Snake War
Encyclopedia
The Snake War was a war fought by the United States of America against the "Snake Indians
", the settlers' term for Northern Paiute
, Bannock
and western Shoshone
bands who lived along the Snake River. Fighting took place in the states of Oregon
, Nevada
, and California
, and in Idaho Territory
. Total casualties from both sides of the conflict numbered 1,762 dead, wounded, or captured.
Indians killed eight men in Fort Hall
Idaho. From the time of the Clark Massacre
, in 1851 the regional Native Americans, commonly called the "Snakes" by the white settlers, harassed and sometimes attacked emigrant parties crossing the Snake River
Valley. European-American settlers retaliated by attacking Native American's villages. In September 1852, Ben Wright and a group of miners responded to an Indian attack by attacking the Modoc village near Black Bluff in Oregon, killing about 41 Natives. Similar attacks and retaliations took place in the years leading up to the Snake War.
In August 1854 attacks on several pioneer trains along the Snake River
culminated in the Ward Massacre on August 20, 1854, killing 21 people. This resulted in the punitive Winnas Expedition by the U. S. Army in 1855. From 1858 at the end of the Spokane-Coeur d'Alene-Paloos War
, the U. S. Army protected the migration to Oregon by sending out escorts each spring. Natives continued to attack migrant trains, especially stragglers such as the Myers party, killed in the Salmon Falls Massacre of September 13, 1860. As Federal troops withdrew in 1861 to return east for engagements of the American Civil War
, protection was performed by California Volunteers. Later the Volunteer Regiment of Washington and the 1st Oregon Cavalry
replaced Army escorts on the emigrant trails.
As settlers' searching for gold started to move west, they competed more for resources with the Native Americans. They lived on the land longer and consumed more game and water. Many isolated occurrences resulted in violence, with the result that both sides were taking to arms. The influx of miners into the Nez Perce reservation during the Clearwater Gold Rush raised tensions among all the tribes. The Nez Perce were divided when some chiefs agreed to a new treaty that permitted the intrusion. As miners developed new locations near Boise
in 1862 and in the Owyhee Canyonlands
in 1863, an influx of white settlers descended on the area. Shoshone, Paiutes and other local Indians resisted the encroachment, fighting what was called the Snake War from 1864 to 1868.
and the most well-known U.S. Army commander in the Snake War may have been George Crook
, who later led operations in the Apache Wars
. He also played a significant role in the Civil War. Many of the U.S. troops in the beginning of the war were volunteer regiments from the states of Oregon and California.
The regular U. S. Army called the period if their involvement in the Snake War, the Campaign against Indians, Oregon, Idaho, and California (1865-1868).
produced about 847 casualties.
Snake Indians
Snake Indians is the common name given by American immigrants on the Oregon Trail to the bands of Northern Paiute, Bannock and Shoshone Native Americans in the Snake River and Owyhee River valleys of southern Idaho and Eastern Oregon...
", the settlers' term for Northern Paiute
Paiute
Paiute refers to three closely related groups of Native Americans — the Northern Paiute of California, Idaho, Nevada and Oregon; the Owens Valley Paiute of California and Nevada; and the Southern Paiute of Arizona, southeastern California and Nevada, and Utah.-Origin of name:The origin of...
, Bannock
Bannock (tribe)
The Bannock tribe of the Northern Paiute are an indigenous people of the Great Basin. Their traditional lands include southeastern Oregon, southeastern Idaho, western Wyoming, and southwestern Montana...
and western Shoshone
Shoshone
The Shoshone or Shoshoni are a Native American tribe in the United States with three large divisions: the Northern, the Western and the Eastern....
bands who lived along the Snake River. Fighting took place in the states of Oregon
Oregon
Oregon is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. It is located on the Pacific coast, with Washington to the north, California to the south, Nevada on the southeast and Idaho to the east. The Columbia and Snake rivers delineate much of Oregon's northern and eastern...
, Nevada
Nevada
Nevada is a state in the western, mountain west, and southwestern regions of the United States. With an area of and a population of about 2.7 million, it is the 7th-largest and 35th-most populous state. Over two-thirds of Nevada's people live in the Las Vegas metropolitan area, which contains its...
, and California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
, and in Idaho Territory
Idaho Territory
The Territory of Idaho was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from March 4, 1863, until July 3, 1890, when the final extent of the territory was admitted to the Union as the State of Idaho.-1860s:...
