Simpson E. Stilwell
Encyclopedia
Simpson Edwin Stilwell was a United States Army Scout, Deputy U.S. Marshal, police judge, and U.S. Commissioner in Oklahoma during the American Old West
. He served in Major George A. Forsyth
's company of scouts when it was besieged during the Battle of Beecher Island
by Indian
Cheyenne Chief
Roman Nose
and was instrumental in bringing relief to the unit.
, who was killed at age 26 by Deputy U.S. Marshal Wyatt Earp
.
In the mid-1850s the Stilwells moved to Baldwin City or Palmyra Township, Douglas County, Kansas where they took a land claim. In 1863 William and Charlotte divorced and William left with the three boys, Jack, Millard and Frank. Charlotte took the girls Elizabeth and Mary. William joined Company B, 18th Missouri Infantry for a time during the Civil War.
In 1863, at 14 years old, Simpson's parents sent him to fetch water from the family well. He left for Kansas City instead where he joined a wagon train
bound for Santa Fe
, New Mexico Territory
. He traveled between New Mexico, Kansas City, and Leavenworth several times, spending the winters in New Mexico.
, the Wolf River
, and the Beaver River. In the spring he worked the wagon trains. In 1867 he joined the U.S. Army and served as post guide for troops at Fort Dodge, Iowa. In 1868, he headed south with General George Custer's expedition into Indian Territory
.
company, one of fifty U.S. Army scouts from Fort Harker
and Fort Hays
. Jack was described as “a youth of six feet three or more, short of years but long on frontier lore.”
On the morning of September 10, Forsyth's troops at Fort Wallace received information that Cheyenne Indians had attacked a freighter's train 13 kilometres (8.1 mi) east of Ft Wallace. The soldiers set out at dawn to find the hostile Indians. The scouts trailed the Indian raiding party from Sheridan
, Indian Territory
into Colorado; signs indicated that the opposing force considerably outnumbered the scouts, but the unit nonetheless pressed on.
The detachment went into camp on the Arickaree Fork of the Republican River. General Forsyth anticipated trouble and posted a watch. At dawn the Scouts were attacked by a large party of Cheyennes under the leadership of Roman Nose
. Surrounded, the men took cover and dug in on a sand bar in the dry riverbed.
At around midnight on the first day of battle, Forsyth said, "Some one must go to Wallace
for assistance." Stilwell volunteered and said he would choose a man to go with him. Forsyth tore the fly leaf out of his daybook, wrote a note to Col. Bankhead at Ft. Wallace, and gave it to Stilwell. Stilwell and Trudeau crawled for 3 miles (4.8 km) before they took cover for the day about 5 miles (8 km) of one of the Indian Villages. They took horse meat for food and when it spoiled they got sick. Trudeau was so weak he could only stand with assistance, but after resting and traveling for four days they reached Fort Wallace.
There were some reports written much later that gave Stilwell credit for shooting Roman Nose
, but this could not be proven. The scouts were discharged at Fort Wallace on October 5, 1868. Stilwell remained a scout for the army for a length of time.
After receiving constant appeals for aid, on November 4, 1868 Governor Crawford resigned as governor and was appointed Colonel of a newly recruited regiment, the 1200 strong Nineteenth Kansas Volunteers. General
Sheridan gave Crawford instructions to rendezvous with General George Armstrong Custer
's 7th Calvary at Camp Supply, near the point of the Wold and Beaver Rivers. Custer was under orders to proceed to the Washita River, the winter encampment of Indians.
General Sheridan
had sent two guides to lead Colonel Crawford through. Jack Stilwell and either William "Apache Bill" Seamans or Pierre Trudeau were assigned to the Kansas Volunteers as Scouts. Wichita resident James R. Mead wrote afterward that he talked to Stilwell and Tredeau and learned they had never been over the routes. He then went to Colonel Crawford and told him it was very dangerous to start across there at that time of year with inexperienced guides and offered to furnish a man who knew the country. Colonel Crawford replied, "I have no funds to employ scouts so I must trust the scouts that Sheridan sends." Sure enough, just as Mead predicted, they got lost. A big snow storm overtook them. Forage and rations were exhausted. The men suffered much and many of the horses froze to death on the picket line.
