July 11, 1869, The Battle of Summit Springs was fought on todays date near Sterling Colorado between 4 companies of white cavalry men led by General Eugene Carr, 4 companies of Pawnee Scouts led by Major Frank North who scouted for the force along with Buffalo Bill Cody, the Chief of Scouts, and a band of Cheyenne Dog Soldiers with allied Arapaho and Lakota warriors led by Cheyenne Chief Tall Bull. On May 30, 60-70 Dog Soldiers had raided settlements along the Republican and Saline rivers in Kansas, killing eleven settlers, mainly the men, older women and boys and young women who resisted being captured. Two women, 20-year-old Maria Weichel, who only spoke German, and 29-year-old Susanna Alderdice, the wife of Forsyth scout Tom Alderdice, who carried her infant daughter Alice and was five months pregnant at the time were captured by the Dog Soldiers and both suffered a fate worse than death at the hands of the hostile young braves. Susannas babe in arms was soon killed because she couldnt keep the Alice quiet. Tom Alderdice, who would spend weeks trying to find his family would find the babys corpse hanging over the branch of a tree with a rushed skull. He would tell his story to Libbie Custer, tugging at her heartstrings and helping to bring about the expedition of the Dandy 5th to save the white women. During the battle Major Frank North would kill Tall Bull the Dog Soldier chief who had argued against the great chiefs of the Cheyenne leading to his military order being forced to operate on their own. Their desire to fight the white settlers was echoed in the hearts of young braves of other tribes, attracting them to the warpath in company with the Dog Soldiers. Here are photos of Maria Weichel, who was rescued during the battle, Willis Daily, son of Susanna Alderdice who survived after being shot with an arrow through the back, the arrow head having to be dug through a hole in his sternum, Mary Zigler, sister of Susanna Alderdice who was said to closely resemble her sister who was killed by Tall Bull, a painting of Tall Bull and a photo of General Carr. Finally a photo of Major Frank North, leader of the Pawnee scouts who killed Tall Bull that day in Colorado.
Posted on: Sat, 12 Jul 2014 15:46:35 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015