![Operations Against the Sioux in North Dakota](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/32/Operations_Against_the_Sioux_in_North_Dakota.png)
The Battle of Whitestone Hill was the culmination of the 1863 operations against the
Sioux
The Sioux or Oceti Sakowin (; Dakota language, Dakota: Help:IPA, /otʃʰeːtʰi ʃakoːwĩ/) are groups of Native Americans in the United States, Native American tribes and First Nations in Canada, First Nations peoples in North America. The ...
or
Dakota people
The Dakota (pronounced , Dakota language: ''Dakȟóta/Dakhóta'') are a Native American tribe and First Nations band government in North America. They compose two of the three main subcultures of the Sioux people, and are typically divided into ...
in
Dakota Territory
The Territory of Dakota was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from March 2, 1861, until November 2, 1889, when the final extent of the reduced territory was split and admitted to the Union as the states of No ...
. Brigadier General
Alfred Sully
Alfred Sully (May 22, 1820 – April 27, 1879), was a military officer during the American Civil War and during the Indian Wars on the frontier. He was also a noted painter.
Biography
Sully was the son of the portrait painter, Thomas Sully, of ...
attacked a village September 3–5, 1863. The
Native Americans (also called
Plains Indians
Plains Indians or Indigenous peoples of the Great Plains and Canadian Prairies are the Native American tribes and First Nation band governments who have historically lived on the Interior Plains (the Great Plains and Canadian Prairies) of N ...
) in the village included
Yanktonai
The Dakota (pronounced , Dakota language: ''Dakȟóta/Dakhóta'') are a Native Americans in the United States, Native American tribe (Native American), tribe and First Nations in Canada, First Nations band government in North America. They compo ...
,
Santee
Santee may refer to:
People
* Santee Dakota, a subgroup of the Dakota people, of the U.S. Great Plains
* Santee (South Carolina), a Native American people of South Carolina
Places
* Lake Santee, Indiana, a reservoir and census-designated place
* ...
, and
Teton (Lakota) Sioux. Sully killed, wounded, or captured 300 to 400 Sioux, including women and children,
at a cost of about 60 casualties. Sully would continue the conflict with another campaign in 1864.
Background
In the bitter
Dakota War of 1862
The Dakota War of 1862, also known as the Sioux Uprising, the Dakota Uprising, the Sioux Outbreak of 1862, the Dakota Conflict, the U.S.-Dakota War of 1862, or Little Crow's War, was an armed conflict between the United States and several ban ...
a faction of the Santee Dakota or Sioux in
Minnesota
Minnesota () is a state in the upper midwestern region of the United States. It is the 12th largest U.S. state in area and the 22nd most populous, with over 5.75 million residents. Minnesota is home to western prairies, now given over to ...
rose up in rebellion against the
United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...
because of the non-payment by the U.S. government to the Sioux of much-needed food and money required by treaties. The Sioux killed more than 600 whites, mostly unarmed civilians. The Sioux were defeated, the leaders of the rebellion executed, and, in April 1863, nearly all Sioux, whether participants in the war or not, were forcibly expelled or ordered to leave Minnesota and Sioux lands were confiscated. This caused about 4,000 Santee to flee from
Minnesota
Minnesota () is a state in the upper midwestern region of the United States. It is the 12th largest U.S. state in area and the 22nd most populous, with over 5.75 million residents. Minnesota is home to western prairies, now given over to ...
to Dakota Territory where they united with other elements of the Yanktonai, Yankton, and Lakota or Teton Sioux. Sioux warriors continued to carry out small scale raids on civilian and military targets in Minnesota.
In mid-1863, the United States Army under General
John Pope in Minnesota mounted two large military expeditions against the Sioux in eastern Dakota Territory. The objectives of the expeditions were to prevent a renewal of the 1862 war, promote white settlement in the eastern Dakotas, and protect access to the
Montana
Montana () is a state in the Mountain West division of the Western United States. It is bordered by Idaho to the west, North Dakota and South Dakota to the east, Wyoming to the south, and the Canadian provinces of Alberta, British Columbi ...
goldfields via the
Missouri River. Brigadier General
Henry Hastings Sibley
Henry Hastings Sibley (February 20, 1811 – February 18, 1891) was a fur trader with the American Fur Company, the first U.S. Congressional representative for Minnesota Territory, the first governor of the state of Minnesota, and a U.S. mil ...