The Regiment began their trip Southward to Fort Supply where Custer and the 7th Cavalry was posted. After crossing the nearly frozen Arkansas River they began their tracking of the hostiles. The snow being around 12 inches deep, made it very difficult for the men and their horses, to travel, so their travels were very slow. On the 14th of November, the regiment was hit by a severe winter snowstorm and they had great difficulty finding a way to cross the Arkansas River. Shortly afterward 600 of their horses were somehow stampeded and they lost 100 of the valuable horses. The situation got worse when the men got lost in a blizzard in the Cimarron Canyon and finally began reaching Camp Supply on November 28.
Custer had grown impatient waiting for Crawford and left on November 24 for Washita. There they killed from 14 to upwards of 140 Indians at the Battle of Washita River
, capturing 53 women and children, while losing only one officer in the fight around the Indian village. This was the battle for which the unit had been organized.
The Kansas Volunteers remained in active service all winter. They suffered from insufficient and poor rations, severe weather, and walked instead of rode due to the lack of horses, and saw little fighting.
In 1871 Stilwell was at Fort Sill as a post guide. He remained in the Indian Territory with the exception of a few travels until about 1887.
He also served during the campaign of 1874, were he made a daring ride from the Darlington agency to Fort Sill, seventy-five miles alone through hostile county, to bring news of the outbreak and get help. Later he was scout for General “Black Jack” Davidson.
In 1878 he was chief packer and then scout at Fort Davis
and then Fort Stockton, Texas.
was an outlaw
Cowboy
who was suspected of murdering Morgan Earp
on March 18, 1882 in an ambush in Tombstone
, Arizona Territory
. Frank was killed in retaliation by Wyatt Earp
two days later. Simpson soon learned of his brother's death and went west with hopes of avenging his brother's death. However, he soon returned without doing so. He returned to Indian Territory
where he became a Deputy U.S. Marshal headquartered in Anadarko, Oklahoma
.
. He soon became a police judge at El Reno, Oklahoma
about 6 miles (9.7 km) away. In March 1894, Stilwell was a witness in the case The United States vs. The State of Texas which determined Greer County
was within the borders of Oklahoma Territory
. A few years later he returned to Anadarko where he was appointed U.S. Commissioner. He was admitted to the bar
and practiced law.
On May 6, 1895 in Braddock, Pennsylvania
, he married Esther Hannah Sherwin. In 1898, he was invited by long-time friend, William F. "Buffalo Bill" Cody
, to move to his ranch near Cody, Wyoming
where Jack watched over Cody's interests while led his Wild West Shows
. Stilwell owned a small ranch on the South Fork of the Shoshone River
where he died of Bright's disease
in 1903. He was buried near Cody, Wyoming.
American Old West
The American Old West, or the Wild West, comprises the history, geography, people, lore, and cultural expression of life in the Western United States, most often referring to the latter half of the 19th century, between the American Civil War and the end of the century...
. He served in Major George A. Forsyth
George Alexander Forsyth
George Alexander Forsyth was a United States military officer most notable for his service in the cavalry.-Early life:Forsyth was born in Muncy, Pennsylvania...
's company of scouts when it was besieged during the Battle of Beecher Island
Battle of Beecher Island
The Battle of Beecher Island, also known as the Battle of Arikaree Fork, was an armed conflict between elements of the United States Army and several of the Plains native American tribes in September 1868...
by Indian
Native Americans in the United States
Native Americans in the United States are the indigenous peoples in North America within the boundaries of the present-day continental United States, parts of Alaska, and the island state of Hawaii. They are composed of numerous, distinct tribes, states, and ethnic groups, many of which survive as...
Cheyenne Chief
Tribal chief
A tribal chief is the leader of a tribal society or chiefdom. Tribal societies with social stratification under a single leader emerged in the Neolithic period out of earlier tribal structures with little stratification, and they remained prevalent throughout the Iron Age.In the case of ...
