Wolf Mountains Battlefield/Where Big Crow Walked Back and Forth was the site of the
Battle of Wolf Mountain
The Battle of Wolf Mountain (also known as the Battle of the Wolf Mountains, Miles's Battle on the Tongue River, the Battle of the Butte, Where Big Crow Walked Back and Forth, and called the Battle of Belly Butte by the Northern Cheyenne) was a ...
, the last major combat of the
Great Sioux War
The Great Sioux War of 1876, also known as the Black Hills War, was a series of battles and negotiations that occurred in 1876 and 1877 in an alliance of Lakota Sioux and Northern Cheyenne against the United States. The cause of the war was the ...
of 1876–77. It was added to the
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic v ...
in 2001, and was designated a
National Historic Landmark
A National Historic Landmark (NHL) is a building, district, object, site, or structure that is officially recognized by the United States government for its outstanding historical significance. Only some 2,500 (~3%) of over 90,000 places listed ...
in 2008.
[ and ]
History
The Great Sioux War was about the desire of settlers and prospectors to encroach on the land assured to the Sioux by treaty. Both sides allegedly perpetrated encroachments on or off the reservation. The Battle of Rosebud and the tribal victory at Little Big Horn on June 25, 1876 were in the early part of the war. The ability of the tribes to wage war for an extended time was undermined by their inability to amass food stores to get them through the winter at the same time.
On January 7, 1877, soldiers established an encampment to the west of the river on the eastern half of the battlefield. The encampment was backed by tall bluffs. The
Battle of Wolf Mountains took place on January 8, 1877. On January 9, a rifle pit was constructed by F Company, Twenty-second infantry at a lookout site atop a rock wall. The rifle pit can still be seen, and is the only contributing structure on the site.
Crazy Horse and his Oglala band together with the Lakota and Cheyenne warriors fighting with him had an initial position atop a canyon wall on the east side of the river, and were able to rain rifle fire down upon the soldiers. They were later driven from this position by the soldiers.
Both sides suffered some injury and loss of life. The Cheyenne medicine man Big Crow was among those who died here. The battle and the ensuing freezing temperatures and starvation so weakened the tribal coalition, that by May 6, 1877, Crazy Horse and his men surrendered, ending the conflict.
Battlefield preservation
The battlefield is located in the Tongue River Valley, near
Birney, Montana
Birney is a census-designated place (CDP) in Rosebud County, Montana, United States. The population was 108 at the 2000 census.
The post office was established in 1886.
History
The nearby town of Ashland was called Birney, the name of the pos ...
. The river runs through a series of deep curves in an overall northeasterly direction. Within the National Historic Landmark, the river runs alternately through flood plains and along towering rock walls. The battlefield runs along the river for around two miles and spans the width of the valley for about two-and-a-half miles. In addition to the river, there are also streams running through the battlefield. In spite of the modern intrusion of two unpaved roads, a series of utility wires and poles, the agricultural use of the area, and growth of trees and vegetation, it retains much of the look and feel it would have had at the time of the battle. Potential archeological exploration may be hindered by the history of searches by relic hunters with metal detectors.
It was added to the
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic v ...
in 2001,
The site is potentially threatened by development of coal bed methane production. A Northern Cheyenne Nation report in 2006 stated:
"Steve Brady discussed the status of the Rosebud Battlefield State Park. The purpose of holding such an event is to (1) commemorate two battles that do not receive as much attention as the Battle of the Little Bighorn, and to (2) educate people about the potential coal bed methane development on and near the historic and cultural sites of the Rosebud Battlefield and the Battle of Wolf Mountains site. Brady updated the Indian and non-Indian audience of the Rosebud Battlefield’s status in becoming a National Historic Landmark, on the same level as the Little Bighorn Battlefield."
[The People: Tribal Report of the Northern Cheyenne Nation (June 2006 Vol. I No. 7)](_blank)
/ref>
It was designated a National Historic Landmark
A National Historic Landmark (NHL) is a building, district, object, site, or structure that is officially recognized by the United States government for its outstanding historical significance. Only some 2,500 (~3%) of over 90,000 places listed ...
by signature of the Secretary of the Interior on October 7, 2008.
See also
*List of National Historic Landmarks in Montana
The List of National Historic Landmarks in Montana contains the landmarks designated by the U.S. Federal Government for the U.S. state of Montana. There are 28 National Historic Landmarks (NHLs) in Montana.
The United States National Historic La ...
* National Register of Historic Places listings in Rosebud County, Montana
References
External links
''Nelson A. Miles, Crazy Horse, and the Battle of Wolf Mountains'' by Jeffrey V. Pearson
{{NRHP in Rosebud County, Montana
National Historic Landmarks in Montana
Geography of Rosebud County, Montana
Conflict sites on the National Register of Historic Places in Montana
Historic districts on the National Register of Historic Places in Montana
National Register of Historic Places in Rosebud County, Montana
Great Sioux War of 1876
Battlefields of the wars between the United States and Native Americans