commanded one of the two prongs of the operation. He led 2,000 soldiers overland from Minnesota to the Missouri River, fighting three battles in July with the Sioux at
Big Mound,
Dead Buffalo Lake, and
Stony Lake. Although he did not inflict heavy casualties, Sibley's men pushed the Sioux to the western side of the Missouri River and destroyed much of their property including winter supplies of
jerky
Jerky is lean trimmed meat cut into strips and dried (dehydrated) to prevent spoilage. Normally, this drying includes the addition of salt to prevent bacteria growth before the meat has finished the dehydrating process. The word "jerky" derive ...
and many of their
tipi
A tipi , often called a lodge in English, is a conical tent, historically made of animal hides or pelts, and in more recent generations of canvas, stretched on a framework of wooden poles. The word is Siouan languages, Siouan, and in use in Dakot ...
s.
The second prong of the operation was led by Sully who was supposed to ascend the Missouri River with 1,200 men, rendezvous with Sibley, and crush the Sioux between the two forces. Because of low water in the river, Sully was delayed in ascending the Missouri in steamboats. When Sully arrived in the vicinity of present-day
Bismarck, North Dakota
Bismarck () is the capital of the U.S. state of North Dakota and the county seat of Burleigh County. It is the state's second-most populous city, after Fargo. The city's population was 73,622 in the 2020 census, while its metropolitan popula ...
in mid-August, Sibley had already returned to Minnesota. Sully's 1,200 men included the 6th Iowa Cavalry, commanded by Colonel David Wilson, the 2nd Nebraska Cavalry, commanded by Colonel Robert Furnas, plus eight mountain howitzers, scouts and a wagon train. Sully's men were armed with long-range rifles, rather than the usual cavalry carbines, which gave them a decided advantage over the Sioux, mostly armed with muskets, shotguns, and bows and arrows.
Meanwhile, some of the Sioux Sibley had chased west across the Missouri River had returned to the east of the river to replenish their winter supplies of
buffalo meat. Sully searched for the Indians toward the southeast On September 3, Sully found numerous remains of recently killed buffalo near a lake and that afternoon his scout, Frank LaFramboise, a mixed-blood Santee, reported a village of 400 lodges 10 miles ahead. LaFramboise was captured briefly by a party of Sioux warriors, but released, a sign perhaps that the Sioux were not looking for a battle. Sully ordered his advance force, a battalion of the Sixth Iowa, numbering 300 men, under Major A. E. House to surround the encampment and to prevent the Indians from leaving. He left four companies to guard his supply train and then advanced with his main force at a gallop covering the 10 miles in one hour.
While Major House and his battalion of the Sixth Iowa were scouting the Indian camp and waiting for Sibley to come forward with additional soldiers, a delegation from the Sioux advanced with a
white flag
White flags have had different meanings throughout history and depending on the locale.
Contemporary use
The white flag is an internationally recognized protective sign of truce or ceasefire, and for negotiation. It is also used to symbolize ...
constructed from a flour sack,
transcript
claimed to be peaceful and only interested in hunting, and offered to surrender several of their chiefs. House, lacking instructions, demanded that the whole camp of Indians surrender unconditionally. He suspected that the Indians were stalling so the women would have time to pack up the camp and escape. House was likewise stalling until reinforcements arrived.
Yanktonai, including the Cuthead band, were probably the most populous of Sioux peoples in the encampment which also contained Santee,
Hunkpapa
The Hunkpapa (Lakota: ) are a Native American group, one of the seven council fires of the Lakota tribe. The name ' is a Lakota word, meaning "Head of the Circle" (at one time, the tribe's name was represented in European-American records as ...
(possibly including a rising leader named
Sitting Bull
Sitting Bull ( lkt, Tȟatȟáŋka Íyotake ; December 15, 1890) was a Hunkpapa Lakota leader who led his people during years of resistance against United States government policies. He was killed by Indian agency police on the Standing Rock I ...
), and
Sihasapa
The Sihásapa or Blackfoot Sioux are a division of the Lakota people, Titonwan, or Teton.
''Sihásapa'' is the Lakota word for "Blackfoot", whereas '' Siksiká'' has the same meaning in the Blackfoot language. As a result, the Sihásapa have ...
or Blackfoot Sioux. Sully believed the number of warriors in the encampment to be about 1,500. That seems exaggerated. Four hundred lodges with 5 to 10 persons per lodge would house 2,000 to 4,000 persons, including 500 to 1,000 adult males, some women, children, and aged probably having been left behind for safety west of the Missouri River. The Sioux claimed they had 950 men in the battle.