Roman Nose
Roman Nose
Roman Nose, a.k.a. Hook Nose , was a Native American of the Northern Cheyenne, and possibly the greatest and most influential warrior during the Plains Indian War of the 1860s...
and was instrumental in bringing relief to the unit.
Early life
Stilwell was raised near Baldwin, Kansas. His parents were William “Henry” Stilwell and Charlotte B. "Sarah" Winfrey. He had a younger brother, Frank StilwellFrank Stilwell
Frank C. Stilwell was an outlaw Cowboy who murdered at least two men in Cochise County during 1877-1882. For four months he was a deputy sheriff in Tombstone, Arizona Territory for Cochise County Sheriff Johnny Behan...
, who was killed at age 26 by Deputy U.S. Marshal Wyatt Earp
Wyatt Earp
Wyatt Berry Stapp Earp was an American gambler, investor, and law enforcement officer who served in several Western frontier towns. He was also at different times a farmer, teamster, bouncer, saloon-keeper, miner and boxing referee. However, he was never a drover or cowboy. He is most well known...
.
In the mid-1850s the Stilwells moved to Baldwin City or Palmyra Township, Douglas County, Kansas where they took a land claim. In 1863 William and Charlotte divorced and William left with the three boys, Jack, Millard and Frank. Charlotte took the girls Elizabeth and Mary. William joined Company B, 18th Missouri Infantry for a time during the Civil War.
In 1863, at 14 years old, Simpson's parents sent him to fetch water from the family well. He left for Kansas City instead where he joined a wagon train
Wagon train
A wagon train is a group of wagons traveling together. In the American West, individuals traveling across the plains in covered wagons banded together for mutual assistance, as is reflected in numerous films and television programs about the region, such as Audie Murphy's Tumbleweed and Ward Bond...
bound for Santa Fe
Santa Fe, New Mexico
Santa Fe is the capital of the U.S. state of New Mexico. It is the fourth-largest city in the state and is the seat of . Santa Fe had a population of 67,947 in the 2010 census...
, New Mexico Territory
New Mexico Territory
thumb|right|240px|Proposed boundaries for State of New Mexico, 1850The Territory of New Mexico was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from September 9, 1850, until January 6, 1912, when the final extent of the territory was admitted to the Union as the State of...
. He traveled between New Mexico, Kansas City, and Leavenworth several times, spending the winters in New Mexico.
Joins U.S. Army
During the winters he joined others on buffalo hunts on the Canadian RiverCanadian River
The Canadian River is the longest tributary of the Arkansas River. It is about long, starting in Colorado and traveling through New Mexico, the Texas Panhandle, and most of Oklahoma....
, the Wolf River
Wolf River (Kansas)
The Wolf River is a tributary of the Missouri River in northeastern Kansas in the United States, draining an area of in the Dissected Till Plains region....
, and the Beaver River. In the spring he worked the wagon trains. In 1867 he joined the U.S. Army and served as post guide for troops at Fort Dodge, Iowa. In 1868, he headed south with General George Custer's expedition into Indian Territory
Indian Territory
The Indian Territory, also known as the Indian Territories and the Indian Country, was land set aside within the United States for the settlement of American Indians...
.
Scouts for General Forsyth
On August 28, 1868, Jack Stilwell joined Major George A. Forsyth'sGeorge Alexander Forsyth
George Alexander Forsyth was a United States military officer most notable for his service in the cavalry.-Early life:Forsyth was born in Muncy, Pennsylvania...
company, one of fifty U.S. Army scouts from Fort Harker
Fort Harker (Kansas)
Fort Harker, located in Kanopolis, Kansas, was an active military installation of the United States Army from November 17, 1866 to October 5, 1872. The fortification was named after General Charles Garrison Harker, who was killed in action at the Battle of Kennesaw Mountain in the American Civil War...
and Fort Hays
Fort Hays
Fort Hays was an important frontier outpost of the United States Army located in Hays, Kansas between 1865 and 1889. Fort Hays was the home of several well-known Indian wars regiments including the Seventh U.S. Cavalry, the Fifth U.S. Infantry, and the Tenth U.S. Cavalry, whose black troopers were...
. Jack was described as “a youth of six feet three or more, short of years but long on frontier lore.”
