American West: 1861-76

Lesson 5: Kit Carson and the Navajos, Roman Nose and Major Forsyth

A Siege and a Rescue

Major Forsyth, though wounded, still led this command when, at two in the afternoon, the Indians charged again. But having no war chief to lead them, the charge soon broke apart. The Indians returned at six that evening but were driven back and suffered considerable loss.

That night on the island a count was made. Two officers and four men were dead or dying. One officer and eight men were in critical condition. Eight men had sustained lesser wounds. The total was twenty-three casualties out of fifty-one offices and men. Though there was plenty of water, there was nothing to eat except the dead horses. And the Indians remained, lurking just beyond the banks of the river.

That night scouts Trudeau and Stillwell volunteered to slip ashore and make their way to Fort Wallace, one hundred miles away, for help.

The next morning the Indians again put in an appearance but were met by a volley of fire. That night, Forsyth sent out two more scouts for help. The pair returned about three o’clock in the morning. Every outlet to the valley had been blocked by Indians.

Though it was hoped that the Indians would be gone, on the third day it was obvious that they were still out there, and two more scouts were sent out for help. A fourth day passed with no relief from the burning sun that was quickly decaying the flesh of the dead horses and mules. And, still, the Indians did not depart.

By now Forsyth’s wound in his leg had become so painful that he begged for someone to cut the bullet out. On examination, it was determined that the bullet had lodged near the femoral artery. His men were fearful of cutting on him or probing for the bullet for fear of cutting the artery and causing him to bleed to death. Forsyth, in desperation, cut the bullet out of his own leg himself.

By the fifth day the mule and horsemeat was so putrid it could not be eaten. However, an unlucky coyote served as a meager banquet for the scouts. And the fire from the Indians had lessened.

On the sixth day Forsyth told his men that any of them who were well enough should leave the island since it was becoming more certain that none of the scouts had reached Fort Wallace for help. Not one of Forsyth’s men chose to abandon the rest.

Two more days passed, and no fighting occurred. On the morning of the ninth day Scout Grover suddenly spied men moving on the distant hills. Then he could make out an ambulance. Their rescue had come in the form of Brevet Lieutenant-Colonel Louis H. Carpenter and his force of Black soldiers.

Scout Jack Stillwell in later years

Scouts Stillwell and Trudeau did make it to Fort Wallace. Trudeau died soon afterwards. Years later, Stillwell studied law and became a Texas judge.

The histoy of the Black soldiers in the west is an exciting tale. Here's one of the best.

The Buffalo Soldiers By Elizabeth Gibson http://www.suite101.com/article.cfm/old_... About 180,000 black men had served in the union army during the Civil War. These were all volunteer units though, because they were not allowed in the regular army.

The source for this section is:

Brady, Cyrus Townshend. The Sioux Indian Wars, From the Powder River to the Little Big Horn. Indian Head Books, New York, 1992.

Suggest topics for discussion on this lesson.

Should the United States Government have taken a exclusively war policy towards handling the various Indian tribes on the Northern, Central, and Southern Plains?

In the 1800s, and previously, the Indians were often considered savages with no concept of good or bad. Could their beliefs, such as Roman Nose’s faith in his magic war bonnet, have been a leading factor in this white outlook of the Native American?

Did the United States Government make a major mistake in promising and issuing annuities to the Indians that included guns and ammunition?

Bibliography:

Capps, Benjamin. The Indians: The Old West. Time-Life Books, New York, 1973.

Brady, Cyrus Townshend. The Sioux Indian Wars, From the Powder River to the Little Big Horn. Indian Head Books, New York, 1992.

Murray, Robert A. The Hazen Inspection of 1866, Montana: The Magazine of Western History, January 1968, Volume XVIII, No. 1. The Montana Historical Society, Helena Montana.

Utley, Robert M. The Indian Frontier of the American West, 1846-1890. University of New Mexico Press, Albuquerque. 1984.

Wheeler, Keith. The Scouts: The Old West. Time-Life Books, Alexandria, Virginia, 1978.

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