White Massacre The White Massacre was an engagement between American settlers and a band of Utes and Jicarilla Apache s that occurred in northeastern New Mexico on October 28 , 1849 . In October , 1849 , James White , a merchant who plied his trade between Independence , Missouri and Santa Fe , New Mexico , was traveling west with a wagon train led by a well known wagon master , Francois X . Aubrey . After the wagon train passed what was considered the dangerous part of the trip , it encamped . White , " a veteran of the trail " , along with his wife Ann and baby daughter and " negro servant " ; a German named Lawberger , and several others decided to separate from the train and advance to Santa Fe alone . After a few days of traveling by themselves , they paused at a well known landmark called the Point of Rocks , between Rock Creek and the Whetstone Branch . Neither of the two locations can be located on a modern New Mexico map , but the Whetstone can be found on an 1876 map of New Mexico . Massacre . On October 27 the group was approached by a band of Jicarillas and Utes , who , according to the natives ' later account , asked for presents . They were driven away from the camp , but returned again to ask , and their request received the same response . The third time they returned attacked the settlers . All except Ann White , her child and her servant were killed . Some of the attackers left with their prisoners while the others hid around what was left of the wagons . Shortly after a group of Mexicans came upon the scene . As they began to pick through what was left of the wagon train the Apaches and Utes attacked them , killing or driving them away , but leaving a wounded Mexican boy . He was eventually discovered by a group of Americans who first raised the alarm about the massacre . Soldiers arrived at the site and buried the dead , who had , in an unusual turn , not been scalped . When Aubry heard of the murders he offered a $ 1 , 000 reward for the return of Mrs . White . Aftermath . Word eventually reached the United States Army garrison near Taos . From there Captain William Grier and the 1st Cavalry were dispatched to try and rescue Mrs . White and to " chastise " the Natives . They were accompanied by two experienced guides , Antoine Leroux and Robert Fisher . Along the way they stopped at Reyado where Kit Carson joined them , eventually leading them to the spot where the attack had occurred . From there the party pursued the Natives " for ten or twelve days , the most difficult trail I even followed . " Finally the trackers came upon the unsuspecting Natives on the banks of the Canadian River near Tucumcari Butte . Catching them unaware , Carson , who was in the lead , moved towards the camp , motioning the others to follow . In his autobiography Carson describes what followed : " I was in advance , starting for their camp , calling for the men to follow . The [ commanding ] officer called a halt , none of them would follow me . I was informed that Leroux , the principle guide , told the officer in command , to halt , that the Indians wanted to have a parley . The Jicarillas started packing their goods for flight and a shot was fired that struck Captain Grier , causing no serious injury . ( Due to the fact that Grier had a pair of heavy gauntlets tucked in his jacket ) The captain ordered a charge , but the delay allowed all but one of the Indians to escape . In about 200 yards , pursuing the Indians , the body of Mrs . White was found , perfectly warm , had not been killed more than five minutes - shot through the heart by an arrow . . . I am certain that if the Indians had been charged immediately on our arrival she would have been saved . " Ann White ' s daughter and servant were never found . In February 1850 the Superintendent of Indian Affairs in New Mexico , James S . Calhoun , sent Auguste Lacome , a noted scout , trader , and mountaineer , and Encarnacion Garcia , also a trader , to inquire into their location and whether they could be ransomed . Lacome met with Utes affiliated with the Jicarilla Apache and confirmed that the child had been killed shortly after the attack on the camp and her body thrown in a river . The servant was killed a short time later , being unable to keep up with the band .