On the morning of September 10, Forsyth's troops at Fort Wallace received information that Cheyenne Indians had attacked a freighter's train 13 kilometres (8.1 mi) east of Ft Wallace. The soldiers set out at dawn to find the hostile Indians. The scouts trailed the Indian raiding party from Sheridan
Sheridan, Colorado
Sheridan is a Home Rule Municipality in Arapahoe County, Colorado, United States. The population was 5,600 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Sheridan is located at ....
, Indian Territory
Indian Territory
The Indian Territory, also known as the Indian Territories and the Indian Country, was land set aside within the United States for the settlement of American Indians...
into Colorado; signs indicated that the opposing force considerably outnumbered the scouts, but the unit nonetheless pressed on.
The detachment went into camp on the Arickaree Fork of the Republican River. General Forsyth anticipated trouble and posted a watch. At dawn the Scouts were attacked by a large party of Cheyennes under the leadership of Roman Nose
Roman Nose
Roman Nose, a.k.a. Hook Nose , was a Native American of the Northern Cheyenne, and possibly the greatest and most influential warrior during the Plains Indian War of the 1860s...
. Surrounded, the men took cover and dug in on a sand bar in the dry riverbed.
At around midnight on the first day of battle, Forsyth said, "Some one must go to Wallace
Fort Wallace
Fort Wallace was a US Cavalry fort built in Wallace County, Kansas to help defend settlers against Cheyenne and Sioux raids. All that remains today is the cemetery, but for a period of over a decade Fort Wallace was one of the most important military outposts on the frontier.-External links:* * *...
for assistance." Stilwell volunteered and said he would choose a man to go with him. Forsyth tore the fly leaf out of his daybook, wrote a note to Col. Bankhead at Ft. Wallace, and gave it to Stilwell. Stilwell and Trudeau crawled for 3 miles (4.8 km) before they took cover for the day about 5 miles (8 km) of one of the Indian Villages. They took horse meat for food and when it spoiled they got sick. Trudeau was so weak he could only stand with assistance, but after resting and traveling for four days they reached Fort Wallace.
There were some reports written much later that gave Stilwell credit for shooting Roman Nose
Roman Nose
Roman Nose, a.k.a. Hook Nose , was a Native American of the Northern Cheyenne, and possibly the greatest and most influential warrior during the Plains Indian War of the 1860s...
, but this could not be proven. The scouts were discharged at Fort Wallace on October 5, 1868. Stilwell remained a scout for the army for a length of time.
Guides Kansas Volunteers
Samuel Johnson Crawford was elected Governor of Kansas and served from 1865 to 1868. He was unable to receive the support he'd hoped for from the federal government, who was still shipping arms to the Indians in keeping with several treaties.After receiving constant appeals for aid, on November 4, 1868 Governor Crawford resigned as governor and was appointed Colonel of a newly recruited regiment, the 1200 strong Nineteenth Kansas Volunteers. General
Sheridan gave Crawford instructions to rendezvous with General George Armstrong Custer
George Armstrong Custer
George Armstrong Custer was a United States Army officer and cavalry commander in the American Civil War and the Indian Wars. Raised in Michigan and Ohio, Custer was admitted to West Point in 1858, where he graduated last in his class...
's 7th Calvary at Camp Supply, near the point of the Wold and Beaver Rivers. Custer was under orders to proceed to the Washita River, the winter encampment of Indians.
General Sheridan
Philip Sheridan
Philip Henry Sheridan was a career United States Army officer and a Union general in the American Civil War. His career was noted for his rapid rise to major general and his close association with Lt. Gen. Ulysses S...
had sent two guides to lead Colonel Crawford through. Jack Stilwell and either William "Apache Bill" Seamans or Pierre Trudeau were assigned to the Kansas Volunteers as Scouts. Wichita resident James R. Mead wrote afterward that he talked to Stilwell and Tredeau and learned they had never been over the routes. He then went to Colonel Crawford and told him it was very dangerous to start across there at that time of year with inexperienced guides and offered to furnish a man who knew the country. Colonel Crawford replied, "I have no funds to employ scouts so I must trust the scouts that Sheridan sends." Sure enough, just as Mead predicted, they got lost. A big snow storm overtook them. Forage and rations were exhausted. The men suffered much and many of the horses froze to death on the picket line.