. Total casualties from both sides of the conflict numbered 1,762 dead, wounded, or captured.
Background
The conflict was a result of increasing tension over several years between the Native tribes and the white settlers. Explorers' passing through had minimal effect. In October 1851, ShoshoneShoshone
The Shoshone or Shoshoni are a Native American tribe in the United States with three large divisions: the Northern, the Western and the Eastern....
Indians killed eight men in Fort Hall
Fort Hall
Fort Hall, sitting athwart the end of the common stretch shared by the three far west emigrant trails was a 19th century outpost in the eastern Oregon Country, which eventually became part of the present-day United States, and is located in southeastern Idaho near Fort Hall, Idaho...
Idaho. From the time of the Clark Massacre
Clark Massacre
In August, 1851, a band of Shoshoni led by Cho-Cho-Co, also known as Has No Horse, attacked a wagon train led by Thomas Clark on the Oregon Trail near where the Raft River joins the Snake River in present day Idaho. The Indian’s primary objective, which was accomplished, was to steal horses...
, in 1851 the regional Native Americans, commonly called the "Snakes" by the white settlers, harassed and sometimes attacked emigrant parties crossing the Snake River
Snake River
The Snake is a major river of the greater Pacific Northwest in the United States. At long, it is the largest tributary of the Columbia River, the largest North American river that empties into the Pacific Ocean...
Valley. European-American settlers retaliated by attacking Native American's villages. In September 1852, Ben Wright and a group of miners responded to an Indian attack by attacking the Modoc village near Black Bluff in Oregon, killing about 41 Natives. Similar attacks and retaliations took place in the years leading up to the Snake War.
In August 1854 attacks on several pioneer trains along the Snake River
Snake River
The Snake is a major river of the greater Pacific Northwest in the United States. At long, it is the largest tributary of the Columbia River, the largest North American river that empties into the Pacific Ocean...
culminated in the Ward Massacre on August 20, 1854, killing 21 people. This resulted in the punitive Winnas Expedition by the U. S. Army in 1855. From 1858 at the end of the Spokane-Coeur d'Alene-Paloos War
Spokane-Coeur d'Alene-Paloos War
The Coeur d'Alene War of 1858 was the second phase of the Yakima War, involving a series of encounters between the allied Coeur d’Alene, Spokane, Palouse and Northern Paiute against United States Army forces in the Washington and Idaho areas....
, the U. S. Army protected the migration to Oregon by sending out escorts each spring. Natives continued to attack migrant trains, especially stragglers such as the Myers party, killed in the Salmon Falls Massacre of September 13, 1860. As Federal troops withdrew in 1861 to return east for engagements of the American Civil War
American Civil War
The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...
, protection was performed by California Volunteers. Later the Volunteer Regiment of Washington and the 1st Oregon Cavalry
1st Oregon Cavalry
The First Regiment, Oregon Cavalry was a regiment in the volunteer Union army that participated in the American Civil War. With many men recruited from California, the regiment primarily served to protect the state of Oregon and surrounding territories in the Pacific Coast Theater of the American...
replaced Army escorts on the emigrant trails.
As settlers' searching for gold started to move west, they competed more for resources with the Native Americans. They lived on the land longer and consumed more game and water. Many isolated occurrences resulted in violence, with the result that both sides were taking to arms. The influx of miners into the Nez Perce reservation during the Clearwater Gold Rush raised tensions among all the tribes. The Nez Perce were divided when some chiefs agreed to a new treaty that permitted the intrusion. As miners developed new locations near Boise
Boise, Idaho
Boise is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Idaho, as well as the county seat of Ada County. Located on the Boise River, it anchors the Boise City-Nampa metropolitan area and is the largest city between Salt Lake City, Utah and Portland, Oregon.As of the 2010 Census Bureau,...
in 1862 and in the Owyhee Canyonlands
Owyhee River
The Owyhee River is a tributary of the Snake River located in northern Nevada, southwestern Idaho and southeastern Oregon in the United States. It is long. The river's drainage basin is in area, one of the largest subbasins of the Columbia Basin...
in 1863, an influx of white settlers descended on the area. Shoshone, Paiutes and other local Indians resisted the encroachment, fighting what was called the Snake War from 1864 to 1868.
