The Passing of the Redman

Being a Succinct Account of the Last Battle that Wrested Idaho from the Bondage of the Indians.

Introduction…

Some time ago a movement was started which had for its object the erection of a fitting monument to the memory of the soldiers who fell at Battle Creek on January 29^th, 1863 and to mark the spot where the last important Indian trouble terminated. The matter was placed before the Franklin County Commissioners who heartily endorsed it and agreed to assist in its erection. At the suggestion of that board, a committee of prominent men in all parts of the county was formed to aid in securing necessary funds.

This committee termed its organization The Franklin County Historical Society and expressed a desire to perpetuate the organization even after the monument is completed. Since Franklin county is the historical corner stone of the state, it was deemed important that historical data be gathered from the rapidly decreasing pioneers and preserved for the use of future generations.

As an indication that the first permanent settlement (Franklin, Idaho) was made in this county, the following statements are made: The first permanent white homes were built in this county, the first grist mill in the state furnished flour for these settlers; this flour was made from wheat grown under an irrigation ditch which was the first of its kind in the territory. The first Idaho made plow, the first railroad and the first permanent meeting and school house were located in Franklin county.

While all of those things are important, the battle at Battle Creek is one of the most interesting incidents connected with the history of the state, as it marked the close of Indian troubles in southern Idaho. The battle really meant more to the state than most people realize. It was no mere skirmish, but was a genuine battle in which many human beings lost their lives. Some idea of the engagement may be had from the story which is given in this brochure. It is as authentic as careful research and conversation with the settlers who remember the incident can make it. Of course some of the minor details may not be exactly correct, yet in the main, the account is true. We are indebted to Colonel P. Edward Connor, the man who led the expedition and reported it to the authorities at Washington, D.C., to Mr. S.P. Morgan, compiler of the historical data for the first pioneer program, to Nathan T. Packer; James Frew, James Packer, S A. Merrill, Samuel R. Parkinson, L.L. Hatch, Mrs. Robert Hull and many others who lived in Cache Valley in 1863 and who still reside in this vicinity.

The proposed monument is to be erected on the exact spot where the thickest of the fighting occurred, where, it is reported it was possible to walk on dead Indians for some distance without stepping on the ground. Fortunately this is on one of the main traveled roads of the county and on one of the trails that leads from Utah and the south to the Yellowstone National Park. Hundreds of tourists will see it each year and will be able to read the legend of the battle and the names of those who fell there that Idaho might be. Nearby, a small spring is located which could be piped down to the monument and could be used in watering a small grass plot, where travelers who pass back and forth along the road might rest.

It was thought by the committee that since the battle was of such paramount importance to the entire state that it would be in order to ask the legislature to appropriate some funds toward its erection. It is thought that if the state would furnish some funds, the balance could be raised within the county. Such an arrangement would not burden the state nor the county and would add greatly to the artistic and historic interests of the old battlefield.

Names of the Committee

B.C. Mechan, S.C. Parkinson, S.J. Callan, County Commissioners; D.G. Eames, Senator; and E.P. Monson, Representative, ex-offico members of the committee.

The Battle…

The state of Idaho was settled permanently first, at Franklin, Franklin County, by a small band of pioneers and trail blazers in the spring of 1860. These people emigrated from the vicinity of Salt Lake City and other towns in that region because they had heard of the wonderful fertility of the soil in the well known Cache Valley. They selected a spot on the banks of Cub River and immediately began to build homes and prepare to remain permanently on their newly possessed farms.

At that time the state of Idaho was a vast wilderness known only to the hunter, the trapper, the prospector and the Catholic missionary. Its vast wealth was not even dreamed of, its resources were wholly undeveloped. Franklin then was on the extreme outskirts of civilization. A thin line of settlements connected it with Salt Lake City, but that line was so puny that the smallest mistake in the treatment of the numerous and populous bands of Indians that roamed through the south eastern part of the territory might have snapped it and prevented the permanent settlement of the state for an indefinite period of time.

The pioneers, however, realized their precarious situation. They followed the policy that it is cheaper to feed than to fight the red men. This policy, though it prevented bloodshed for a time, led the Indians to believe that their word was supreme law. Since Cache Valley was used by several bands as a winter camping ground, their demands were often unreasonable and burdensome.