The Regiment began their trip Southward to Fort Supply where Custer and the 7th Cavalry was posted. After crossing the nearly frozen Arkansas River they began their tracking of the hostiles. The snow being around 12 inches deep, made it very difficult for the men and their horses, to travel, so their travels were very slow. On the 14th of November, the regiment was hit by a severe winter snowstorm and they had great difficulty finding a way to cross the Arkansas River. Shortly afterward 600 of their horses were somehow stampeded and they lost 100 of the valuable horses. The situation got worse when the men got lost in a blizzard in the Cimarron Canyon and finally began reaching Camp Supply on November 28.
Custer had grown impatient waiting for Crawford and left on November 24 for Washita. There they killed from 14 to upwards of 140 Indians at the Battle of Washita River
Battle of Washita River
The Battle of Washita River occurred on November 27, 1868 when Lt. Col. George Armstrong Custer’s 7th U.S...
, capturing 53 women and children, while losing only one officer in the fight around the Indian village. This was the battle for which the unit had been organized.
The Kansas Volunteers remained in active service all winter. They suffered from insufficient and poor rations, severe weather, and walked instead of rode due to the lack of horses, and saw little fighting.
In 1871 Stilwell was at Fort Sill as a post guide. He remained in the Indian Territory with the exception of a few travels until about 1887.
He also served during the campaign of 1874, were he made a daring ride from the Darlington agency to Fort Sill, seventy-five miles alone through hostile county, to bring news of the outbreak and get help. Later he was scout for General “Black Jack” Davidson.
In 1878 he was chief packer and then scout at Fort Davis
Fort Davis
Fort Davis may refer to the following.*Fort Davis National Historic Site*Fort Davis, Alaska*Fort Davis, Oklahoma*Fort Davis, Panama*Fort Davis, Texas*Fort Davis , a neighborhood of Washington, D.C....
and then Fort Stockton, Texas.
Brother shot in Tombstone
His brother Frank StilwellFrank Stilwell
Frank C. Stilwell was an outlaw Cowboy who murdered at least two men in Cochise County during 1877-1882. For four months he was a deputy sheriff in Tombstone, Arizona Territory for Cochise County Sheriff Johnny Behan...
was an outlaw
Outlaw
In historical legal systems, an outlaw is declared as outside the protection of the law. In pre-modern societies, this takes the burden of active prosecution of a criminal from the authorities. Instead, the criminal is withdrawn all legal protection, so that anyone is legally empowered to persecute...
Cowboy
The Cowboys (Cochise County)
The Cowboys were a loosely associated group of outlaw cowboys in Pima and Cochise County, Arizona Territory in the late 19th century. They were cattle rustlers and robbers who rode across the border into Mexico and rounded up cattle that they then sold in the United States...
who was suspected of murdering Morgan Earp
Morgan Earp
Morgan Seth Earp was the younger brother of Deputy U.S. Marshals Virgil and Wyatt Earp. Morgan was a deputy of Virgil's and all three men were the target of repeated death threats made by outlaw Cowboys who were upset by the Earps' interference in their illegal activities. This conflict eventually...
on March 18, 1882 in an ambush in Tombstone
Tombstone, Arizona
Tombstone is a city in Cochise County, Arizona, United States, founded in 1879 by Ed Schieffelin in what was then Pima County, Arizona Territory. It was one of the last wide-open frontier boomtowns in the American Old West. From about 1877 to 1890, the town's mines produced USD $40 to $85 million...
, Arizona Territory
Arizona Territory
The Territory of Arizona was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from February 24, 1863 until February 14, 1912, when it was admitted to the Union as the 48th state....
