| Dull Knife Fight | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Part of theGreat Sioux War of 1876 | |||||||
| |||||||
| Belligerents | |||||||
| Cheyenne |  United States | ||||||
| Commanders and leaders | |||||||
| Dull Knife Little Wolf Roman Nose Gray Head Old Bear[2]: 35 | Ranald S. Mackenzie | ||||||
| Strength | |||||||
| ~400 | ~1,000 | ||||||
| Casualties and losses | |||||||
| 40 killed Unknown wounded[2]: 35 | 7 killed 26 wounded | ||||||
 | |||||||
TheDull Knife Fight, or theBattle on the Red Fork, part of theGreat Sioux War of 1876, was fought on November 25, 1876, in present-dayJohnson County, Wyoming between soldiers and scouts of theUnited States Army and warriors of the NorthernCheyenne. The battle essentially ended the Northern Cheyennes' ability to continue the fight for their freedom on theGreat Plains.
After soldiers fromFort Fetterman inWyoming Territory underBrigadier GeneralGeorge Crook fought the Northern Cheyenne at theBattle of Powder River, on March 17, 1876, theBattle of Prairie Dog Creek on June 9, 1876, theBattle of the Rosebud on June 17, 1876, and theBattle of Slim Buttes on September 9–10, 1876, General Crook received reinforcements at his Goose Creek, Wyoming supply base and began to move up the oldBozeman Trail towardsCrazy Horse. After learning of a village of Cheyennes in October, 1876, Crook sentColonelRanald S. Mackenzie into the SouthernPowder River Country to locate it.
Colonel Mackenzie departedCamp Robinson, Nebraska with nearly 1,000 soldiers in 11 companies of the2nd,3rd,4th, and5th United States Cavalry Regiments. He also had a large contingent of 400 Indian scouts, includingPawnee led by Li-heris-oo-li-shar,Shoshone led by O-ho-a-tay,Arapaho led by "Sharp Nose",Sioux led by "Three Bears",Bannocks led by Tup-si-paw, andCheyenne.[3] The expedition of 1500 officers and men left Fort Fetterman on 14 November 1876, accompanied by four dismounted companies of the 4th Artillery and eleven companies of infantry from the 4th, 9th, 14th and 25th regiments underColonelRichard I. Dodge, and a medical staff of 6 surgeons. The Indian scouts "scoured" the front, flank and rear up to 40 miles (64 km). The cavalry then pushed forward, ready to fall back on the infantry if necessary. A train of some 168 wagons, 7 ambulances, 219 drivers and attendants, 400 mules and 65 packers in the pack-train supplied the column. They waited out a snow storm atCantonment Reno until 22 Nov.[2]
On 23 Nov., a Cheyenne Indian from theRed Cloud Agency informed the soldiers of an "extremely large" Cheyenne village at the source ofCrazy Woman Creek, further upstream from the current US camp, in aBighorn Mountainscanyon. Col. Mackenzie was ordered to take the Indian scouts, and all of the cavalry except one company, in search of the village. He led 1000 men, one third of which were Indians.[2]
Eventually on November 25, 1876, Mackenzie found thecamp ofDull Knife andLittle Wolf on the Red Fork of thePowder River. The Cheyenne warriors were having a celebration because of a recent victory over aShoshone village.[2]: iii, 34, 41
Mackenzie waited until dawn, then attacked and drove the warriors from the village. Some were forced to leave their clothes, blankets and buffalo robes behind and flee into the frozen countryside. Dull Knife began to offer stiff resistance, and the fighting continued. The Pawnee warriors accompanying the soldiers fought with exceptional ability against the Cheyenne.Second Lieutenant John A. McKinney, of the4th United States Cavalry Regiment, and five enlisted men wereKilled in action. Chief Dull Knife's Cheyenne warriors finally retreated, abandoning their village.[4] The Cheyenne village of 200 lodges and all its contents were entirely destroyed, and the soldiers captured about 700 "head of stock".[2]: 36, 39
Dull Knife lost 3 sons in the fight. "From the desperate cold of the night immediately following they suffered as much. Eleven babies froze to death in the arms of famished mothers..." Finally, the US soldiers recovered articles from theBattle of the Little Bighorn.[2]: 34–35, 39–40
Dull Knife's followers were left in the freezing November weather without sufficient clothing, and many suffered from frostbite. In the days that followed, some of the women and children froze to death. Hungry and freezing, many survivors surrendered atCamp Robinson,Nebraska by April 1877. Those who surrendered were exiled to theSouthern Cheyenne reservation inIndian Territory. After a year of reservation life in which they were decimated by disease and hunger, many—including Dull Knife and his followers—escaped in what became known as theNorthern Cheyenne Exodus.[5]
Other survivors never surrendered. A large number of Dull Knife's band traveled north along the Bighorn Mountains, eventually reaching the upperTongue River regions. Some joined ChiefCrazy Horse'sOglala Sioux camp on Beaver Creek, and on January 8, 1877, would fight alongside Crazy Horse andTwo Moon at theBattle of Wolf Mountain on the banks of the Tongue River, inMontana Territory.[6]
The Dull Knife Fight ended the Northern Cheyennes' resistance to the United States for all practical purposes. General Crook telegrammed the War Department, "This will be a terrible blow to the hostiles, as those Cheyennes were not only their bravest warriors but have been the head and front of most all the raids and deviltry committed in this country."[2]: 44 There were a few more skirmishes, but by 1884 the Northern Cheyenne people were confined to theNorthern Cheyenne Indian Reservation.[5]
Native Americans, Chief'sDull Knife, andLittle Coyote (Little Wolf). About 400 warriors.
| Native Americans | Tribe | Leaders |
|---|---|---|
| Northern Cheyenne
|
United States ArmyExpedition fromCamp Robinson,Nebraska, October–November, 1876, LateMajor General,ColonelRanald S. Mackenzie, commanding.
| Expedition | Regiment | Companies and Others |
|---|---|---|
| 2nd Cavalry
|
|
| 3rd Cavalry
|
| |
| 4th Cavalry
|
| |
| 5th Cavalry
|
| |
| Indian Scouts and Guides
|
The Dull Knife Battlefield is located east of theBighorn Mountains inJohnson County, Wyoming near the present day town ofKaycee, Wyoming. The battlefield is on private land and tours are available only by special arrangement. The location is now the site of acattle ranch.[citation needed]
