Drexel Mission Fight: Difference between revisions

Drexel Mission Fight
	Part of the Ghost Dance War, Sioux Wars
	; The 'Bloody Pocket'; location of the Drexel Mission Fight
Date	December 30, 1890
Location	Pine Ridge, South Dakota
Result	U.S. victory
Belligerents
United States	Lakota Sioux; Brulé Sioux
Commanders and leaders
James W. Forsyth; Guy V. Henry	Chief Two Strike
Strength
	7th U.S. Cavalry; 9th U.S. Cavalry
Casualties and losses
1 dead, 7 wounded	Unknown

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The Drexel Mission Fight was an armed confrontation between Lakota warriors and the United States Army that took place on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation in South Dakota on December 30, 1890, the day after the Wounded Knee Massacre. The fight occurred on White Clay Creek approximately 15 miles (24 km) north of Pine Ridge where Lakota were purported to have burned the Catholic Mission.

Seventh Cavalry under the command of Col. James W. Forsyth with eight troops and a battery of artillery (Battery E, 1st Artillery), the same elements engaged at Wounded Knee the previous day, became engaged by Brulé Lakota from the Rosebud Indian Reservation after reconnoitering to determine if the Catholic mission had been torched. These Indians were purported to be the same Brulé Lakota under Chief Two Strike that had attacked the 9th Cavalry's supply train earlier that morning. The Seventh Cavalry was hotly engaged in a valley by the combined Lakota forces while trying to break contact and withdraw.^[2] A battalion of the Ninth Cavalry, a Buffalo Soldier regiment under the command of Maj. Guy V. Henry and nicknamed the Henry's Brunettes, responded to Forsyth's request for assistance, and the combined cavalry forces drove the Lakota from commanding positions on the heights.^[3]

In an investigation of the Drexel Mission fight, Maj. Gen. Nelson A. Miles, the commanding general of the Pine Ridge Campaign, severely criticized Forsyth for allowing his command to be pinned down in a valley. He submitted his findings as a supplement to his investigation of Forsyth's conduct at Wounded Knee. Secretary of War Redfield Proctor set aside the Drexel Mission investigation after exonerating Forsyth of any wrongdoing at Wounded Knee.^[2]

Three soldiers were awarded the Medal of Honor for actions at White Clay Creek, including Captain Charles A. Varnum, First Sergeant Theodore Ragnar, and Farrier Richard J. Nolan. Almost three decades later Second Lieutenant Sedgwick Rice was awarded a Distinguished Service Medal.^[2]

Notes

^ ^a ^b Cressey, Charles Herbert; Copenharve, Charles H.; O'Brien, Edward A. (2016). Sting of the Bee: A Day-by-day Account of Wounded Knee and the Sioux Outbreak of 1890–1891 as Recorded in the Omaha Bee. Russell Martial Research. ISBN 978-0692691113.
^ ^a ^b ^c Robert M. Utley: The Last Days of the Sioux Nation. Yale University Press, New Haven, CT (1963), po. 231–250, ISBN 0300103166.
^ Jeffrey Ostler: The Plains Sioux and U.S. colonialism from Lewis and Clark to Wounded Knee pp. 357–358, Cambridge University Press (2004) ISBN 0521605903

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[books.google.com-1] Cressey, Charles Herbert; Copenharve, Charles H.; O'Brien, Edward A. (2016). Sting of the Bee: A Day-by-day Account of Wounded Knee and the Sioux Outbreak of 1890–1891 as Recorded in the Omaha Bee. Russell Martial Research. ISBN 978-0692691113.

[Utley-2] Robert M. Utley: The Last Days of the Sioux Nation. Yale University Press, New Haven, CT (1963), po. 231–250, ISBN 0300103166.