. Frank was killed in retaliation by Wyatt Earp
Wyatt Earp
Wyatt Berry Stapp Earp was an American gambler, investor, and law enforcement officer who served in several Western frontier towns. He was also at different times a farmer, teamster, bouncer, saloon-keeper, miner and boxing referee. However, he was never a drover or cowboy. He is most well known...
two days later. Simpson soon learned of his brother's death and went west with hopes of avenging his brother's death. However, he soon returned without doing so. He returned to Indian Territory
Indian Territory
The Indian Territory, also known as the Indian Territories and the Indian Country, was land set aside within the United States for the settlement of American Indians...
where he became a Deputy U.S. Marshal headquartered in Anadarko, Oklahoma
Anadarko, Oklahoma
Anadarko is a city in Caddo County, Oklahoma, United States. The population was 6,645 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Caddo County.-Early History:Anadarko got its name when its post office was established in 1873...
.
Becomes U.S Marshal
In 1887, Stilwell became a Deputy U.S. Marshall in Darlington, Oklahoma during the period when Oklahoma was opened up for settlementLand Run of 1889
The Oklahoma Land Rush of 1889 was the first land run into the Unassigned Lands and included all or part of the 2005 modern day Canadian, Cleveland, Kingfisher, Logan, Oklahoma, and Payne counties of the U.S. state of Oklahoma...
. He soon became a police judge at El Reno, Oklahoma
El Reno, Oklahoma
El Reno is a city in Canadian County, Oklahoma, United States, in the central part of the state. A part of the Oklahoma City Metropolitan Statistical Area, El Reno is west of downtown Oklahoma City...
about 6 miles (9.7 km) away. In March 1894, Stilwell was a witness in the case The United States vs. The State of Texas which determined Greer County
Greer County, Oklahoma
Greer County is a county located in the U.S. state of Oklahoma. As of 2000, the population was 6,061. Its county seat is Mangum. From 1860 to 1896, the state of Texas claimed an area known as Greer County, Texas, which included present-day Greer County along with neighboring...
was within the borders of Oklahoma Territory
Oklahoma Territory
The Territory of Oklahoma was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from May 2, 1890, until November 16, 1907, when it was joined with the Indian Territory under a new constitution and admitted to the Union as the State of Oklahoma.-Organization:Oklahoma Territory's...
. A few years later he returned to Anadarko where he was appointed U.S. Commissioner. He was admitted to the bar
Bar (law)
Bar in a legal context has three possible meanings: the division of a courtroom between its working and public areas; the process of qualifying to practice law; and the legal profession.-Courtroom division:...
and practiced law.
On May 6, 1895 in Braddock, Pennsylvania
Braddock, Pennsylvania
Braddock is a borough located in the eastern suburbs of Pittsburgh in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, 10 miles upstream from the mouth of the Monongahela River. The population was 2,159 at the 2010 census...
, he married Esther Hannah Sherwin. In 1898, he was invited by long-time friend, William F. "Buffalo Bill" Cody
Buffalo Bill
William Frederick "Buffalo Bill" Cody was a United States soldier, bison hunter and showman. He was born in the Iowa Territory , in LeClaire but lived several years in Canada before his family moved to the Kansas Territory. Buffalo Bill received the Medal of Honor in 1872 for service to the US...
, to move to his ranch near Cody, Wyoming
Cody, Wyoming
Cody is a city in Park County, Wyoming, United States. It is named after William Frederick Cody, primarily known as Buffalo Bill, from William Cody's part in the creation of the original town. The population was 9,520 at the 2010 census...
where Jack watched over Cody's interests while led his Wild West Shows
Wild West Shows
Wild West Shows were traveling vaudeville performances in the United States and Europe. The first and prototypical wild west show was Buffalo Bill's, formed in 1883 and lasting until 1913...
. Stilwell owned a small ranch on the South Fork of the Shoshone River
Shoshone River
The Shoshone River is long river in northern Wyoming in the United States. Its headwaters are in the Absaroka Range in Shoshone National Forest. It ends when it runs into the Big Horn River near Lovell, Wyoming. Cities it runs near or through are Cody, Powell, Byron, and Lovell. Near Cody, it...
where he died of Bright's disease
Bright's disease
Bright's disease is a historical classification of kidney diseases that would be described in modern medicine as acute or chronic nephritis. The term is no longer used, as diseases are now classified according to their more fully understood causes....
in 1903. He was buried near Cody, Wyoming.