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The Combatants: Soldiers

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Wyoming, Sheridan County, Banner

The average age of an enlisted man in the United States Army was twenty-three years old. Although Fetterman’s command included veterans of the Civil War, many of the men were inexperienced in Indian warfare and had limited training with their weapons. The soldiers were also unfamiliar with the western terrain, where the clear air often visually distorts the depth and distance of valleys and ridges.
Cavalry and Infantry MenCaptain William Judd Fetterman . . . was a 31 year old Brevet Lieutenant Colonel with Civil War Combat experience. In a letter he commented that “the Indians annoy us.” He probably disobeyed Colonel Carrington’s orders when he crossed over Lodge Trail Ridge. His body was found near the monument.

Lieutenant George W. Grummond . . . was a 32 year old leader of Company C, 2nd U.S. Cavalry. During the Civil War he rose to the rank of Lieutenant Colonel. While he narrowly escaped death on December 6, 1866, he died on December 21, covering the retreat of his comrades.

Captain Frederick Brown . . . was the Post Quartermaster, and was not assigned to Fetterman’s command. He went along for one more chance at fighting Indians before leaving on assignment the next day. He rode Calico, a horse borrowed from Carrington’s son, and his body was found with Fetterman.

(Wars, US Indian) Includes location, directions, 3 photos, GPS coordinates, map.

The Combatants: Warriors

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Plains Indian warriors varied in age from teens into their thirties. Being superb horsemen and skilled marksmen with bow and arrow, these warriors used their athletic skills and knowledge of the terrain to trap their enemies. Although they often fought and lived together, this gathering of so many Sioux, Cheyenne and Arapaho warriors during the winter was unique. Because of a Spiritual Leader’s vision prior to the confrontation, these tribes referred to the Fetterman Fight as the battle of “One Hundred in the Hands.”

American Horse . . .
      . . . was an Oglala Sioux, who may have killed Captain Fetterman. His description of Fetterman’s death matched military autopsy reports. He became a prominent leader of his people during their cultural change from nomadic to reservation life.

Crazy Horse . . .
. . . was a young Oglala Sioux warrior and member of the decoy party at the Fetterman Fight. Ten years later he led warriors at the battles of the Rosebud and Little Big Horn. As one of the last Sioux leaders to surrender to the U.S. Government, he was killed at Fort Robinson in 1877.

Wild Hog . . .
      . . . was a leader of the Cheyenne tribe. He fought in the Dull Knife battle and participated in the Cheyenne march from Oklahoma to Fort Robinson.

Other Indian leaders were Iron Tail, Walking Rabbit, Painted Thunder of the Cheyenne, Black Leg and Black Leg and Black Shield of the Sioux.

(Native Americans • Wars, US Indian) Includes location, directions, 3 photos, GPS coordinates, map.

Grovetown Centennial Monument

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Georgia, Columbia County, Grovetown
This Plaque Placed
To Commemorate
The 100th Anniversary
Of the Founding of
The City of Grovetown, GA.
1881-1981

(Settlements & Settlers) Includes location, directions, 2 photos, GPS coordinates, map.

Two Scenarios: Fetterman Fight, December 21, 1866

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Wyoming, Sheridan County, Banner

The Fetterman Fight was a clash of forces using different warfare tactics. In 1866, the military used Civil War tactics of massed soldiers formations under a central command using concentrated gunfire. The skirmish lines had men placed at intervals of 20 paces. These lines were used to determine the enemy’s position and provided cover for the maneuvers of a large formation.

Scenario One
After crossing Lodge Trail Ridge, the command moved into Peno Creek Valley pursuing decoys. The cavalry separated from the infantry. As the cavalry reached Peno Creek, the ambush was sprung. The cavalry retreated up the Bozeman Trail and fought a series of rear guard actions. The infantry retreated out of the valley up a draw to Cavalry Knob. There the command was rejoined. During a lull in the battle, the infantry retreated to the monument. The cavalry, low on ammunition with Lt. Grummond, their leader dead, attempted to join the infantry. At the monument, the infantry were surrounded and defeated by attacks from the east. The cavalry found the infantry and in an attempt to break out were defeated just north of the monument.