[3] Jeffrey Ostler: The Plains Sioux and U.S. colonialism from Lewis and Clark to Wounded Knee pp. 357–358, Cambridge University Press (2004) ISBN 0521605903

[1]

[2]

[3]

@@ Line 1: / Line 1: @@
+{{short description|1890 armed confrontation between Lakota warriors and the United States Army}}
 {{Infobox military conflict
 |conflict=Drexel Mission Fight
 |partof=the [[Ghost Dance War]], [[Sioux Wars]]
-|image=[[File:Site of Drexel Mission Fight Pine Ridge Indian Reservation-1890.jpg|300px]]
+| image= Site of Drexel Mission Fight Pine Ridge Indian Reservation-1890.jpg
 |caption=The 'Bloody Pocket'; location of the Drexel Mission Fight
 |date=December 30, 1890
@@ Line 14: / Line 15: @@
 |strength1=[[7th U.S. Cavalry]]<br>[[9th U.S. Cavalry]]
 |strength2=
+|casualties1=1 dead,<ref name="books.google.com">{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=qgUFkAEACAAJ&q=Franschettie+was+missed+upon+the+return+of+the+cavalry+that+day.++No+one+had+seen+him+fall+in+the+fight,+but+he+was+at+once+given+up+for+lost|title = Sting of the Bee: A Day-by-day Account of Wounded Knee and the Sioux Outbreak of 1890–1891 as Recorded in the Omaha Bee|isbn = 978-0692691113|last1 = Cressey|first1 = Charles Herbert|last2 = Copenharve|first2 = Charles H.|last3 = O'Brien|first3 = Edward A.|year = 2016| publisher=Russell Martial Research }}</ref> 7 wounded<ref name="books.google.com">{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=qgUFkAEACAAJ&q=Franschettie+was+missed+upon+the+return+of+the+cavalry+that+day.++No+one+had+seen+him+fall+in+the+fight,+but+he+was+at+once+given+up+for+lost|title = Sting of the Bee: A Day-by-day Account of Wounded Knee and the Sioux Outbreak of 1890–1891 as Recorded in the Omaha Bee|isbn = 978-0692691113|last1 = Cressey|first1 = Charles Herbert|last2 = Copenharve|first2 = Charles H.|last3 = O'Brien|first3 = Edward A.|year = 2016| publisher=Russell Martial Research }}</ref>
-|casualties1=
-|casualties2=
+|casualties2= Unknown
 |notes=
 }}
 {{Ghost Dance War}}
-The '''Drexel Mission Fight''' was an armed confrontation between [[Lakota people|Lakota]] warriors and the United States Army that took place on the [[Pine Ridge Indian Reservation]] in [[South Dakota]] on December 30, 1890, the day after the [[Wounded Knee Massacre]]. The fight occurred on White Clay Creek approximately 15 miles north of [[Pine Ridge, South Dakota|Pine Ridge]] where Lakota were purported to have burned the Catholic Mission.
+The '''Drexel Mission Fight''' was an armed confrontation between [[Lakota people|Lakota]] warriors and the United States Army that took place on the [[Pine Ridge Indian Reservation]] in [[South Dakota]] on December 30, 1890, the day after the [[Wounded Knee Massacre]]. The fight occurred on White Clay Creek approximately {{convert|15|mile}} north of [[Pine Ridge, South Dakota|Pine Ridge]] where Lakota were purported to have burned the Catholic Mission.
-Seventh Cavalry under the command of Col. [[James W. Forsyth]] with eight troops and a platoon or artillery, the same elements engaged at [[Wounded Knee Massacre|Wounded Knee]] the previous day, became engaged by [[Brulé]] Lakota from the [[Rosebud Indian Reservation]] after reconnoitering to determine if the Catholic mission had been torched.  These Indians were purported to be the same [[Brulé]] Lakota under [[Two Strike (Lakota leader)|Chief Two Strike]] that had attacked the 9th Cavalry's supply train earlier that morning. The Seventh Cavalry was hotly engaged in a valley by the combined Lakota forces while trying to break contact and withdraw.<ref name="Utley">Robert M. Utley: The Last Days of the Sioux Nation. Yale University Press, New Haven, CT (1963), pages 231- 250, ISBN 0-300-10316-6.</ref>  A battalion of the [[9th Cavalry Regiment (United States)|Ninth Cavalry]], a [[Buffalo Soldier]] regiment under the command of [[Guy Vernor Henry|Maj. Guy V. Henry]] and nicknamed the Henry's Brunettes, responded to Forsyth's request for assistance, and the combined cavalry forces drove the Lakota from commanding positions on the heights.<ref>Jeffrey Ostler: The Plains Sioux and U.S. colonialism from Lewis and Clark to Wounded Knee pgs. 357-358, Cambridge University Press (2004)