About the war
The Snake War was not defined by one large battle but was a series of guerrilla skirmishes by the Indians, and patrols from many small camps, by detachements of American soldiers which took place across California, Utah, Nevada, Oregon, and Idaho. Unlike other Indian Wars, the Snake War lacked notable leaders on either side. Probably the most well known Indian leader was Chief PaulinaChief Paulina
Chief Paulina was a Northern Paiute war leader.During the late 1850s and 1860s, Northern Paiute bands attacked both settler communities and Native American reservations in central and eastern Oregon, as well as the Klamath Basin. Chief Paulina became the most notorious war leader in those raids...
and the most well-known U.S. Army commander in the Snake War may have been George Crook
George Crook
George R. Crook was a career United States Army officer, most noted for his distinguished service during the American Civil War and the Indian Wars.-Early life:...
, who later led operations in the Apache Wars
Apache Wars
The Apache Wars were a series of armed conflicts between the United States and Apaches fought in the Southwest from 1849 to 1886, though other minor hostilities continued until as late as 1924. The Confederate Army participated in the wars during the early 1860s, for instance in Texas, before being...
. He also played a significant role in the Civil War. Many of the U.S. troops in the beginning of the war were volunteer regiments from the states of Oregon and California.
The regular U. S. Army called the period if their involvement in the Snake War, the Campaign against Indians, Oregon, Idaho, and California (1865-1868).
Conclusion
The Snake War wound down after peace talks between George Crook and Snake chief Weahwewa had taken place. The Snake War has been widely forgotten in United States history. One reason was that the Paiute and Shoshone did not have notable reputations as warriors, unlike the Apache, for instance. Because of this, the situation never received too much attention, and few reporters covered it. Joe Wasson was one of the first. More significantly, much of the nation was concentrating on the American Civil War and its aftermath. Most of the American troops in the Snake War were volunteer state militia, as many of the U.S. Regulars were sent back east to fight the Civil War. Despite its being overlooked, the Snake War was statistically the deadliest of the Indian Wars in the West in terms of casualties, with a total of 1,762 killed, wounded, and captured on both sides by the end. By comparison, the Battle of the Little BighornBattle of the Little Bighorn
The Battle of the Little Bighorn, also known as Custer's Last Stand and, by the Indians involved, as the Battle of the Greasy Grass, was an armed engagement between combined forces of Lakota, Northern Cheyenne and Arapaho people against the 7th Cavalry Regiment of the United States Army...
produced about 847 casualties.
Snake War posts, California, Idaho, Nevada, Oregon,
- Fort DallesFort DallesFort Dalles was a United States Army outpost located on the Columbia River at the present site of The Dalles, Oregon, in the United States. Built when Oregon was a territory, the post was used mainly for dealing with wars with Native Americans...
, Oregon, (1850–1867) - Fort ChurchillFort Churchill State Historic ParkFort Churchill State Historic Park is a Nevada state park in Lyon County, Nevada, in the United States. Located south of the town of Silver Springs, it is in the Central Nevada Region of Nevada State Parks, and is one of seven National Historic Landmarks in the state of Nevada. The site is one...
, Nevada 1860–1869 - Camp Nye, Nevada (1861–1865)
- Fort RubyFort RubyFort Ruby, also known as Camp Ruby, was built in 1862, during the American Civil War, in the "wilderness of eastern Nevada." It protected the overland mail coaches and Pony Express, which linked California to the Union...
, Nevada (1862–1869) - Camp Smoke Creek, Nevada, (1862–1864)
- Camp Dun Glen, Nevada (1863, 1865–1866)
- Fort Trinity, Nevada, 1863 - 1864
- Fort Klamath, Oregon, (1863–1890)
- Fort Boise, Boise, Idaho, (1863–1879),
- Camp Susan, Susanville, CaliforniaSusanville, CaliforniaSusanville is the county seat of Lassen County, California, United States. Susanville is located on the Susan River in the south-central part of the county, at an elevation of 4186 feet . The population was 17,974 at the 2010 census, up from 13,541 at the 2000 census...
1864 - Post at Friday's Station, 1864
- Camp Bidwell, California (1865–1879) (Later Fort Bidwell)
- Antelope Station, Nevada, 1864
- Camp Alvord, Oregon (1864–1866)
- Camp Dalgren, Oregon (1864)
- Camp HendersonCamp HendersonCamp Henderson was a military outpost in the District of Oregon in 1864, built on Crooked Creek about five miles from where it joins the Owyhee River, 330 miles from Walla Walla. The camp was located at the foot of cliffs on the east side of the valley south of an historical marker located along...
