End of the Indian Wars, Part 2

 

The following article, The End of the Indian Wars, was published in The Cashmere Valley Record, Vol. 30, No. 8, on 20 February 1936. I share it with you because it was of interest to Washington history buffs. Part 2:

But the sympathetic point of view held by Wright was later proved to be mistaken. No matter how we may feel personally, we must recognize the dangers and trails felt by the settlers and the responsibility placed on the shoulders of the military command. Accordingly, when a band of Palouses entered the Walla Walla Valley on a marauding expedition, the realization came that sympathy was not enough.

In April, 1857, Col. Steptoe notified his superior that a general expedition against the tribes north of Walla Walla seemed advisable. This was the start of the Steptoe-Wright campaign which lasted for the greater part of the two following hears. Only the barest outline of details need concern us here. The battle of Steptoe Butte and the battle of Spokane Plains were the two principle military events. The latter engagement was fought on the land where Fort George Wright had later been built. (Donna’s note: not so; that battle was fought miles west of where the fort was constructed on the western side of Spokane.)

But to retrace our steps to the Sound area for a time. The Indians continually invaded the settlements and burned farm homes almost at will. A blockhouse fort was built near where the Totem pole now stands on Yessler Way in Seattle and the settlers prepared themselves for a siege. The warship, Decatur, Capt. Guert Gransevoort commanding, was standing in the harbor ready to assist the settlers.

By some means, more or less in question, word reached the settlers of an intended attack. On January 26, 1856, the attack was made. All day volleys from the howitzer, which stood in front of Dexter Horton’s store, and the rifles and pistols of the men were answered from the woods. But at night the attack was finally repulsed. The town was safe.

(Copied from Wikipedia article on the Decatur: During the early 1850s, hostility grew between the Native peoples and the new settlers in the Puget Sound region. The "Decatur" and several other government ships were moved to the area to protect the settlers. On January 26, 1856, following word of a planned attack on Seattle, troops on the "Decatur" fired howitzers into the forest beyond Third Avenue where a group of Indigenous peoples had gathered. The Native peoples retreated, burning buildings as they went.)

Please stay tuned for Part 3 next time.