The Battle
On the evening of September 8, 1876, near the present town of Reva, South Dakota, Captain Mills with his 150 troopers from the 3rd U.S. Cavalry surrounded the village of thirty-seven lodges and attacked it the next morning, shooting anyone who resisted. Taken by surprise, the Indians fled, with a mortally wounded American Horse and fifteen women and children hiding in a nearby ravine/draw. Having refused treatment by the army surgeons after surrendering, American Horse eventually died, as well as two women and one child. One Indian boy was found alive in the village, having slept through the initial fighting. Those Sioux who escaped spread the word to neighboring Sans Arc, Brulé and Cheyenne villages, telling Crazy Horse and other leaders that they had encountered 100-150 soldiers. Unknown to them, Crook's main column of infantry, artillery, and other cavalry had arrived.
Crazy Horse and 600-800 warriors quickly rode 10 miles northward towards American Horse's village, set in a depression among several hills. They reached an overlook, where they saw much larger than expected numbers of well-armed soldiers surrounding the village. From their positions atop the bluffs, the warriors opened fire, causing Crook to immediately form a defensive perimeter around his horses and mules. The general soon ordered the village to be set ablaze. Crook sent forward a strong line of skirmishers, with four companies of infantry in the lead, followed by dismounted troopers from three cavalry regiments. After a 45-minute steady firefight, the advancing soldiers drove most of the warriors from their hilltop positions. A few Sioux held their ground, even charging the perimeter of the 3rd Cavalry at one point, but were eventually chased away.
The soldiers seized 110 ponies in the village, as well as a supply of dried meat that was divided among Crook's ill and wounded men. Of emotional interest to the cavalrymen, they recovered a number of artifacts of the Battle of Little Bighorn, including a 7th Cavalry guidon from Company I, the bloody gauntlets of slain Capt. Myles Keogh, government-issued guns and ammunition, and other related items.
On September 10, Crook led his famished force away from the smoldering village, headed for the Black Hills and the promised food and supplies. The Sioux kept up a running fight with his troops for the next few days, before Crook finally made it to a supply column on September 15. The fighting at Slim Buttes cost the lives of two cavalrymen and one of Crook's civilian scouts, Charles "Buffalo Chips" White, as well as those of at least 10 Sioux.
Read more about this topic: Battle Of Slim Buttes
Famous quotes containing the word battle:
“I remember the scenes of battle in which we stood together. I remember especially that broad and deep grave at the foot of the Resaca hill where we left those gallant comrades who fell in that desperate charge. I remember, through it all, the gallantry, devotion and steadfastness, the high-set patriotism you always exhibited.”
—Benjamin Harrison (1833–1901)
“I remember the scenes of battle in which we stood together. I remember especially that broad and deep grave at the foot of the Resaca hill where we left those gallant comrades who fell in that desperate charge. I remember, through it all, the gallantry, devotion and steadfastness, the high-set patriotism you always exhibited.”
—Benjamin Harrison (1833–1901)