Battle of Big Bend

Last updated
Battle of Big Bend
Part of The Rogue River Wars
DateMay 27–28, 1856
Location
near present-day Agness, Oregon, United States
Result United States Victory
Conclusion of the Rogue River Wars
Commanders and leaders
Andrew Jackson Smith (C Company)
Lt. Nelson B. Sweitzer (E Company)
Captain Christopher C. Augur (G Company)
Chief John
Units involved

United States Army

Strength
C Company:
66 enlisted men
One Army Surgeon
One civilian guide
E Company:
30 enlisted men
G Company:
54 enlisted men
150 Native Americans (est.)
Casualties and losses
10 killed
17 wounded [1]
unknown killed or wounded
185 surrendered

The Battle of Big Bend was the last major battle of the Rogue River Wars. It began on May 27, 1856 and ended on May 28, 1856. The battle was fought along the Rogue River, eight miles upriver from Agness, Oregon. "The battle was fought between one reinforced Army company; Company "C", 1st Dragoons, and a large group of Indians from many different bands. Captain Andrew Jackson Smith was the commanding officer of Company "C" during the battle, and Chief John, a member of the Dakubetede Indian band, lead all the warriors." [2]

Contents

Under Smith's Command were 66 enlisted men from Company "C" of the 1st Cavalry Regiment, 30 enlisted men from Company "E" of the 4th Infantry Regiment, and 54 enlisted men from Company "G" of the 4th Infantry Regiment. The orders of the G Company were to accompany Smith's forces to Big Bend and then return to Oak Flat on the Illinois River. [3]

Battle

On the morning of the 27th, several Natives came to Smith's camp at Big Bend and alerted them that more Natives were on the way. Later that morning, a group of armed Natives formed outside the camp. Upon realizing that much of the growing group were followers of Chief John, Smith placed his entire command under arms.

The first shots of the battle were fired at around 11:00am by the Natives. The attackers led a consistent assault throughout the day on Smith's position on the high ground. By the night of the 27th, US troops had suffered four killed and 15 wounded. [4]

At about 4:00am the next morning, the firing resumed when Natives noticed US troop movements as they attempted to improve their defensive positions. Shooting continued for the next 12 hours. at 4:00pm, Captain Augur's forces from Company "G" arrived at the battle and attacked Native positions, pushing them back. Smith then commanded Sweitzer's forces from Company "E" to assault Native positions as well. [5]

On the night of the 28th, Natives began to surrender to the US Army. By the 30th of May, 185 Natives had surrendered at Big Bend. [6]

Aftermath

The Battle of Big Bend left a total of 10 US troops dead and 17 wounded. Seven of the deaths were from Company "C", one from Company "E", and two from Company "G". Of the 17 wounded, 9 came from Company "C", 5 from Company "E", and 3 from Company "G". The number of Native casualties remains unknown as the dead and wounded were taken from the battlefield. [7]

The Army victory at Big Bend brought an end to the hostilities in the Rogue River Valley, with all of the natives being moved from southwest Oregon to the Siletz Indian Reservations during June and July 1856. [8]

Related Research Articles

Battle of the Little Bighorn 1876 battle of the Great Sioux War

The Battle of the Little Bighorn, known to the Lakota and other Plains Indians as the Battle of the Greasy Grass and also commonly referred to as Custer's Last Stand, was an armed engagement between combined forces of the Lakota, Northern Cheyenne, and Arapaho tribes and the 7th Cavalry Regiment of the United States Army. The battle, which resulted in the defeat of U.S. forces, was the most significant action of the Great Sioux War of 1876. It took place on June 25–26, 1876, along the Little Bighorn River in the Crow Indian Reservation in southeastern Montana Territory.

Wounded Knee Massacre violent attack on Lakota Indians in 1890 by the United States Army

The Wounded Knee Massacre, also called the Battle of Wounded Knee, was a domestic massacre of several hundred Lakota Indians, almost half of whom were women and children, by soldiers of the United States Army. It occurred on December 29, 1890, near Wounded Knee Creek on the Lakota Pine Ridge Indian Reservation in the U.S. state of South Dakota, following a botched attempt to disarm the Lakota camp.

7th Cavalry Regiment United States Army cavalry regiment

The 7th Cavalry Regiment is a United States Army cavalry regiment formed in 1866. Its official nickname is "Garryowen", after the Irish air "Garryowen" that was adopted as its march tune.

1st Cavalry Regiment (United States) United States Army unit

The 1st Cavalry Regiment is a United States Army regiment that has its antecedents in the early 19th century in the formation of the United States Regiment of Dragoons. To this day, the unit's special designation is "First Regiment of Dragoons". While they were the First Regiment of Dragoons another unit designated the 1st Cavalry Regiment was formed in 1855 and in 1861 was re-designated as the 4th Cavalry Regiment. The First Dragoons became the 1st Cavalry Regiment since they were the oldest mounted regiment.

