Major Wynkoop

[whynkoopggdtr]

I am the great x5 granddaughter of Major Edward Wynkoop. I am very interested in obtaining any articles and photos that anyone may have or can direct me to regarding him. The LBHA newsletter told me that several article I was looking for are out of print and directed me here for help. Can anyone help me?? ;D

[bc]

Hi, Edward Wynkoop was an officer and Indian Agent. He spent some time in Kansas during the Indian uprisings after 1864. He is mentioned some in Isaac Coates journal in the book On the plains with Custer and Hancock by W.J.D. Kennedy. His picture is in there also next to Custer's. He has a striking resemblence (to me anyway) to Custer except he has short hair. He was also called a Colonel. In July of 1863, Major Wynkoop commanded the 1st Colorado Cavalry that caught a raiding party of Utes and killed 20 to 60 of them in Western Utah. In 1867 he was agent for the Cheyennes & Arapahoes when the Hancock expedition came through Fort Larned. On April 14, 1867 when Custer and Hancock approached the Indian camp at Pawnee Fork(Kansas), several hundred warriors from the camp of 500 to 600 Cheyenne and Sioux rode up on a line to challenge them. Hancock's column stopped, the infantry and artillery formed in a line, and the cavalry under Custer came galloping up to the front with drawn sabres. The 300 warriors stopped within a few hundred yards of the troops and stopped their forward movement although they kept moving back and forth, to and fro in a threatening manner. Wynkoop rode up to them by himself and assured them they were there in peace. The Indians retired back to their camp. The next day, most of the Indians left the camp instead of meeting with Hancock to discuss peace or get ordered to be peaceful or else(depending upon which version of Hancock's/Sheridan's intentions you want to believe). Custer rode in and captured the camp. Hancock burned it later. Wynkoop, because of the treaties and his duties as agents, also provided the Cheyennes and other with the rifles that were later used against Custer at the Little BigHorn. I don't believe Wynkoop were ever involved in any actions during the 1870's.

Contact George Elmore at the national park service at Fort Larned, Kansas. Go through the nps website at www.nps.gov to navigate to Fort Larned.

EW was at Fort Larned during the Indian wars in Kansas. He may have been there when the Indians attacked the fort and drove off about 600 horses and mules. (That attack may be the history behind or idea for the tv show F Troop if anyone is interested to know why)

Fort Larned has quite a bit of information, documents, etc. including a picture. They have about everything from the archives involving the Fort including correspondence. I am a long time member of the Santa Fe Trail Association. There have been presentations done on Wynkoop and I recall one or two at their bi-ennial Rendevous.

You can also try the Sante Fe Trail Center at Larned, KS and the Santa Fe Trail Association has a Yahoo group where someone may help you. It is not a very active forum compared to this one though. Do a google search on him, there has to be a lot about him on the web already.

Good Luck.

[elisabeth]

A couple of pieces here that feature pictures of him:

www.kancoll.org/khq/1973/73_1_barry.htm

www.kshs.org/publicat/khq/1977/77_2_zwink.htm

[clw]

Diane posted this a few months back.........

Louis Kraft's book about Wynkoop (first of several) will be published sometime next year. It should be fabulous!

www.louiskraft.com/projects.html
(Click the title of the book to read more.)

[Diane Merkel]

Louis Kraft has given me permission to post some of his articles, so here are links to a couple of articles he wrote about Wynkoop. I used to have these on the old site and had them password protected for LBHA members only. Now, of course, I cannot remember which master password I used, so I can't take the password protection off of them. Therefore, just because I am the nicest webmaster you could ever hope to meet, I will give you the passwords. These will eventually be accessible through the Articles page of the main website if I ever remember the #$*! password. If I don't remember it, I'll rescan them when I scan his other articles and make them accessible to the world.

Happy New Year!

"Edward W. Wynkoop, a Forgotten Hero"
www.littlebighorn.info/Articles/Wynkoop1Kraft.pdf
password = Armstrong

"Ned Wynkoop, Black Kettle"
www.littlebighorn.info/Articles/Wynkoop2Kraft.pdf
password = Bighorn

[Diane Merkel]

For fans of Ned Wynkoop, Louis Kraft, and/or Dick Upton:

Louis Kraft has posted a video of his March 2008 appearance at the Upton and Sons Indian Wars of the American West Symposium on his website at louiskraft.com/events.html. You'll see Dick Upton introduce Louis for his talk, “Ned Wynkoop’s Indian Years."

While on that page, check out Louis' Civil War Round Table appearances in Kansas next month as well as the Washita events next December.