On the other side, the Indians seldom used organized warring formations. A warrior fought and followed a leader at his own choosing, attacking only when the use of cover or overwhelming numbers meant low casualties. The military wanted to fight enemies of known size and location, but the Indian tactics of decoy and ambush seldom made this possible.

Scenario Two
After crossing Lodge Trail Ridge, the command pursued the decoys along the Bozeman Trail to Peno Creek. There, the cavalry, just ahead of the infantry, were attacked. The infantry retreated. The cavalry fought a series of rear guard actions, retreating behind the infantry to Cavalry Knob. Here they fought back to back. The infantry fired at distant targets to the south and east, the cavalry fired at close targets to the west. The disintegrating command with Lt. Grummond, their leader dead, was completely surrounded. In an attempt to reach Lodge Trail Ridge, cavalry and infantry survivors fought an undisciplined retreat to the vicinity of the monument, where they were surrounded and destroyed.

(Native Americans • Wars, US Indian) Includes location, directions, 4 photos, GPS coordinates, map.

Weapons of the Fetterman Fight

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Wyoming, Sheridan County, Banner

Officers generally carried Models 1860 Colt or 1858 Remington .44 caliber revolvers. They also carried M-1860 Light Cavalry sabers, like the cavalry.

An Infantry Soldier carried a Springfield Model 1863 rifle-musket, .58 caliber. He was issued 40 rounds for his cartridge box and carried a bayonet or a Noncommissioned Officer’s sword.

A Cavalry Trooper carried a Spencer Model 1860 .52 caliber or Model 1865 .50 caliber, seven shot repeating carbine. He was issued 28 rounds to be carried in his cartridge box and pockets. The standard cartridge box carried 20 rounds.

Civilians Fisher and Wheatley were armed with Henry Model 1860 .44 caliber, 15 shot repeating rifles.

A Warrior’s main weapon was the bow and arrow. The bow was approximately 48” long and the 25” arrows were tipped with 2” to 3.5” Indian or commercial made iron points. They also carried an assortment of other weapons including a stone war club, steel (metal) Tomahawk, a scalping/skinning trade knife, a lance and a shield.

The Indians used a limited number of firearms, including Colt and Remington .36 and .44 caliber revolvers and single shot flintlock/percussion trade rifles, .40 to .54 caliber, all firing crude cast round balls. By the end of the battle, the Indians had captured most of the soldiers’ weapons and used them to kill survivors or count coups on the dead.

(Native Americans • Wars, US Indian) Includes location, directions, 3 photos, GPS coordinates, map.

The Bozeman Trail       1863 – 1868

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Wyoming, Sheridan County, Banner

The Bozeman Trail was established in 1863 by John Bozeman and John Jacobs as a shortcut to the Montana goldfields. It started from Virginia City, at Adler Gulch, in Montana, heading southward across Wyoming and the Powder River country where it junctioned with the California-Oregon Trail following the North Platte River in central Wyoming.

Approximately, one thousand emigrants a year traveled the trail between 1863 and 1866. They traveled on foot, on horseback or by wagons, usually the Prairie Schooner was drawn by teams of mules or oxen. The trail, 530 miles long, was traveled primarily during the summer months, at the pace of approximately 20 miles per day.

Because of the continuous Indian attacks between 1866 and 1868, travel on the trail was reduced to freight and military wagons. The Treaty of 1868 closed the trail to emigrant use and the advance of the Trans-Continental Railroad eliminated its importance as a shortcut. The trail was used by General Crook during the Sioux Wars of 1876.

Sections of the trail have been replaced, first by stage roads or cultivated fields, and then by highways. Even undisturbed sections have disappeared. The Bozeman Trail was never used as heavily as other historic roads and natural erosion has filled many of the existing wagon ruts.

The long depression before you is an undisturbed section of the Bozeman Trail.

(Roads & Vehicles • Wars, US Indian) Includes location, directions, 3 photos, GPS coordinates, map.

As an Infantryman . . .