During the winter of 1862 to 1863 a large tribe of Indians, under the leadership of Chief Bear Hunter and Sagwitch, were encamped near the mouth of what is now Battle Creek on Bear River, about twelve miles north of Franklin. The Indians selected that wintering place on account of the sheltering red clay bluffs which prevented the north wind from blowing upon their wigwams. The high clad banks and dense growth of willows that lined the little stream also offered opportunities for protection against the cold; and the subterranean hot wells of the region warmed the whole surface of the camping ground.

These Indians so out numbered the whites that they felt they had only to ask and the pioneers would be compelled to give, consequently, a food bin was maintained in Franklin to which the settlers contributed and from which the Indians drew when in need. Wheat was not the only commodity, however, that was contributed by the white men to their red brethren. The Indians, feeling immune from punishment, often augmented these forced gifts with cattle, chickens and other materials which they stole outright from the settlers.

Conditions had grown so bad by mid-winter 1862 that the settlers in northern Cache Valley were becoming greatly alarmed. They felt that at any moment the Indians might step down upon them and drive them from their homes and kill many of them. As a result of this fear which all felt, the people had drawn in from outlying homes, and were living most of the time in the fort which had been built at Franklin. Since the little log cabins which had been reared with much toil, represented the only homes they had, the outlook was anything but cheering to the little band of settlers. However, an incident occurred toward the close of the year which terminated in the almost total annihilation of the Indians who had become a menace by day and a terror by night.

In late December, David Savage, William Bevins and a company of men came down from the mines in the Salmon River country to procure supplies and cattle. Not knowing the fords across Bear River and being somewhat confused by a blinding snow storm, they followed down the west side of the river to a point somewhere west of Richmond, Utah. Here they stopped, made a ferry boat of wagon boxes and crossed over to the east side. As the last boat load was crossing the river some Indians who had followed the travelers from Battle Creek began shooting at them. One man was killed and several wounded. The white men hid in some brush near the river and waited for night fall, when they made their way to Richmond and reported the affair to the authorities of the town. The next morning, Bishop Mariner W. Merrill, sent some men out to get the dead body and whatever property the Indians had not destroyed. This company was attacked by a strong band of Indians but succeeded in getting the body of the dead man and a number of horses. Mr. Savage and his companions were sent on to Salt Lake City where the report of the actions of the Indians was given to the commandant at Camp Douglas and resulted in the expedition against the red men.

After the shooting of the white man, the Indians seized the property of the miners, cut their good wagons into bits, made whip stocks of the spokes of the wheels and showed a decidedly mean spirit generally. Colonel P. Edward Connor, upon hearing the report of the miners fitted out an expedition for the purpose of punishing the Indians. In his report of the matter which he sent to Washington, D.C. and which is on file in the department he gives the following reasons for his actions:

Colonel Connor and his men came none too soon, for the Indians, feeling sure that their numbers guaranteed their safety, levied tribute more determinedly than ever after the killing of the miners. On January 27^th, Chief Bear Hunter and a party of warriors went to Franklin and demanded twelve two-bushels sacks of flour. Upon being given that amount they demanded more, whereupon the settlers refused and the Indians performed a war dance around Bishop Preston Thomas's house all the time flourishing their tomahawks and threatening the people. The following day Bear Hunter, in company with two squaws returned to the settlement for wheat. He secured two, two-bushel sacks of grain which the squaws took with them upon their horses and all was in readiness for their departure when Colonel Connor's infantry was seen crossing over the rise south of town. The old chief did not seem alarmed, but waited for their approach. As the soldiers drew near to the settlement, the old Chief dismounted from his horse and began mimicking the march of the soldiers.

Twos right, twos left, he would cry, Come on, you blue coated sons-of-bitches. As the soldiers drew nearer and nearer the old chief mounted his horse and prepared to leave. Someone remarked, The soldiers are getting pretty close, perhaps you will get killed. Maybe so, soldiers get killed too, he replied as he rode away into the north, followed by the two squaws. The old fellow must have been a little more afraid, however, than he pretended to be, as his sacks of wheat were found by the wayside just north of town. It was evident that he thought it unnecessary to carry excess baggage.

In the meantime the infantry marched into Franklin and found lodgment in as good quarters as the settlers could furnish. Colonel Connor had arranged his expedition in two detachments, the infantry and howitzers which led, and the cavalry which brought up the rear. He did this in order that the Indians might not guess his strength and escape. His scheme worked well as Bear Hunter saw only the infantry and felt that he could withstand successfully their assaults. The cavalry did not reach Franklin until sometime in the night.

