Across The Fence: Battle of Summit Springs, Part I; Tall Bull Killed

In the early afternoon of July 11, 1869, Chief of Scouts William F. Cody and Captain Frank North, leader of the famous Pawnee Scouts, crouched behind the crest of a gentle rise on the grass covered prairie in northeastern Colorado Territory a short distance south of what is now Sterling, Colorado. They had approached, undetected, to within less than a mile of Cheyenne Chief Tall Bull's camp. Colonel Eugene A. Carr, under orders to punish the Cheyenne for recent murderous attacks on settlers across northwestern Kansas and southern Nebraska, commanded 244 troopers of the 5th U.S. Cavalry and 50 Pawnee Scouts under the command of Major North.

Cheyenne Dog Soldiers under the leadership of Tall Bull had breached the terms of the Medicine Creek Treaty by hunting and raiding north of the Arkansas River and, as a result, had suffered heavy losses in punitive engagements with U.S. troops. In retaliation, small bands of Dog Soldiers had been raiding settlements in Kansas and Nebraska, brutally killing men, women and children, burning and looting homesteads and further humiliating their white enemies by capturing, raping and torturing their women. At the time, there were known to be at least two white women in Tall Bull's camp and Colonel Carr had also been ordered to rescue them.

After studying the lay of the land and the position of Tall Bull's camp, Cody and Major North reported to Colonel Carr and began preparations for the attack. For the most part, the men of the 5th were inexperienced in Indian warfare but Major North's Pawnee Scouts had already gained a reputation for their fearlessness and reckless bravery in battle. Bitter enemies of the Sioux and Cheyenne, the Pawnee had proven themselves to be merciless warriors and delighted in the killing of their enemies. Although trained in the disciplines of Army protocol and outfitted in regulation attire and weaponry, the Pawnee would strip down to their native nakedness when preparing for battle. However, on this day, as they prepared to attack Tall Bull's camp they kept on enough of their uniforms to avoid being mistaken for a Cheyenne Dog Soldier.

When preparations were complete Colonel Carr assembled his troops and began a quick-trot advance toward the Cheyenne camp. At 3 p.m., on that hot and windy July afternoon, the bugler sounded the charge and a fighting force of nearly 300 men descended on the 84 lodges of Tall Bull's camp. Tall Bull's people were caught in complete surprise, unprepared for battle.

As the mounted horsemen galloped toward the hide-covered lodges a young boy, later identified as 12-year-old Little Hawk, was caught between the advancing Cavalry and the horses that he had been herding. The horses he was guarding were spooked by the advancing troops and began to scatter. Although the boy could have made his escape he mounted his own pony, gathered up the horses that had broken away and drove them into the camp ahead of the charging troops. His actions so impressed Captain North that he recorded the events in his book "Man of the Plains":

"About a half mile from and off to one side from our line, a Cheyenne boy was herding horses. He was about fifteen years old and we were very close to him before he saw us. He jumped on his horse and gathered up his herd and drove them into the village ahead of our men, who were shooting at him. He was mounted on a very good horse and could easily gotten away if he had left his herd, but he took them all in ahead of him, then at the edge of the village he turned and joined a band of warriors that were trying to hold us back, while the women and children were getting away, and there he died like a warrior. No braver man ever existed than that 15 year old boy."

Tall Bull and his warriors scrambled from their lodges, grabbing whatever weapons were near and rushed to battle as their horses bolted between the lodges. Tall Bull grabbed the flying mane of the first horse that came near, not one of his own but a quick, cinnamon colored steed. Swinging a leg over the horse's back he settled the prancing horse long enough to gather up his wife and child and pulled them up behind him and made a dash for safety in a nearby ravine. Bullets whizzed past and kicked up dust beside them as they made their way, Captain North gave chase. Tall Bull and his family reached the shelter of the ravine and took cover behind a wall of earth and rock. After disappearing into the ravine a warrior that Captain North believed to be Tall Bull raised his head above the rocks and Captain North sent a bullet through his head.

A group of Dog Soldiers took cover in a nearby gully and held off the circling troops with bows and arrows. Although a courageous action, that allowed many women and children to escape into the hills, the warrior's defense had no effect and when their arrows were spent the Pawnee advanced and killed them all. One of the Dog Soldiers, named Good Head of Yellow Hair, drove his lance into the ground and tied himself to the shaft with a cord of leather. This was a sign that he would not retreat and would stand fast in the face of his enemy and fight to the death, knowing there was little hope of winning the battle. Caught by surprise the warriors were outnumbered, five to one, and were unable to mount a defense that had any effect. Of the nearly 300 soldiers and scouts engaged in the battle, only one trooper was wounded when an arrow grazed his ear.

Women, children and a handful of warriors that defended their retreat escaped across the plains, some to the north, some southward. One warrior had caught a horse that was known to belong to Tall Bull and fled into the prairie. Cody, perhaps believing that the rider was Tall Bull, gathered a small number of Pawnee scouts gave pursuit. The following day Cody caught up with unidentified rider and killed him, incorrectly claiming that he had killed Tall Bull.

The battle at Summit Springs had lasted nearly three hours. When the shooting finally stopped, around 6 p.m., a powerful prairie thunderstorm rolled in from the southwest and pummeled the battleground with rain and hail and everyone was forced to take cover wherever they could. The storm claimed another casualty when a bolt of lightening struck and killed a horse and stunned the trooper who sat in the saddle.

Twelve other horses lay dead on the battlefield having succumbed to the intense heat of the day in the pursuit of fleeing Cheyenne.

Tall Bull was dead and the Cheyenne Dog Soldier society was broken with some survivors fleeing to the north and others south. Colonel Carr wrote in 1901 that one Daniel McGrath of Company H had distinguished himself in battle at Summit Springs when he killed Chief Tall Bull. Whether it was McGrath, Cody or North, makes little difference.

Tall Bull's wife and child were taken captive along with 15 other prisoners. Colonel Carr reported 54 killed but a later accounting identified only 35. Although the Cavalry had the larger force it was the Pawnee Scouts who were most successful in the battle. They had killed the young boy who had herded the horses back to camp then turned to fight, the 20 warriors who had held them off with bows and arrows, one Dog Soldier known as Lone Bear, another called Pile of Bones, five old women and two children.

The Cavalry claimed the lives of the wife, mother-in-law and the two children of Cheyenne warrior named Red Cherries.

Of the two white captives that Colonel Carr had been ordered to rescue one of them, Susanna Alderdice, was likely killed by Tall Bull when the battle began. Her body, scarred from horrible torture was found in Tall Bull's lodge. The other captive, Maria Weichell, was gravely wounded with a bullet in her back that had lodged in her breast. Maria survived.

Colonel Carr ordered the village to be destroyed and troopers set 160 separate fires, burning everything possible and recording all the items found. There were 56 rifles, 22 revolvers, 40 bows with arrows, 350 knives, 47 axes, 690 buffalo robes, 17 sabers, 552 saddlebags, 152 moccasins, 150 pans, kettles and kegs, 9,300 pounds of dried meat, 340 tin cups and plates, 28 dresses, 1,500 dolls, 200 coffee pots, 418 horses and more than 10 tons of other clothing, equipment and food.

Amongst the plunder that the Dog Soldiers had looted from settlers was found a total of $887.

The cash was given to Mrs. Weichell.

M. Timothy Nolting is an award winning Nebraska columnist and freelance writer. To contact Tim, email: [email protected]