(C) Daily Kos This story was originally published by Daily Kos and is unaltered. . . . . . . . . . . Indians 101: The 1856 Battle of Seattle, Washington [1] ['This Content Is Not Subject To Review Daily Kos Staff Prior To Publication.'] Date: 2023-08-03 In 1855, concerned about a potential Indian uprising, American settlers in the Puget Sound area of Washington state formed four companies of soldiers. One of these companies, Eaton’s Rangers, attempted to apprehend Nisqually chief Leschi. Leschi and his brother Quiemuth were peacefully cultivating their wheat fields when the Rangers moved in. Warned of the Rangers’ approach, Leschi and Quiemuth fled their homes. This marked the beginning of the Puget Sound War. Shown above is a portrait of Chief Leschi displayed in the Lewis Army Museum. In 1856, Governor Isaac I. Stevens, responding to the Indian war led by Leschi, called for the extermination of all “hostile” Indians. In his book The Bitter Waters of Medicine Creek: A Tragic Clash Between White and Native America, Richard Kluger writes: “The governor’s fevered resolve to punish Leshi seemed to go beyond just an understandable desire for revenge against him for having been instrumental in the Indian uprising and the events that culminated in Steven’s disastrous decision to decree martial law.” In response to the Governor’s call for extermination, a small group of Duwamish, Taitnapam, Puyallup, Nisqually, and Suquamish warriors attacked the community of Seattle. While the Americans would later credit Leschi for leading the attack, there is no actual evidence that he was involved. Nor is there any reliable estimate on the number of Indians involved: unreliable chroniclers of the event estimated between 150 and 1,000 Indians were involved. Two young Duwamish men, Jim and Curley, learned of the planned attack and warned the Americans. In their book Forgotten Fights: Little-Known Raids and Skirmishes on the Frontier, 1823-1890, Gregory Michno and Susan Michno report: “The hostile Indians, Jim and Curley said, hoped to capture the Decatur and take its cannons and powder.” As a result of this warning, Captain Guert Gensevoort of the sloop Decatur, sent 96 sailors, 18 marines, and five officers ashore to help the settlers. He then pulls the Decatur back from the shore. Prior to the planned attack, the Indian leaders met at Curley’s lodge where they were informed that the Decatur’s crew was prepared for the attack. Jim and Curley recommended waiting until 10 AM to attack as the ship’s crew would be tired at this time. The leaders agreed and Jim covertly went back into town with the details of the new plan. The actual battle began not with the Indians, but with a howitzer shell fired into the woods where Jim had indicated that the Indians were hiding. With this, the Indians attacked and found that the townspeople, reinforced with sailors and marines, had built defensive lines and were waiting for them. In addition, the Decatur’s guns shelled the Indian lines. Gregory Michno and Susan Michno write: “The Indians knew how a cannonball worked, but a shell was different: having a delayed fuse, a shell could hit the ground and sit there for a minute before ‘shooting again’—curious Indians who approached the shell could be killed without warning. The Indians believed its power to be supernatural.” With regard to the attacking Indians, Richard Kluger writes: “Tactically, moreover, the natives had no experience when it came to assailing a well-defended settlement. Their old smoothbore muskets lacked range and accuracy, hand-to-hand combat against whites with bayonets and revolvers was a frightening prospect, and the natives were entirely unprepared for the ferocious cannonfire aimed their way.” The Indian raiders torched and looted a few of the buildings on the fringes of the settlement. Richard Kluger summarizes the battle: “After the day-long fight, with a break for lunch by both sides, the attackers slipped away, regrouped by a swampy stand of willow on the west shore of Lake Washington, and then vanished into the night after having caused relatively little physical damage.” The attack results in two American deaths and no Indian deaths. Some describe it as a “half-hearted” affair. According to Richard Kluger: “The Battle of Seattle—a shooting spree more than a military engagement—was the high-water mark of the Indian resistance movement west of the mountains.” More American Indian histories Indians 301: The Puget Sound War Indians 101: The Tlingit Rebellion of 1802-1806 Indians 201: The war against the Yavapai Indians 201: The Bannock Indian War Indians 201: The Cayuse Indian War Indians 201: The First Seminole War Indians 201: The Sheepeater Indian War Indians 101: California's War on Indians, 1850 to 1851 [END] --- [1] Url: https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2023/8/3/2184573/-Indians-101-The-1856-Battle-of-Seattle-Washington Published and (C) by Daily Kos Content appears here under this condition or license: Site content may be used for any purpose without permission unless otherwise specified. via Magical.Fish Gopher News Feeds: gopher://magical.fish/1/feeds/news/dailykos/