, Oregon, 1864-1866 - Camp Lincoln, Oregon 1864
- Camp Maury, Oregon 1864
- Camp Russell, Oregon 1864-1865
- Camp WatsonCamp WatsonCamp Watson, was a military camp first established by Oregon Volunteers in 1864, near Mitchell, Oregon, on Rock Creek, on the headwaters of John Day River. It was palisaded and had several log buildings built by the Volunteers to protect the Dalles to Canyon City wagon route from Snake Indians at...
, Oregon 1864-1869 - Samuel Smith's Camp, Idaho (1864), near the mouth of the Raft RiverRaft RiverThe Raft River is a tributary of the Snake River located in northern Utah and southern Idaho in the United States. It is part of the Columbia River Basin.-Course:...
. - Quinn River Camp, Nevada 1865
- Fort McDermitt, Nevada 1865–1889
- Fort McGrary, Nevada 1865–1868
- Camp McKee, Nevada 1865–1866
- Camp Overend, Nevada, 1865
- Camp Reed, Idaho (1865–1866), near Twin FallsTwin Falls, IdahoTwin Falls is the county seat and largest city of Twin Falls County, Idaho, United States. The population was 44,125 at the 2010 censusTwin Falls is the largest city of Idaho's Magic Valley region...
on old Kelton RoadKelton, Utah-External links:* by Randy W. Lewis* at Utah State History...
near its crossing of Rock Creek. - Camp Wallace or Cantonment Soldier, Idaho (1865), located on the Big Camas Prairie near Fairfield, IdahoFairfield, IdahoFairfield is the county seat of and the only city in Camas County, Idaho, United States. The population was 395 at the 2000 census, nearly half of the rural county's population.-Geography:...
. - Camp Lyon, Idaho, (1865–1869), near Jordan Valley, OregonJordan Valley, OregonJordan Valley is a city in Malheur County, Oregon, United States. It is part of the Ontario, OR–ID Micropolitan Statistical Area. The city was named after Jordan Creek, a tributary of Owyhee River, which runs through the city; the creek is named for a 19th century prospector, Michael M. Jordan...
on Jordan CreekJordan CreekJordan Creek is a tributary of the Little Lehigh Creek in Lehigh County, Pennsylvania, in the United States.Jordan Creek joins Little Lehigh Creek in the city of Allentown, before soon flowing into the Lehigh River. It drains an area of .-References:...
within one mile of the state line. - Camp Colfax, Oregon, 1865, 1867
- Camp Currey, Oregon 1865-1866
- Camp Logan, Oregon (1865–1868)
- Camp PolkCamp Polk (Oregon)Camp Polk was a former army camp in the U.S. state of Oregon that was established in Deschutes County in 1865. It was a post of the District of Oregon. One of nine camps created during a time of conflict between settlers and Native Americans, it was located three miles northeast of the present-day...
, Oregon (1865–1866) - Camp on Silvies River, Oregon (1864?)
- Camp Wright, Oregon (1865–1866)
- Camp Buford, Idaho, (1866)
- Old Camp Warner, Oregon (1866–1867)
- Camp WarnerCamp WarnerCamp Warner was a United States Army outpost in south-central Oregon, United States. Camp Warner was located at two different sites approximately apart. The Army called both sites Camp Warner. However, the first site became known as Old Camp Warner. It was used as winter quarters in 1866–1867 and...
, Oregon (1867–1874)
- Camp Warner
- Camp Winthrop, September 26, 1866 - April, 1867
- Camp Three Forks, April, 1867-October 23, 1871
Sources
- The Snake War, 1864-1868, Idaho State Historical Society Reference Series #236, 1966
- Hubert Howe Bancroft, Mrs. Frances Auretta Fuller Barrett Victor, HISTORY OF OREGON, Vol. II. 1848-1888, The History Company, San Francisco, 1888, Chapters XX MILITARY ORGANIZATION AND OPERATIONS 1861-1865 and XXI THE SHOSHONE WARS 1866-1868, pp. 488–654
- Michno, Gregory, The Deadliest Indian War in the West: The Snake Conflict, 1864-1868. Caldwell: Caxton Press, 2007.
- Wooster, Robert, The Military and United States Indian Policy 1865-1903, New Haven: Yale University Press, 1988.
- Hook, Jason, and Martin Pegler, To Live and Die in the West: The American Indian Wars, Chicago: Fitzroy Dearborn Publishers, 2001.