Rogue River Wars Armed conflict between the U.S. Army, local militias and volunteers, and the Native American tribes

The Rogue River Wars were an armed conflict in 1855–1856 between the U.S. Army, local militias and volunteers, and the Native American tribes commonly grouped under the designation of Rogue River Indians, in the Rogue River Valley area of what today is southern Oregon. The conflict designation usually includes only the hostilities that took place during 1855–1856, but there had been numerous previous skirmishes, as early as the 1830s, between European-American settlers and the Native Americans, over territory and resources.

Mitchell Red Cloud Jr. United States Army Medal of Honor recipient

Mitchell Red Cloud Jr. was a United States Army corporal who was killed in action while serving in the Korean War. Corporal Red Cloud posthumously received the Medal of Honor for heroic actions "above and beyond the call of duty" near Chonghyon, North Korea, on 5 November 1950 during the Chinese First Phase Campaign. Before joining the army, he had been a United States Marine Corps sergeant who had served in World War II.

11th Infantry Regiment (United States)

The 11th Infantry Regiment is a regiment in the United States Army.

Maryland and Virginia Rifle Regiment

The Maryland and Virginia Rifle Regiment, most commonly known as Rawlings' Regiment in period documents, was organized in June 1776 as a specialized light infantry unit of riflemen in the Continental Army during the American Revolutionary War. The American rifle units complemented the predominant, musket-equipped, line infantry forces of the war with their long-range marksmanship capability and were typically deployed with the line infantry as forward skirmishers and flanking elements. Scouting, escort, and outpost duties were also routine. The rifle units' battle formation was not nearly as structured as that of the line infantry units, which employed short-range massed firing in ordered linear formations. The riflemen could therefore respond with more adaptability to changing battle conditions.

1st Arkansas Mounted Rifles infantry regiment of the Confederate States Army

1st Arkansas Mounted Rifles (1861–1865) was a Confederate Army cavalry regiment during the American Civil War. The unit was formed as a mounted infantry regiment, but was dismounted in the spring of 1862 and remained dismounted for the remainder of the war. The unit participated in the earliest battles in the western theater at Wilson's Creek and surrendered with the remnants of the Army of Tennessee in North Carolina in April 1865.

125th New York Volunteer Infantry Regiment

The 125th New York Volunteer Infantry Regiment was a volunteer regiment from Rensselaer County, New York, during the American Civil War. Formed during the summer of 1862, the unit was officially mustered into United States Service on 27–29 August 1862, by Col. George L. Willard. He had seen previous service in the War of the Rebellion and in the Mexican War as well. Levin Crandall was commissioned lieutenant colonel, and James C. Bush major. The unit was mustered out on 5 June 1865.

The 16th Kansas Volunteer Cavalry Regiment was a cavalry regiment that served in the Union Army during the American Civil War and American Indian Wars.

The 36th Arkansas Infantry Regiment (1862–1865) was a Confederate Army regiment during the American Civil War. Originally known as McRea's Emergency Regiment, had been organized as the 28th Arkansas Infantry Regiment. After the Battle of Prairie Grove, the regiment was reorganized and designated the 36th Arkansas Infantry Regiment. The regiment is also referred to as the 2nd Trans-Mississippi Infantry Regiment, Glenn's Regiment, and Davie's Regiment.

18th Arkansas Infantry Regiment (Marmadukes)

The 18th Arkansas Infantry (Marmaduke's) (1861–1865) was a Confederate Army infantry regiment during the American Civil War. The unit was also briefly identified as the 1st Arkansas Infantry Battalion. The unit was most often referred to as the 3rd Confederate Infantry Regiment. The designation "Confederate Infantry Regiment" was intended to convey the difference between Provisional Confederate Army units and Regular Confederate Army Units, with Provisional units being those regiments who received a state designation such as "XX Arkansas Infantry Regiment". In practice, the designation was most often utilized when Regiments were assembled utilizing companies from more than one confederate state. The "3rd Confederate Infantry Regiment" is occasionally misidentified as the 3rd Arkansas Infantry Regiment commanded by Colonel Van H. Manning.

