The Battle of Williams Station was a minor skirmish during the

Pyramid Lake War A pyramid (from el, πυραμίς ') is a structure whose outer surfaces are triangular and converge to a single step at the top, making the shape roughly a pyramid in the geometric sense. The base of a pyramid can be trilateral, quadrilat ...

of 1860. The fight took place following the defeat of Major William Ormsby at the

First Battle of Pyramid Lake The First Battle of Pyramid Lake in 1860 was one of the opening conflicts of the Paiute War in Nevada between the American people and the Northern Paiute, Paiute people, who had resisted the increasing numbers of migrants who traveled the Califor ...

as U.S. Volunteers entered the war.

Battle

When Major William Ormsby's vigilante command was routed at Pyramid Lake, settlers in the area sent calls for help to California.

John C. Hays John Coffee "Jack" Hays (January 28, 1817 – April 21, 1883) was an American military officer. A captain in the Texas Rangers and a military officer of the Republic of Texas, Hays served in several armed conflicts from 1836 to 1848, including a ...

responded to the call and arrived in

Carson City Carson City is an Independent city (United States), independent city and the capital of the U.S. state of Nevada. As of the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census, the population was 58,639, making it the List of cities in Nevada, sixth largest ...

to organize a volunteer regiment. Hays organized over 500 men from Carson City, Virginia City, Genoa and other communities into the "Washoe Regiment". U.S. Regular soldiers from

Fort Alcatraz Fort Alcatraz was a United States Army coastal fortification on Alcatraz Island near the mouth of San Francisco Bay in California, part of the Third System of fixed fortifications, although very different from most other Third System works. Initi ...

where en route to the region under Captain Joseph Stewart. Instead of waiting for Stewart's regulars, Hays marched his command out of Carson City toward the location of the initial Indian attack at Williams Station. Hays encountered 150 Paiute warriors at the station and a brief

skirmish Skirmishers are light infantry or light cavalry soldiers deployed as a vanguard, flank guard or rearguard to screen a tactical position or a larger body of friendly troops from enemy advances. They are usually deployed in a skirmish line, an ir ...

ensued. Two soldiers and six Paiutes were killed. The warriors withdrew toward Pyramid Lake and were defeated in the

Second Battle of Pyramid Lake The Second Battle of Pyramid Lake (also known as the Battle of Truckee River) took place in response to the U.S. defeat at the First Battle of Pyramid Lake. A well-organized force of militia and regulars, under the capable leadership of famed Tex ...

Williams Station

Williams Station was a

Pony Express The Pony Express was an American express mail service that used relays of horse-mounted riders. It operated from April 3, 1860, to October 26, 1861, between Missouri and California. It was operated by the Central Overland California and Pik ...

station kept by James O. Williams along the

Carson River The Carson River is a northwestern List of Nevada rivers, Nevada river that empties into the Carson Sink, an endorheic basin. The main stem of the river is long although the addition of the East Fork makes the total length , traversing five co ...

between stations 149 (in the

Carson Sink Carson Sink is a playa in the northeastern portion of the Carson Desert in present-day Nevada, United States of America, that was formerly the terminus of the Carson River. Today the sink is fed by drainage canals of the Truckee-Carson Irrigat ...

) and 151 (Hooten Wells Station). The ruins were inundated by the

Lahontan Reservoir Modern Lake Lahontan is a reservoir on the Carson River in northwest Nevada in the United States. It is formed by the Lahontan Dam, built in 1905 by the Bureau of Reclamation as part of the Newlands Reclamation Act and is located between Fallon, ...

created by the 1911

Lahontan Dam The Lahontan Dam is a dam situated on the Carson River in the Carson Desert between Carson City, Nevada and Fallon, Nevada in the United States. Its impoundment is known as the Lahontan Reservoir or Lake Lahontan. It is currently operated by ...

and were visible during a 1992 drought.

References

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Williams Station, Battle Of Conflicts in 1860 1860 in the United States Battles involving Native Americans Pre-statehood history of Nevada Pony Express stations 1860 in Utah Territory May 1860 events Battles in Nevada