Battle of Dove Creek
Encyclopedia
The Battle of Dove Creek was a small engagement during the American Civil War
that took place January 8, 1865, along Dove Creek in what is now southwest Tom Green County, Texas
. Texan soldiers under Confederate
captains Henry Fossett and S.S. Totten, misunderstanding which tribe occupied a discovered camp, attacked a tribe of peaceful Kickapoo Indians and were badly beaten by an organized defense.
men discovered an abandoned Indian camp of 92 shelter sites along the Clear Fork of the Brazos River
, and, suspecting the site to be evidence of hostile Comanche
or Kiowa Indians, called for militia to locate and address the threat. On January 1, 1865, Texas Frontier Battalion troops under the command of Captain Henry Fossett arrived at Fort Chadbourne
to await the militia concentration. After two days, Fossett led his two companies in search of the trail and located the natives along the Dove Creek, encamped in timberland.
Kickapoo Indians inside the camp had been peaceful since the days of the Black Hawk War
, but they were not unprepared for violence. The Kickapoo benefited from the well-placed camp, located on a tall bank covered with light timber and protected by natural brier thickets common to the Cross Timbers
area. The first militia attacks suffered from brier hazards while under intense Indian rifle fire. According to a witness, three Texan officers (including Gillentine) and sixteen enlisted men were killed in the first few minutes.
Fossett's flank attack initially succeeded in capturing the herd, but assault by a Confederate detachment under Lieutenant J.A. Brooks broke down after native gunfire killed a dozen horses. Gradually, the isolated Confederate columns found themselves in crossfire with the Indians closing in. After a brief rout, militia reformed along the Spring Creek to the north, and Kickapoo pursuers inflicted additional casualties on the Confederates escaping to the camp.
American Civil War
The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...
that took place January 8, 1865, along Dove Creek in what is now southwest Tom Green County, Texas
Texas
Texas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in...
. Texan soldiers under Confederate
Confederate States Army
The Confederate States Army was the army of the Confederate States of America while the Confederacy existed during the American Civil War. On February 8, 1861, delegates from the seven Deep South states which had already declared their secession from the United States of America adopted the...
captains Henry Fossett and S.S. Totten, misunderstanding which tribe occupied a discovered camp, attacked a tribe of peaceful Kickapoo Indians and were badly beaten by an organized defense.
Background
In mid-December 1864, Captain N.M. Gillentine and two dozen Texas militiaMilitia
The term militia is commonly used today to refer to a military force composed of ordinary citizens to provide defense, emergency law enforcement, or paramilitary service, in times of emergency without being paid a regular salary or committed to a fixed term of service. It is a polyseme with...
men discovered an abandoned Indian camp of 92 shelter sites along the Clear Fork of the Brazos River
Brazos River
The Brazos River, called the Rio de los Brazos de Dios by early Spanish explorers , is the longest river in Texas and the 11th longest river in the United States at from its source at the head of Blackwater Draw, Curry County, New Mexico to its mouth at the Gulf of Mexico with a drainage...
, and, suspecting the site to be evidence of hostile Comanche
Comanche
The Comanche are a Native American ethnic group whose historic range consisted of present-day eastern New Mexico, southern Colorado, northeastern Arizona, southern Kansas, all of Oklahoma, and most of northwest Texas. Historically, the Comanches were hunter-gatherers, with a typical Plains Indian...
or Kiowa Indians, called for militia to locate and address the threat. On January 1, 1865, Texas Frontier Battalion troops under the command of Captain Henry Fossett arrived at Fort Chadbourne
Fort Chadbourne
Fort Chadbourne was a fort established by the United States Army on October 28, 1852, in what is now Coke County, Texas, to protect the western frontier and the Butterfield Overland Mail route. It was manned by the 8th U.S. Infantry...
to await the militia concentration. After two days, Fossett led his two companies in search of the trail and located the natives along the Dove Creek, encamped in timberland.
Battle
Just as Fossett prepared his morning assault, the exhausted militia troops arrived after hard forced march, and the two captains chose to cooperate in a joint attack. Totten agreed militia would form a line of battle and approach the camp in a frontal assault astride the creek from the north while better equipped Confederates under Fossett would maneuver around to the southwest, capture the Indians' grazing horse herd, and attack from the flank.Kickapoo Indians inside the camp had been peaceful since the days of the Black Hawk War
Black Hawk War
The Black Hawk War was a brief conflict fought in 1832 between the United States and Native Americans headed by Black Hawk, a Sauk leader. The war erupted soon after Black Hawk and a group of Sauks, Meskwakis, and Kickapoos known as the "British Band" crossed the Mississippi River into the U.S....
, but they were not unprepared for violence. The Kickapoo benefited from the well-placed camp, located on a tall bank covered with light timber and protected by natural brier thickets common to the Cross Timbers
Cross Timbers
The term Cross Timbers is used to describe a strip of land in the United States that runs from southeastern Kansas across Central Oklahoma to Central Texas...
area. The first militia attacks suffered from brier hazards while under intense Indian rifle fire. According to a witness, three Texan officers (including Gillentine) and sixteen enlisted men were killed in the first few minutes.
Fossett's flank attack initially succeeded in capturing the herd, but assault by a Confederate detachment under Lieutenant J.A. Brooks broke down after native gunfire killed a dozen horses. Gradually, the isolated Confederate columns found themselves in crossfire with the Indians closing in. After a brief rout, militia reformed along the Spring Creek to the north, and Kickapoo pursuers inflicted additional casualties on the Confederates escaping to the camp.