One of the greatest warriors of the northern plains, Crazy Horse, was still unaccounted for after the Battle at Cedar Creek. Sitting Bull had fled with some of his warriors into Canada, but Crazy Horse was not with them. The ambitious Col. Miles, with 350 infantrymen, decided to go after Crazy Horse. On January 8, 1877, he found the Sioux war leader and some 500 Cheyenne and Sioux followers on the snowy cliffs of Wolf Mountain in Montana. The Indians were caught between a blizzard and the artillery fire of Miles' troops. They had no chance.
The defeat at Wolf Mountain disheartened the Indian warriors and in the spring, more than 1.000 Sioux and Cheyenne came into the Indian agencies to surrender. In May, Crazy Horse himself surrendered at the Red Cloud Agency, but even then he was seen as a potential threat by the Army and the Indian peace faction. Crazy Horse was ordered arrested and disarmed, and on September 7 he was killed (murdered) in a scuffle with his captors. Thus, a little more than a year after Custer's defeat, the Indians' power in the northern plains was effectively broken. That was the point, wasn't it?
Although the epic struggle had captured the attention of the public, two other campaigns of that time were equally dramatic. One was the retreat of the Nez Perces (Pierced Noses) under their legendary leader Joseph, the other the last ditch effort of the Modocs in the Northwest.
Next time...The Fighting Retreat of the Nez Perces
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Today in Pioneer History: "On February 1, 1884, the first portion, or fascicle, of the
Oxford English Dictionary (OED), considered the most comprehensive and accurate
dictionary of the English language, is published.
Very interesting Julie.
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