22nd Arkansas Infantry Regiment

The 22nd Arkansas Infantry Regiment was a Confederate Army infantry regiment during the American Civil War (1862–1865). This regiment was originally organized as the 17th Arkansas Infantry Regiment, reorganized after the battle of Pea Ridge as 1st Regiment, Northwest Division, Trans-Mississippi Department, or Rector's War Regiment, redesignated as the 35th Arkansas in the summer of 1862, and reorganized and redesignated as the 22nd Arkansas following the Battle of Prairie Grove. The unit was also sometimes referred to as, King's Arkansas Infantry or McCord's Arkansas Infantry. This was the second regiment to be officially designated as the 22nd Arkansas. The first was mustered in at DeValls Bluff, Arkansas, on April 9, 1862, and later reorganized as the 20th Arkansas Infantry Regiment.

The 2nd Arkansas Mounted Rifles (1861–1865) was a Confederate Army infantry regiment that served during the American Civil War. Raised in 1861, the regiment consisted of nine companies, which were drawn from various counties in Arkansas. Throughout the course of the war, the 2nd Arkansas Mounted Rifles fought in a number of battles, including those at Wilson's Creek and Pea Ridge, and participated in a number of campaigns such as Tullahoma, Atlanta and the Carolinas. The regiment's final battle came at Bentonville in March 1865 after which its remaining personnel were consolidated into the 1st Arkansas Consolidated Mounted Rifles.

The 39th Arkansas Infantry Regiment or Cocke's Arkansas Infantry Regiment was an infantry formation in the Confederate States Army during the Civil War, and was successively commanded by Colonels Albert W. Johnson, A. T. Hawthorn, John B. Cocke, and Lieut. Col. Cadwallader Polk. It was mustered into service on June 17, 1862, at Trenton, Arkansas, remaining active through May 26, 1865. When Maj. Gen. Thomas C. Hindman began authorizing the creation of new Confederate infantry regiments in Department of the Trans-Mississippi, in the summer of 1862, he initially designated them as "Trans-Mississippi Rifle Regiments", and the new regiment being formed by Albert W. Johnson was designated as the 6th Trans-Mississippi Rifle Regiment. One other Arkansas regiment was designated as the 39th Arkansas Infantry; that being successively commanded by Colonels Hart, McNeill, and Rogan. It was originally designated as the 39th Arkansas Infantry Regiment, but later redesignated as the 30th. The 39th served in the Trans-Mississippi Theater and participated in all of the principal engagements in the Trans-Mississippi Department before being disbanded on May 26, 1865.

John E. Ross American politician

John England Ross was an American politician born in Madison County, Ohio. He led volunteer forces from Oregon in the Cayuse War and the Modoc War, prospected for gold in the California Gold Rush, and represented Jackson County, Oregon in the Oregon Territorial Legislature and Oregon State Senate.

The Big Horn Expedition, or Bighorn Expedition, was a military operation of the United States Army against the Sioux, and Cheyenne Indians in Wyoming Territory and Montana Territory. Although soldiers destroyed one Cheyenne and Oglala Sioux village, the expedition solidified Lakota Sioux and northern Cheyenne resistance against the United States attempt to force them to sell the Black Hills and live on a reservation, beginning the Great Sioux War of 1876.

1st Arkansas Cavalry Battalion (Stirmans)

The 1st Arkansas Cavalry Battalion (Stirman's) (1864-1865) was a Confederate Army cavalry battalion during the American Civil War. The unit was also known as Brooks 1st Arkansas Cavalry Battalion, Stirman's, 1st Arkansas Cavalry Battalion, Stirman's Sharpshooter Regiment, 1st Regiment Arkansas Sharpshooters, and finally simply as Stirman's Arkansas Cavalry Regiment.

The Battle of Hungry Hill, also known as the Battle of Grave Creek Hills or Battle of Bloody Springs, was the largest battle of the Rogue River Wars. It occurred on Oct. 31, 1855. The Native Americans were camped with their women and children on the top of a hill, with the soldiers located across a narrow ravine about 1,500 feet deep. Two hundred of the Native Americans were in the mountains southwest of present-day Roseburg armed with muzzleloaders, bows, and arrows and managed to hold off a group of "more than 300 ... dragoons, militiamen and volunteers".

References

  1. Jeffery Applen. "Battle of Big Bend". oregonstate.edu.
  2. Jeffery Applen. "Battle of Big Bend". oregonstate.edu.
  3. Jeffery Applen. "Battle of Big Bend". oregonstate.edu.
  4. Jeffery Applen. "Battle of Big Bend". oregonstate.edu.
  5. Jeffery Applen. "Battle of Big Bend". oregonstate.edu.
  6. Jeffery Applen. "Battle of Big Bend". oregonstate.edu.
  7. E.A. Schwartz. "Rogue River Indian Wars". oregonencyclopedia.org.
  8. E.A. Schwartz. "Rogue River Indian Wars". oregonencyclopedia.org.

Sources