+Seventh Cavalry under the command of Col. [[James W. Forsyth]] with eight troops and a battery of artillery (Battery E, 1st Artillery), the same elements engaged at [[Wounded Knee Massacre|Wounded Knee]] the previous day, became engaged by [[Brulé]] Lakota from the [[Rosebud Indian Reservation]] after reconnoitering to determine if the Catholic mission had been torched. These Indians were purported to be the same [[Brulé]] Lakota under [[Two Strike (Lakota leader)|Chief Two Strike]] that had attacked the 9th Cavalry's supply train earlier that morning. The Seventh Cavalry was hotly engaged in a valley by the combined Lakota forces while trying to break contact and withdraw.<ref name="Utley">Robert M. Utley: The Last Days of the Sioux Nation. Yale University Press, New Haven, CT (1963), po. 231–250, {{ISBN|0300103166}}.</ref> A battalion of the [[9th Cavalry Regiment (United States)|Ninth Cavalry]], a [[Buffalo Soldier]] regiment under the command of [[Guy Vernor Henry|Maj. Guy V. Henry]] and nicknamed the Henry's Brunettes, responded to Forsyth's request for assistance, and the combined cavalry forces drove the Lakota from commanding positions on the heights.<ref>Jeffrey Ostler: The Plains Sioux and U.S. colonialism from Lewis and Clark to Wounded Knee pp. 357–358, Cambridge University Press (2004)
-ISBN 0-521-60590-3</ref>
+{{ISBN|0521605903}}</ref>
-In an investigation of the Drexel Mission fight, [[Nelson A. Miles|Maj. Gen. Nelson A. Miles]], the commanding general of the Pine Ridge Campaign, severely criticized Forsyth for allowing his command to be pinned down in a valley.  He submitted his findings as a supplement to his investigation of Forsyth's conduct at Wounded Knee.  [[Redfield Proctor|Secretary of War Redfield Proctor]]  set aside the Drexel Mission investigation after exonerating Forsyth of any wrongdoing at Wounded Knee.<ref name="Utley"/>
+In an investigation of the Drexel Mission fight, [[Nelson A. Miles|Maj. Gen. Nelson A. Miles]], the commanding general of the Pine Ridge Campaign, severely criticized Forsyth for allowing his command to be pinned down in a valley.  He submitted his findings as a supplement to his investigation of Forsyth's conduct at Wounded Knee.  [[Redfield Proctor|Secretary of War Redfield Proctor]] set aside the Drexel Mission investigation after exonerating Forsyth of any wrongdoing at Wounded Knee.<ref name="Utley"/>
-Three soldiers were awarded the [[Medal of Honor]] for actions at White Clay Creek including to [[Charles Varnum|Captain Charles A. Varnum]], [[Theodore Ragnar|First Sergeant Theodore Ragnar]], and [[Richard J. Nolan|Farrier Richard J. Nolan]].  Almost three decades later Second Lieutenant Sedgwick Rice was awarded a [[Distinguished Service Medal (U.S. Army)|Distinguished Service Medal]].<ref name="Utley"/>
+Three soldiers were awarded the [[Medal of Honor]] for actions at White Clay Creek, including [[Charles Varnum|Captain Charles A. Varnum]], First Sergeant Theodore Ragnar, and [[Farrier]] [[Richard J. Nolan]]. Almost three decades later Second Lieutenant Sedgwick Rice was awarded a [[Distinguished Service Medal (U.S. Army)|Distinguished Service Medal]].<ref name="Utley"/>
 ==See also==
-{{Portal|South Dakota}}
 * [[History of South Dakota]]
 * [[American Indian Wars#Great Plains|Plains Indians Wars]]
-* [[List of battles fought in South Dakota]]
 ==Notes==
 <references/>
-[[Category:Pine Ridge Indian Reservation]]
+{{Pine Ridge Indian Reservation}}
+{{Lakota people}}
-[[Category:Sioux Wars]]
+{{authority control}}
+[[Category:Pine Ridge Campaign]]
+[[Category:1890 in South Dakota]]
+[[Category:Battles involving the United States]]
 {{NorthAm-native-stub}}