First Dragoon Expedition
Encyclopedia
The First Dragoon Expedition of 1834 (also called the Dodge-Leavenworth Expedition) was the first official contact between the American government and the Plains Indians.
The United States Dragoon Regiment left Fort Gibson
, Indian territory
, on 20 June 1834, under the command of General Henry Leavenworth
. The Cross Timbers
, summer heat, sickness, and death slowed the progress of the expedition; one hundred fifty of the five hundred men died on the march. The expedition stopped at Camp Leavenworth, where General Leavenworth, sick and injured from a buffalo hunt, sent the troops onward under the command of Colonel Henry Dodge
. On 16 July 1834, the expedition left 75 sick men, including American traveling artist George Catlin
, at Camp Commanche; Colonel Dodge and the rest of his men continued onward. General Leavenworth died on 21 July 1834.
On 21 July 1834, Colonel Dodge and the remaining men reached a Toyash Village of Wichita Indians
at Devils Canyon
. There, Dodge exchanged prisoners, traded, and secured peace treaties with several of the Plains tribes. The expedition returned to Fort Gibson on 15 August 1834.
The United States Dragoon Regiment left Fort Gibson
Fort Gibson
Fort Gibson, now located in Oklahoma and designated Fort Gibson Historical Site, guarded the American frontier in Indian Territory from 1824 until 1890...
, Indian territory
Indian Territory
The Indian Territory, also known as the Indian Territories and the Indian Country, was land set aside within the United States for the settlement of American Indians...
, on 20 June 1834, under the command of General Henry Leavenworth
Henry Leavenworth
Henry Leavenworth was an American soldier active in the War of 1812 and early military expeditions against the Plains Indians...
. The Cross Timbers
Cross Timbers
The term Cross Timbers is used to describe a strip of land in the United States that runs from southeastern Kansas across Central Oklahoma to Central Texas...
, summer heat, sickness, and death slowed the progress of the expedition; one hundred fifty of the five hundred men died on the march. The expedition stopped at Camp Leavenworth, where General Leavenworth, sick and injured from a buffalo hunt, sent the troops onward under the command of Colonel Henry Dodge
Henry Dodge
Henry Dodge was a Democratic member of the U.S. House of Representatives and U.S. Senate, Territorial Governor of Wisconsin and a veteran of the Black Hawk War. His son was Augustus C. Dodge with whom he served in the U.S. Senate, the first, and so far only, father-son pair to serve concurrently....
. On 16 July 1834, the expedition left 75 sick men, including American traveling artist George Catlin
George Catlin
George Catlin was an American painter, author and traveler who specialized in portraits of Native Americans in the Old West.-Early years:...
, at Camp Commanche; Colonel Dodge and the rest of his men continued onward. General Leavenworth died on 21 July 1834.
On 21 July 1834, Colonel Dodge and the remaining men reached a Toyash Village of Wichita Indians
Wichita (tribe)
The Wichita people are indigenous inhabitants of North America, who traditionally spoke the Wichita language, a Caddoan language. They have lived in Kansas, Oklahoma, and Texas...
at Devils Canyon
Devil's Canyon (Oklahoma)
Devil's Canyon, in present-day Kiowa County, Oklahoma, was the site of the first formal contact between the United States government and the Plains Indians. On July 21, 1834, US troops under the command of Col. Henry Dodge escorted government officials to a peace conference at the Wichita village...
. There, Dodge exchanged prisoners, traded, and secured peace treaties with several of the Plains tribes. The expedition returned to Fort Gibson on 15 August 1834.
- Note: The Second Dragoon ExpeditionSecond Dragoon ExpeditionThe Second Dragoon Expedition of 1835 left Fort Leavenworth, Indian territory May 29, 1835, charged with contacting the Indian tribes across the Central Plains to the Rockies as far west as the Mexican border. Traveling first up the Platte River they made contact with the Otoe, Omaha, Grand...
was from Fort Leavenworth to the Rocky Mountains in 1835.