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Post by cefil on Apr 9, 2008 17:50:33 GMT -6
In today's mail:
Life of a Soldier on the Western Frontier, by Jeremy Agnew
Mountain Press Publishing Co., 2008
Does anyone know anything about this book and/or author?
It looks interesting, but the second map in it (which purports to show "Major Tribes of the Indian Wars) shows the Powder River country of Northeastern Wyoming occupied by...the Comanches!?! (With the Sioux relegated to the Yellowstone Park area in NW WYO...and Western South Dakota/Black Hills devoid of any tribes.) Makes one rather chary about the rest of the content.
cefil
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Post by markland on Apr 15, 2008 16:48:05 GMT -6
In today's mail: Life of a Soldier on the Western Frontier, by Jeremy Agnew Mountain Press Publishing Co., 2008 Does anyone know anything about this book and/or author? It looks interesting, but the second map in it (which purports to show "Major Tribes of the Indian Wars) shows the Powder River country of Northeastern Wyoming occupied by...the Comanches!?! (With the Sioux relegated to the Yellowstone Park area in NW WYO...and Western South Dakota/Black Hills devoid of any tribes.) Makes one rather chary about the rest of the content. cefil CEFIL, I had thought this sounded familiar and lo and behold, when I went into a bag of books I had purchased a week or so ago, there it was. The error you caught is far from the worst one present. As an example, did you know that the Grattan Massacre was the only significant battle between the army and the Indians during the antebellum period? There are others but I do not want to be too nit-picky. All in all, I would save my money for another book. It's a shame too, as the premise of the book is a good one and some sections are informative, especially for someone just beginning their Indian Wars studies. My recommendation for those would be Utley's two-volume series on the frontier army or Rickey's "40 Miles" book. Be good, Billy |
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Post by clw on Apr 15, 2008 18:17:56 GMT -6
Drat you Billy! OK, is this the one? Frontier Regulars: The United States Army and the Indian, 1866-1891, by Robert Utley. It's not two volumes, but it's the only one I found.
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Post by crzhrs on Apr 16, 2008 7:53:42 GMT -6
The other is I believe, INDIAN FRONTIER (Utley)
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Post by markland on Apr 16, 2008 9:21:49 GMT -6
Drat you Billy! OK, is this the one? Frontier Regulars: The United States Army and the Indian, 1866-1891, by Robert Utley. It's not two volumes, but it's the only one I found. The first is Frontiersmen In Blue. This one deals with the period 1848-1865 but also covers information relevant to the post-CW army. Billy P.S. Horse, I think that is a general purpose history of the Plains or Western Indian/U.S. Government relations which dictated how the army officially treated the Indians. |
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Post by markland on Apr 19, 2008 5:07:22 GMT -6
In today's mail: Life of a Soldier on the Western Frontier, by Jeremy Agnew Mountain Press Publishing Co., 2008 Does anyone know anything about this book and/or author? It looks interesting, but the second map in it (which purports to show "Major Tribes of the Indian Wars) shows the Powder River country of Northeastern Wyoming occupied by...the Comanches!?! (With the Sioux relegated to the Yellowstone Park area in NW WYO...and Western South Dakota/Black Hills devoid of any tribes.) Makes one rather chary about the rest of the content. cefil CEFIL, I had thought this sounded familiar and lo and behold, when I went into a bag of books I had purchased a week or so ago, there it was. The error you caught is far from the worst one present. As an example, did you know that the Grattan Massacre was the only significant battle between the army and the Indians during the antebellum period? There are others but I do not want to be too nit-picky. All in all, I would save my money for another book. It's a shame too, as the premise of the book is a good one and some sections are informative, especially for someone just beginning their Indian Wars studies. My recommendation for those would be Utley's two-volume series on the frontier army or Rickey's "40 Miles" book. Be good, Billy To further illustrate my point about other actions occurring pre-Civil War besides Grattan's Massacre. "Battle of Cieneguilla March 30, 1854 Battle of Cieneguilla was an engagement fought between a group of Jicarilla Apaches and the U.S. 1st Cavalry Regiment on March 30, 1854 near what is now Pilar, New Mexico. A combined force of about 250 Apaches and Utes ambushed the dragoons. In his report two days after the battle, Lt. John W. Davidson stated that "[He] came upon the Apaches near the Cieneguilla who at once sounded the war whoop." According to Pvt. James A. Bennett, a Sergeant who survived the ambush, the battle lasted for about 4 hours. It started around 8 a.m. and ended when the Dragoons' regiments retreated at 12 p.m. to Ranchos de Taos. The Apache warriors used flintlock rifles and arrows. Of the 60 dragoons present, the U.S. suffered 22 killed and a further 36 wounded, along with a loss of 22 horses and much of the troops' supplies. " From the web site: www.drarchaeology.com/culthist/historic/battles.htm |
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Post by cefil on Apr 19, 2008 6:26:56 GMT -6
You're right, Billy...his statement that, "Prior to the Civil War, the only notable Indian fight was the Grattan Massacre..." is remarkable for its incorrectness. Michno (Encyclopedia of Indian Wars: Western Battles and Skirmishes, 1850 - 1890) has nearly 80 pages of encounters between 1850 & 1861. Surely more than one of these was "notable"!
How about Bluewater Creek? Steptoe's fight? Crooked Creek? (Where soldiers led by Capt. Earl Van Dorn killed 49 Comanche warriors. Wounded soldiers included Capt. Edmund Kirby Smith [pistol ball in thigh] and Lt. Fitzhugh Lee [arrow through the chest].) Those all sound fairly *notable* to me...
I'll second your recommendations for Utley and Rickey.
cefil
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Post by markland on Apr 20, 2008 10:16:05 GMT -6
CEFIL, I can't find the book right now (the wife organized the upstairs stacks of books and only she can find anything-maybe) but there is a picture of an Indian encampment. On the left side, center (I believe) is a woman holding a child. Take a look at that and see if you think it is a white child. The complexion is noticeably lighter, whether due to nature or something in the photographic process, who knows. Likely it is the photographer's child but it stands out. Re: battles during the antebellum period; let's not forget Solomon Fork either. Be good, wish you were here (read the SOTMS thread  ) Billy |
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Post by cefil on Apr 20, 2008 13:11:28 GMT -6
On the left side, center (I believe) is a woman holding a child. Take a look at that and see if you think it is a white child. The complexion is noticeably lighter, whether due to nature or something in the photographic process, who knows. Likely it is the photographer's child but it stands out. Hi Billy: You're right...That child certainly stands out, doesn't he/she? The clothing, too, seems unlike that on the other children in the picture: very white, in contrast to the others' darks and grays. Only the hair, which appears to be very black, seems to fit in. The photographer isn't credited, but the caption says the photo comes from the "Indians of North America Collection, Tutt Library, Colorado College, Colorado Springs." From their website, it appears they have a collection of photographs by one Horace Poley. I wonder if this could be one of his? From another website ( photoswest.org/exhib/poley/poley.htm ) it seems that Mr. Poley had a couple of daughters...Although they appear to be blonde, so are likely not the raven-haired child in the picture. I guess it will have to remain one of those odd little western history mysteries. cefil P.S. Hope you enjoyed the mowing. Our grass is just starting to turn green, so my days of weekend freedom are, I'm afraid, limited. |
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"If there are no dogs in Heaven, then when I die I want to go where they
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