Cheyenne, Big Horn Co., MT–29-77

lornajarrettblanchard June 17, 1876

–29-77 Wikipedia. “Battle of the Rosebud.” 1-5-2023 edit accessed 1-15-2023.
–14-28 U.S. Army
— 1 – 5 Crow Scouts with U.S. Army
— 1 – 8 Shoshone Scouts working with U.S. Army
–13-36 Lakota Sioux and Northern Cheyenne
— ~44 NewsinHistory.com. “Battle of the Rosebud: Cheyenne & Lakota Stop General Crook.” 6-17-2022.
— 41 History.com. “Native Americans score victory at the Battle of the Rosebud.” 6-15-2021.
–28 “Crook’s team”
–13 “Crazy Horse had lost only 13 men…”
— 30 NDStudies.gov. “Lesson 4…Section 5: The Battle of the Rosebud…”
— 9 soldiers
— 1 Cheyenne
–20 Lakota

Narrative Information

Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks Department: “The Battle of the Rosebud, known to the Northern Cheyenne as ‘Where the Girl Saved Her Brother’, took place during the Campaign of 1876. Brigadier General George Crook, along with his Crow and Shoshone scouts, had come north from Wyoming with approximately 1000 troops looking for the Sioux and Northern Cheyenne villages of Chief Sitting Bull. On the morning of June 17, 1876, near the headwaters of Rosebud Creek, Crook was unprepared for the organized attack of an equal or even greater number of warriors lead by Sioux Chief Crazy Horse and Cheyenne Chiefs Two Moon, Young Two Moon and Spotted Wolf. The presence of thousands of warriors and soldiers on the rolling hills of Southeastern Montana made the eight-hour engagement one of the largest battles of the Indian wars. This battle was also exceptionally significant because the Native Americans fought as an army with great intensity to defend their traditional land. Crook was stopped in his advance and the Native Americans were emboldened by the success.

“Eight days later, because Crook’s troops were withdrawn from the war zone to resupply, they were not available to support Colonel Custer and his troops at Little Bighorn. The Lakota and Northern Cheyenne warriors overtook Colonel George Custer and his 263 soldiers at Little Bighorn. This defeat shocked the nation celebrating its Centennial and ultimately led to a counter attack and to the Lakota’s loss of the Black Hills….”

NewsinHistory.com: “….The antecedent for the fighting of the summer of 1876 goes back to the Fort Laramie Treaty of 1868, in which the Lakota were promised that a huge swath of territory, known as the Great Sioux Reservation and including the sacred area of the Black Hills, would be theirs forever. Despite this, the U.S. government sent Custer on an expedition into the Black Hills in 1874, and gold was discovered—leading to an inevitable gold rush of crazed miners who cared not a whit for honoring Indian treaties. Although the army at first tried to keep the miners out of the Black Hills, this soon proved impossible and the corrupt administration under President Grant decided to ignore the Fort Laramie Treaty.

“All Arapaho, Cheyenne and Lakota Indians were ordered to abandon the Black Hills and relocate to some tightly restricted, barren reservations by Jan. 31, 1876. After that date, any Indians not complying would be declared “hostile” and attacked. A large force of Indians, led by such renowned chiefs as Sitting Bull, Crazy Horse and Gall, disregarded the government’s command and gathered on the plains of Montana for the summer buffalo hunt. The army set out to destroy them.

“A three-pronged attack was organized involving around 2,400 soldiers. From the West came a column led by Colonel John Gibbon. From the East came a column led by General Alfred Terry, including Custer and the 7th Cavalry. The third element of the attack was a column coming from the South, led by General George Crook. All three columns were supposed to converge on the Indian camp and wipe it out. However, it did not happen that way, and the first setback for the army was the Battle of the Rosebud.

“Crook had about 1,300 men under his command, including 261 Crow and Shoshone Indian scouts. The day before the battle, June 16, he had pushed his men hard on a forced, 35-mile march. The wagon train of supplies had been left behind, and each man was ordered to carry only four days’ rations and 100 rounds of ammunition. At 3:00 the morning of June 17, the exhausted men were roused from their blankets, and by 6:00 Crook’s column was on the move again.

“What they did not know was that a large force of around 1,500 warriors, led by Crazy Horse, had left their village and rushed south to confront the advancing soldiers. The Indian attack began at 8:30 in the morning, and only the fierce resistance of Crook’s Crow and Shoshone scouts enabled his men to organize and prepare for the fight ahead.

“What happened next astonished the soldiers. Prior fights with the Indians had always been quick affairs, but not this time. The Indians were determined, fought ferociously, and showed no signs of quitting. The battle raged for six hours before the Indians headed back to their village, convinced they had stopped the soldiers’ advance. And they had. Their ammunition exhausted and the supply wagons far to their rear, Crook ordered his men to retreat. He reported losses of 32 killed and 21 wounded. Indian losses are estimated at around a dozen killed and 20 wounded. Crook went back to his camp on Goose Creek in Wyoming where his supplies were and simply settled down for seven weeks, ostensibly to wait for reinforcements. History will never know if his force could have arrived in time to save Custer from defeat at the Battle of the Little Big Horn eight days later….”

Sources

History.com. “1876, June 17. Native Americans score victory at the Battle of the Rosebud.” 11-16-2009, 6-15-2021 update.

Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks Department. “Rosebud Battlefield State Park.” Accessed 1-15-2023 at: https://fwp.mt.gov/stateparks/rosebud-battlefield/

NDStudies.gov (Official State Website). “Lesson 4…Section 5: The Battle of the Rosebud and the Little Big Horn.” Accessed 1-15-2023 at: https://www.ndstudies.gov/gr8/content/unit-iii-waves-development-1861-1920/lesson-4-alliances-and-conflicts/topic-2-defending-lakota-homelands/section-5-battle-rosebud-and-little-big-horn

NewsinHistory.com. “Battle of the Rosebud: Cheyenne & Lakota Stop General Crook.” 6-17-2022. Accessed 1-15-2023 at: https://web.archive.org/web/20121107032726/http://www.newsinhistory.com/blog/battle-rosebud-cheyenne-lakota-stop-general-crook

Wikipedia. “Battle of the Rosebud.” 1-5-2023 edit accessed 1-15-2023. Accessed 1-15-2023 at: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_the_Rosebud