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. . . you are part of a detail formed this morning consisting of 49 men from companies A, C, E, and H of the 18th Infantry Regiment, you are told you will relieve a wood train under attack on Sullivan Hill for the third time in three weeks. On December 6, Col. Carrington and Capt. Fetterman fought a day long battle, in which Lt. Bingham and Sgt. Bowers are killed. On the 19th Capt. Powell, under orders from Col. Carrington, did not pursue the attackers over Lodge Trail Ridge, when relieving the wood train.

You are dressed in a Great-Coat, dark blue Blouse, sky blue Trousers, Jefferson boots and a fatigue cap. You are carrying a slow-firing Springfield muzzle-loader, 40 rounds of ammunition and a bayonet. Capt. Fetterman, the detail commander, is carrying a saber and revolver. The NCO’s also carry swords.

You are excited about the detail but wish you had more training with your rifle.

(Wars, US Indian) Includes location, directions, 3 photos, GPS coordinates, map.

During Your Advance . . .

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. . . you are joined by 27 more soldiers of Company C, 2nd U.S. Cavalry, under the command of Lt. George Grummond. Captain Fred Brown and two civilian volunteers, James Wheatley and Isaac Fisher, also join up.

Your detail heads up Piney Creek to cut off the wood train attackers from behind. Approximately, 10 warriors flee from the woods along the creek toward Lodge Trail Ridge.

You pursue them up the Bozeman Trail along the south slope of the ridge. At the top, you pause. Mounted troops string out in skirmish lines on both your flanks. You then head north and cross over the ridge down to the area of the monument. From the monument, you continue your advance along the Bozeman Trail to this position or into the valley in front of you.

(Wars, US Indian) Includes location, directions, 3 photos, GPS coordinates, map.

As a Cavalryman . . .

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. . . you dress lightly because the weather is clear. You are carrying your recently issued seven shot Spencer repeater and a saber. Lt. Grummond will command and he carries a saber and revolver. Wheatley and Fisher, who are with you, carry 15 shot Henry repeaters.

As the command reaches this point, it is split up. The infantry is behind you, although some are riding double or are running along side holding the stirrups of the cavalrymen. In your pursuit of the decoys, you have fired some of your ammunition and your horse is tiring. You continue pursuing the decoys into the valley.

At Peno Creek the decoys criss-cross and more Indians than you have seen before rise up from ambush. You retreat toward Lodge Trail Ridge, pausing several times to fire at your pursuers.

(Native Americans • Wars, US Indian) Includes location, directions, 3 photos, GPS coordinates, map.

As the Attack Continues . . .

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. . . the command retreats up the hill to this point, stopping only once or twice to fire at the pursuing warriors. Civilians Wheatley and Fisher, along with some non-commissioned officers, are making a stand 250 yards to the north, slowing the attack. You are formed in a skirmish line covering the draw to your front. The infantry covers your back.

The number of warriors attacking is overwhelming and they begin to surround your position. The infantry withdraws toward the monument; discipline is breaking down with the soldiers; Lt. Grummond is dead.

Not knowing the infantry’s situation, you and others make a break for them. Surviving a gauntlet of warriors in the low area to the south, you cross the hill and find the infantry surrounded; you attempt to joint them.

(Native Americans • Wars, US Indian) Includes location, directions, 4 photos, GPS coordinates, map.

Big Nose . . .

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. . . one of the Cheyenne members of the decoy party, is with you. He is riding a black horse belonging to Little Wolf, his brother, and is wearing Sweet Medicine Chief’s scalp shirt. His horse, tired from decoying the soldiers, stumbles during the charge.

Big Nose is hit and two warriors place him in the depression before you. His last request is that his head be placed up hill where he can breathe fresh air. After the battle, he dies and is buried with other warriors on the bluffs between here and the main camps. You recognize his bravery as a decoy and his death will become an honored account in the oral history of the Cheyenne.

(Native Americans • Wars, US Indian) Includes location, directions, 3 photos, GPS coordinates, map.

Corporal Adolph Metzger . . .

