 was to strike
some hard blows in the enemy's coun-
try. He made plans to send four COL
umns Of troops, n under General
Sully and three under the command of
General P. E. Connor to attack the
Sioux, C%heyennes and Arapahoes, who
were thought to be camped in the
Powder river country.
The District of the Plains was Gre
ated for General Conner, March 80,
1865. AT Julesburg, May Is, he began
preparing for the expedition. Sully,
however, failed to get his men ready
and Conner acted alone.
According to official records in the
war department, pages 1045-9, orders
were issued to Colonel N. Cole by Con-
nor to kill all males over IL years of
age. The former was to command
the right column and march from
Columbus, Nebraska, nOrthweSterly,
passing north of the Black hills.
Colonel Walker, of the 10th Kansas
cavalry, with about 600 men and a
pack-train was ordered to march north,
through the Black hills He met Cole
north of the Black hills and east of
the Little Missouri river. Conner was
in command Of the other column. His
detachment consisted Of the 7th Iowa
cavalry, the End California cavalry, a
signal corps, and a company of 95 Paw
nee scouts. Under Major Frank North
there were approximately the same
number of Omaha and Winnebago
scouts.
Kansas Cavalry Mutinied
Dissatisfaction prevailed among Con-
nor'S men when he reached Fort Lara
ME, Wyo. Most of his men had en-
listed during the War of Rebellion and
were sent to the frontier at the close
of the Civil war. The officer was com
elled to call on the artillery to get
ready to fire on the troops when they
mutinied. The men then consented
to obey orders and go into the Powder
river country. They left Fort Laramie
on the scheduled day, July S, with
Colonel Walker in command. The
regiment that mutinied was Colonel
Walkers own, the 10th Kansas cav
airy.
nor left on August 2 and marched
across the Platte near the La Bonte
crossing, then up along the north bank
of the river as far as Fort Fetterman.
He then turned north and marched
across the dry country to the head
waters Of the Powder river, and then
on down the stream. The command
reached Powder river August IL and
construction Of Camp Conner was
started at nee. Later the name of
the camp vas changed to Fort Reno.
According to Palmer's account of the
expedition and official records in the
war department the troops seemed to
be more or less on a pleasure trip.
They nearly ran their horses to death
chasing buffalo and p~ackrabbits, al
though General Curtis had issued or
ders prohibiting this practice. A few
minor engagements were fought with
the Indians, but of no important con-
sequence.
Colonel Sawyer's Trip West
That summer a party Of army en-
gineers started for the Missouri river
up the Niobrara with q large wagon
train to open a wagon road to the
Montana mines. Colonel Sawyer, COM
identified by victims of other holdups
during the past As days.
Miller wa not named as a code
PENDANT to the Arehart robbery, it was
stated, but rs the evidence indicates
that but two persons we're involved in
this case. He was identified by several
rercOnS incli1dinp opd