Battle
Sully arrived about 6 p.m. on the ridge overlooking the large, much dispersed Indian encampment. He estimated that only 600 to 700 of his men were present. He saw the Sioux packing up their tipis and departing and concluded that the Indians were more inclined to flee than fight. Sully's objective was to "corral" the Indians and he deployed his force to cut off their escape routes and to advance on the village. He sent Colonel Wilson and the 6th Iowa to his right flank and Colonel Furnas and the 2nd Nebraska to his left to occupy several ravines which offered the Sioux an opportunity to conceal themselves from the soldiers and escape. Covered on both flanks, Sully with three companies and artillery advanced into the encampment without serious opposition. Two chiefs, Little Head and Big Head, and about 150 of their followers surrendered. Because of the close quarters and chaotic nature of the battlefield, Sully was unable to use his artillery.
Many of the Sioux were caught between the Sixth Iowa and the Second Nebraska, with the Iowa soldiers advancing on foot and pushing the Sioux into the arms of the Nebraskans who exchanged fire with the Indians at a range of only 60 yards. With darkness approaching, however, Colonel Wilson of the Sixth Iowa ordered an ill-advised mounted charge with one battalion. However, in his haste he failed to order some of his men to load their weapons and heavy fire from the Sioux caused the cavalry horses to bolt and the charge to break down. The battalion fell back and took up defensive positions on foot.
On the left, Colonel Furnas also withdrew his Nebraskans to a defensive position, fearing friendly fire and losing control of his soldiers in the increasing darkness. The soldiers spent a harrowing night, "the Indians pillaged the battlefield and scalped the dead soldiers; squaws were screaming and wailing" and a wounded soldier screamed for help but the soldiers thought he was a decoy to lure them out of their defenses. They found him next morning, still alive but dying from lacerations inflicted by the Indians. The Sioux escaped in the darkness.
The next morning the camp was empty of Indians except for the dead and a few lost children and women. Sully sent out patrols to attempt to locate the fleeing Sioux but they found few Indians. Sully ordered all the Indian property abandoned in the camp to be burned. This included 300 tipis and 400,000 to 500,000 pounds of dried
buffalo meat, the winter supplies of the Indians and the product of 1,000 butchered buffalo. On September 5, Sully's soldiers had another encounter with the Sioux. A patrol of 27 soldiers commanded by Lt. Charles W. Hall encountered an estimated 300 Sioux about fifteen miles from Whitestone Hill. The Indians chased the soldiers back to Sibley's camp, killing six and wounding one.
Sully's casualties were approximately 22 killed and 38 wounded. No reliable estimates of Sioux killed and wounded are available, with estimates ranging from 100 to 300, including women and children. Captured Sioux totaled 156, including 32 adult males. Indian sources often call Whitestone Hill a massacre with Sully attacking a peaceful camp, killing a large number of women and children, and concur that Sully's band deliberately destroyed substantial food supplies, equipment, and living shelters.
One of Sully's interpreters, Samuel J. Brown, a mixed-blood Sioux, said "it was a perfect massacre" and "lamentable to hear how those women and children was massacred." The contrary view is that Sully had a "long demonstrated concern for the Indians and a spotless record of honor and integrity." Despite the deliberate targeting and execution of children and infants, the substantial casualties of the soldiers demonstrate, according to Micheal Clodfelter, that Whitestone Hill was a battle, not a massacre.
Aftermath
Due to the poor condition of his horses and mules and his lack of supplies, Sully was unable to pursue the Sioux. He left Whitestone Hill on September 6 and marched his men to
Fort Pierre in present-day South Dakota. Nearby, he built another fort, called Fort Sully, where some of his men were garrisoned for the winter. This would lead to a renewed operation in 1864 against the Sioux and the
Battle of Killdeer Mountain
The Battle of Killdeer Mountain (also known as the Battle of Tahkahokuty Mountain) took place during Brig. Gen. Alfred Sully's expedition against the Sioux in Dakota Territory July 28–29, 1864. The location of the battleground is in modern Du ...
. While Sully's expedition impoverished some of the Sioux it did not achieve its objective of ending the Indian threat in the eastern Dakotas.