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. . . like you, will die today. History will record that he is of German descent and a combat veteran of the Civil War and Plains Indian Wars. Two weeks ago, on December 6th, he helped Col. Carrington rescue Lt. Grummond from certain death. Today, after running out of ammunition, he will fight to the end, using his bugle as a club. His body will be left untouched and covered with a buffalo cape; an honor from his adversaries. He will leave behind a wife and daughter.

In the end, your body will be recovered and you will be buried in a mass grave at Fort Phil Kearny cemetery. In 1888, your entire detail is reinterred at the Custer National Cemetery.

(Native Americans • Wars, US Indian) Includes location, directions, 5 photos, GPS coordinates, map.

As a Plains Indian . . .

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Wyoming, Sheridan County, Banner

. . . your preparations for the battle began two weeks ago when some leaders, including Red Leaf, High Back Bone and Black Leg, determined that the soldiers from the Buffalo Creek Fort could be ambushed.

At your main camp on the Tongue River two days to the north, your village gathered horses, weapons and food.
Red Cloud sought allies. A combined force of Sioux, Cheyenne and Arapaho warriors moved south along Prairie Dog Creek a week ago and camped just north of here.

One ambush failed two days ago. Yesterday, a spiritual leader was consulted. Three times he rode, blowing a whistle, seeking a vision of the upcoming battle. Each time he returned with an increasing number of soldiers in his hand. On the fourth try, he returned carrying one hundred; the victory is named “One Hundred in the Hand.”

(Native Americans • Wars, US Indian) Includes location, directions, 3 photos, GPS coordinates, map.

At the Break of Dawn . . .

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. . . you and fellow warriors prepare for battle. You wear your fines dress which includes your war shirt. The war pony you selected is painted and readied for battle as well. All of this preparation will give you spiritual strength and protection in the upcoming battle. You gather your weapons; bow, arrows, lance, war club, knife and war shield.

Upon arriving at Lodge Trail Ridge, the mounted Sioux hide in draws east of the soldier’s road. The Cheyenne, Arapaho and Sioux warriors, mounted and dismounted, hide in the brush along Peno Creek.

Two men are selected from each tribe to act as decoys. It is a great honor for these ten warriors; they leave for the battle to attack and lure the soldiers into the ambush.

Members of the warrior societies caution you to remain hidden, keep your horse quiet and await the signal. The soldiers come as predicted; the decoys criss-cross as a Cheyenne war leader signals the attack.

You break from cover.

(Native Americans • Wars, US Indian) Includes location, directions, 3 photos, GPS coordinates, map.

You Pursue . . .

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. . . the soldiers from Peno Creek. They retreat south up the hill along their road. A small group of them stop among some rocks to the north. Their fast shooting guns slow the attack, causing many casualties.

The remaining soldiers retreat to this area and form lines on both sides of the hill. You attack from the draws to the west and from behind the brush and crest to the east.

As you surround these soldiers, some break for the hill to the south, others release their horses. You pursue the escaping soldiers while other warriors go after the horses or continue to fight here.

In your pursuit, arrows are flying at the soldiers from both sides, sometimes hitting other warriors. The chase leads over the hill where the soldiers join others; again they are surrounded. The battle is almost over.

(Native Americans • Wars, US Indian) Includes location, directions, 4 photos, GPS coordinates, map.

In the End . . .

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. . . the soldiers are surrounded and defeated. You begin gathering used arrows, soldier weapons, loose horses and tending your injured. Some warriors were hit by accident when warriors attacked from both sides of the trail.

Other warriors strip and mutilate the dead soldiers; some do this for want or need of clothing, some revenge the mutilations at Sand Creek, and others believe that it will hinder the soldiers’ life in the hereafter. Each warrior has his own reasons. Later you hear that two soldiers have been left untouched because of their bravery.

You see another group of soldiers, but they cannot be lured down to fight. You return to the temporary camp tonight. Tomorrow you will mourn your dead and celebrate the victory at the man camps.

(Native Americans • Wars, US Indian) Includes location, directions, 3 photos, GPS coordinates, map.

The Discoveries

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Upon hearing rifle volleys north of Lodge Trail Ridge, Col. Carrington sent Captain Tenodor Ten Eyck with a relief column of 75 men to assist Fetterman.