At the time this march was taken the weather was extremely cold. The snow lay deep upon the ground and the thermometer registered below zero most of the time. The loud creaking of the army wagons as they lumbered through the Cache Valley towns on their way to the battle ground is still a vivid recollection in the minds of some of the older inhabitants.

When Colonel Connor reached Franklin with the cavalry he ordered the infantry to move on at one o'clock a.m., but owing to a delay, the command did not get underway until three o'clock. About one hour later the cavalry mounted and rode out in the wake of the slower infantry. Being able to travel much faster than the infantry and artillery the colonel passed the vanguard somewhere, near where Preston now stands and hastened on to Bear River, which he reached just at dawn. The Indian camp lay north west from the ford, about one mile distant. Colonel Connor, fearing that the Indians might escape, ordered Major McGarry to surround the camp with the cavalry. Since the Colonel gives a vary vivid description of the engagement in his report to Washington, we give here his exact story of the battle. He remained behind a short time to give orders to the infantry and artillery as it came up.

He says:

After praising his men for their excellent conduct, Colonel Connor says:

As was stated by Colonel Connor, the intense cold and the conditions of the wounded rendered an immediate move from the field imperative. Many of the settlers furnished teams and wagons or sleighs with which to haul the wounded and dead from the field. These were taken back to Franklin where the settlers did all in their power to relieve the suffering of the living and make them comfortable. Good, clean straw was put in the meeting house and beds were made upon it for the wounded. Several of the settlers went to Salt Lake City along with the command to assist in hauling the dead and the wounded, those who could travel back to the city. Many of the pioneers who lived in Franklin at that time and who opened their homes to the soldiers, declare that they did it freely and without charge as they felt they had been rendered a great service by the boys in blue.

There is quite a discrepancy between the number of Indians reported killed by Colonel Connor and the number of dead Indians actually counted by men who live in Franklin County today, but the difference may be accounted for when we consider the Colonel's haste to get his wounded men to shelter. In his report Colonel Connor reports 224 dead Indians, but that the number was very much greater is certain. The Colonel also reported that one hundred and sixty squaws and children were taken captive, whereas, a number of living pioneers declare that the number of living souls who came through the bloody fight, was very small. It must be remembered that the women fought as desperately as the men and all fought like tigers. It is reported that a young drummer boy fell wounded, and that while lying upon the snow two Indian lads, mere infants, ran out with their case knives and attempted to cut his throat, and might have succeeded had their efforts not been stopped by the Colonel himself. A few Indian babies and squaws were taken to Franklin where they were cared for by the kind hearted people.

One of these was reared to manhood by Samuel R. Parkinson. He was known as Shem Parkinson and died when he was nearly twenty-five years of age. A girl was taken into the home of William Hull where she was reared carefully under the name of Hull. Later in life she married and reared a respected family, dying but recently, loved by many people. These were the only two of the children that survived until they were grown.

Colonel Connor was mistaken, too, when he reported that Chief Sagwitch was among the killed. Some of the pioneers declare that the cunning old chief was not present at the battle at all, with a few say he was present and escaped. Which ever version is correct, it is certain that he was not killed on that day as he was shot many years later near Brigham City, Utah. The son of Chief Sagwitch was in the battle and escaped in a very daring fashion. He ran toward the river during the engagement with several soldiers in hot pursuit. Upon reaching the bank he fell into the water as though dead, while the soldiers' volley whistled harmlessly overhead. He floated under the ice and made for an air hole where he clung with his head just out of the water enough to allow him to breath freely. While in this position, the soldiers sighted him and fired upon him. He withdrew momentarily from the opening, receiving only a wounded thumb. The soldiers returned to the battlefield and the courageous young fellow swam to a bunch of willows, where he lay hidden for several hours in the intense cold. How he ever escaped being frozen is a wonder. This man was interviewed at his home in Washakie a few years ago by S.P. Morgan. He told Mr. Morgan that twenty-two young bucks escaped in various ways from the vigilant Connor. He also stated that the Indians, had planned to raid the white settlements as soon as spring should open up.

Bear Hunter, the leading chief and as villainous an old fox as ever wore buckskin, was found dead by his fire. Evidences pointed to the fact that he had been engaged in moulding bullets when death came. The battle was a very important one to this state, as it marked the close of the real Indians troubles of this section of the territory. The Indians were taught a lesson that remained with them for many years. While it seems cruel to us when we look back upon the affair, yet we must remember that those were the days of the primitive, the fittest survived.