LaDonna Brave Bull Allard
LaDonna Tamakawastewin (Good Earth Woman) Brave Bull Allard (June 8, 1956April 10, 2021) was a Native American Dakota and Lakota historian, genealogist, and a matriarch of the water protector movement. In April 2016, she was one of the found ...
, a
Standing Rock
The Standing Rock Reservation ( lkt, Íŋyaŋ Woslál Háŋ) lies across the border between North and South Dakota in the United States, and is inhabited by ethnic "Hunkpapa and Sihasapa bands of Lakota Oyate and the Ihunktuwona and Pabaksa ...
Sioux tribal historian, states to the contrary that after the incident U.S. forces continued to pursue, harass, and kill the Sioux for several days.
About 600 Sioux, mostly Santee, took refuge in Canada after the battle. They were followed by 3,000 more in 1864. Minnesota expelled all Sioux, including those who had not participated in the
Dakota War of 1862
The Dakota War of 1862, also known as the Sioux Uprising, the Dakota Uprising, the Sioux Outbreak of 1862, the Dakota Conflict, the U.S.-Dakota War of 1862, or Little Crow's War, was an armed conflict between the United States and several ban ...
and, also, expelled the friendly
Winnebago. The State confiscated and sold all Sioux land in the state. Soon, only 25 Santee, steadfast friends of the whites, were allowed to live in the state.
Federal Units Involved
*
District of Dakota: Brigadier General
Alfred Sully
Alfred Sully (May 22, 1820 – April 27, 1879), was a military officer during the American Civil War and during the Indian Wars on the frontier. He was also a noted painter.
Biography
Sully was the son of the portrait painter, Thomas Sully, of ...
**
6th Iowa Cavalry: Colonel David S. Wilson
**
2nd Nebraska Cavalry: Colonel
Robert W. Furnas
** Company I,
7th Iowa Cavalry: Captain Andrew Jackson Millard
Whitestone Hill State Historic Site
The
State Historical Society of North Dakota
The State Historical Society of North Dakota is an agency that preserves and presents history through museums and historic sites in the state of North Dakota. The agency operates the North Dakota Heritage Center in Bismarck, which serves as a hist ...
protects a portion of the battlefield as Whitestone Hill State Historic Site. The site includes a small museum about the battle, two monuments, one honoring the Indian dead and a second commemorating the soldiers who died in the battle, and a picnic area. The site is open seasonally. The nonprofit Whitestone Hill Battlefield Historical Society (WHBHS) partners with the State Historical Society of North Dakota, to support preservation and interpretation at the Whitestone Hill battlefield.
See also
*
History of North Dakota
North Dakota was first settled by Native Americans several thousand years ago. The first Europeans explored the area in the 18th century establishing some limited trade with the natives.
Much of the area was first organized by the United ...
*
Plains Indians Wars
*
List of battles fought in North Dakota
This is an incomplete list of military and other armed confrontations that have occurred within the boundaries of the modern US State of North Dakota since European contact. The region was part of the Viceroyalty of New Spain from 1535 to 1679, New ...
Notes
Sources and external links
CivilWar.comCWSAC Report Update and Resurvey: Individual Battlefield Profiles- State Historical Society of North Dakota
Interview with LaDonna Brave Bull Allard, Standing Rock Sioux tribal historian, on the 153rd anniversary of the Whitestone massacreby ''
Democracy Now!
''Democracy Now!'' is an hour-long American TV, radio, and Internet news program hosted by journalists Amy Goodman (who also acts as the show's executive producer), Juan González, and Nermeen Shaikh. The show, which airs live each weekday at ...
'', relating a significantly differing narrative from that of the United States military
transcript
* Barth, Aaron L. "Imagining a Battlefield at a Civil War Mistake: The Public History of Whitestone Hill, 1863 to 2013." The Public Historian, Vol. 35, No. 3, pp. 72-97, University of California Press, August 2013. ISSN: 0272-3433, electronic ISSN 1533-8576.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Whitestone Hill
1863 in the United States
Conflicts in 1863
Battles of the Trans-Mississippi Theater of the American Civil War
Battles involving the United States
Battles involving the Sioux
Dickey County, North Dakota
Operations against the Sioux in Dakota Territory (American Civil War)
Pre-statehood history of North Dakota
Union victories of the American Civil War
Battles of the American Civil War in North Dakota
September 1863 events