After the battle, Ten Eyck’s testimony described the discovery of a valley full of Indians in which Fetterman’s command was unseen.
Advancing as the Indians withdrew, the Captain found 48-49 bodies near the present monument.

That night two civilians, John “Portugee” Phillips and Daniel Dixon, were sent to report the disaster and request reinforcements. Phillips rode 236 miles to Ft. Laramie in four days to summon help.

The next day, fearing additional Indian attacks, Col. Carrington left orders that the women and children were to be placed in the powder magazine, which would be blown up should an attack succeed. He then went to retrieve the rest of the bodies and found them at two locations near Cavalry Knob. On his report he described numerous blood spots around the Wheatley/Fisher position and multiple mutilations of many bodies, Fort Phil Kearny had lost one-fifth of its command.

The combination of eye witness accounts, archaeological data, military reports and Indian oral history have helped determine the location of three main military positions, skirmish lines and avenues of Indian attack. However, there is not a full understanding of the combatants’ movements during the fight, especially where the soldiers crossed Lodge Trail Ridge and the distance of the infantry advance.

(Native Americans • Wars, US Indian) Includes location, directions, 4 photos, GPS coordinates, map.

Tribute to the Civilian Conservation Corps

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North Dakota, Billings County, Medora
I propose to create a Civilian Conservation Corps . . . We can take a vast army of these unemployed out into healthful surroundings. We can eliminate to some extent at least the threat that enforced idleness brings to spiritual and moral srability.”
President Franklin Delano Roosevelt’s message to Congress, 1933


This commemorative plaque is placed in honor of the work performed by the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) Companies #2767 and #2772 in North Dakota, as a lasting tribute to the young men who chose the opportunity to work rather than accept welfare during the Great Depression. Through the efforts of the CCC and similar work programs, the country gained new bridges, roads, trails, culverts, picnic shelters, campgrounds, and parks, many of which are still in use today. In turn, the men of the CCC experienced social, intellectual, and occupational growth and were able to ease the financial burden of their families. In the nine-year life of the organization, more than three million men working for the CCC nationwide helped feed their families by serving their country for a dollar a day. Called the “Unknown Heroes,” the Civilian Conservation Corps reclaimed and beautified the land, leaving their work as a legacy to past, present, and future generations of Americans.

Between 1933 and 1941, under the direction of the National Park Service and other federal agencies, CCC crews developed the Chateau de Mores State Historic Site and what is now Theodore Roosevelt National Park. Camp #2767 was located near Medora and later replaced by camp #2772. An additional camp, #2771, was located near the north unit of what is now Theodore Roosevelt National Park.

This plaque is placed here through the cooperative efforts of:
Merlin and Dorothy Dahl, Mandan, North Dakota
Weldon W. and Marjorie Gratton, Medora, North Dakota
Stanley Hettman, Larslan, Montna
Ted and Delores Will, Bismarck, North Dakota
The State Historical Society of North Dakota
Theodore Roosevelt National Park
Medora Heritage Commission, Medora, North Dakota

(Charity & Public Work) Includes location, directions, 3 photos, GPS coordinates, map.

De Mores

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North Dakota, Billings County, Medora
In memory of
Antoine Manca de Vallombrosa
Marquis de Mores

Lieutenant French Cavalry
Born in Paris 1858
Killed in North Africa 1896
and of his wife
Medora
who founded this town in 1883

(Settlements & Settlers) Includes location, directions, 6 photos, GPS coordinates, map.

Historic Medora

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North Dakota, Billings County, Medora

Before you lies a scene not greatly changed since Theodore Roosevelt’s time here in the 1880s. Gone are the ambitious De Mores Packing Plant, the military cantonment and the early village of Little Missouri. But still present are the colorful buttes, the silvery thread of the Little Missouri, the shining rails of the former Northern Pacific, the Chateau de Mores and the old cowtown of Medora. Additions to the scene include TR’s Maltese Cross Ranch cabin relocated from its original site seven miles to the south, Theodore Roosevelt National Park’s visitor center, plus other recent facilities.

(Settlements & Settlers) Includes location, directions, 4 photos, GPS coordinates, map.
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