The State of Idaho may feel, that they owe the brave lads who faced the dangers of a one-hundred and forty mile march in the coldest weather of winter, a debt of gratitude which can never be paid to them personally, but which can be paid to their memory in a manner that will not only show its appreciation of the services rendered it, but which will add beauty and interest to the historic scenes of their death.

The pioneers of Franklin County, the men who planted the seeds from which this great commonwealth has grown, feel that the move which has for its object the erection of the proposed monument is a worthy one. It will be placed on the exact spot where the sacrifices were made, and will be adjacent to one of our most important roads where strangers as well as our own people may read the story of the event and look upon the monument not alone as commemorating the struggles of advancing civilization, but also testimony of established peace between the white man and his wild brother.¹

Franklin County Historical Society

Notes…

The effort to place the monument, was delayed by the United States entry into World War I. It was picked up once again by the Daughters of Utah Pioneers who provided the rocks for the monument and it was placed on September 5^th, 1932.

Listing of the men who were killed and those who later died from their battle wounds:

1. James W. Baldwin, Private, through the chest. Second Cavalry, Company A, January 29^th, 1863, at Battle Creek.
2. George German, Private, above the heart. Second Cavalry, Company A, January 29^th, 1863 at Battle Creek.
3. John Wm. Wall, Private, shot in the right arm. Second Cavalry, Company A, February 8^th, at Camp Douglas.
4. William H. Lake, Private, shot in the mouth; badly. Second Cavalry, Company A, March 24^th, 1863 at Camp Douglas.
5. Charles Hallowell, Private, center of chest. Second Cavalry, Company H, January 29^th, 1863 at Battle Creek.
6. John K. Briggs, Private, through the chest. Second Cavalry, Company H, January 29^th, 1863 at Battle Creek.
7. Michael O'Brien, Private, left lung. Second Cavalry, Company H, February 6^th, 1863, at Camp Douglas.
8. Patrick Frawley, Corporal, right shoulder and spine. Second Cavalry, Company H, February 8^th, 1863, at Camp Douglas.
9. James Cantillon, Sergant, left lung. Second Cavalry, Company H, February 5^th, 1863, at Camp Douglas.
10. Darwin Chase, Lieutanant, left lung. Second Cavalry, Company K, February 4^th, 1863, at Farmington.
11. Christian Smith, Bugler, center of chest, right to left. Company K, January 29^th, 1863 at Battle Creek.
12. Shelbourne Reed, Private, through the head. Second Cavalry, Company K, January 29^th, 1863 at Battle Creek.
13. Adolphus Rowe, Private, through both lungs. Second Cavalry, Company K, January 29^th, 1863 at Battle Creek.
14. Lewis Anderson, Private, through the heart. Second Cavalry, Company K, January 29^th, 1863 at Battle Creek.
15. Henry W. Trempf, Private, through both lungs. Second Cavalry, Company K, January 29^th, 1863 at Battle Creek.
16. William M. Slocum, Private, right lung. Second Cavalry, Company K, February 5^th, 1863, at Camp Douglas.
17. George C. Cox, Private, through both lungs. Second Cavalry, Company M, January 29^th, 1863. at Battle Creek.
18. George W. Hoten, Private, through the heart. Second Cavalry, Company M, January 29^th, 1863. at Battle Creek.
19. Asa F. Howard, Wagoner, through the heart. Second Cavalry, Company M, January 29^th, 1863. at Battle Creek.
20. Anthony Stevens, Sergant, chest and shoulder. Second Cavalry, Company M, February 6^th, 1863, at Camp Douglas.
21. William Davis, Private, right lung. Second Cavalry, Company M, February 2^nd, 1863, at Ogden.
22. John E. Baker, Private, through heart and stomach. Third Infantery, Company K, January 29^th, 1863. at Battle Creek.
23. Samuel J.W. Thomas, Private, through the chest. Third Infantery, Company K, January 29^th, 1863 at Battle Creek.²

1. The Passing of the Redman, Franklin County Historical Society and Monument Committee, Franklin, Idaho, First Printing, 1917.
2. Listing of the Men Who Were Killed, Rodney J. Sorensen, Compiled in the summer of 2919.