Meeker County, Minnesota - Chapter 8, 1877

On the 24th, of August, orders were issued to Col. B. F. Smith, commandant at Fort Snelling, directing him to arm and equip the company of troops under command of Captain Strout then of the 10th Regiment, and detail them to proceed "to Forest City and such other places in the vicinity as expediency might require, for the purpose of pro¬ tecting and assuring the inhabitants of that re¬ gion." As heretofore narrated in Chap. VI, p. 64, Strout arrived at Forest City on the eve of the 27th of August, and went into camp near the res¬ idence of Tudge Smith, and stated that he could remain there if necessary till further orders.

On the 3d of September the stockade was built by the citizens then in Forest City - about 120 feet square, by planting a double row of logs on end, three feet in the ground and about ten feet high, with bastions - it was built and finished up in less than 24 hours and I venture to say on the quick¬ est time that'any such edifice was ever erected in the United States - and well that we did so - for we were treated to a ceremonious call at 3 o'clock on the morning of the 4th by about two hundred and fifty Savages.

Our hasty uncarpeted accommodations took the ied devils by surprise. They had not previously discovered our accommodations, and at once gave up the idea of assailing us in quarters, and con¬ fined their operations to a little promiscous, careless shooting of old guns, and stealing horses, which unfortunately we had not secured within the' stockade prior to their polite arrival.

Some ten or twelve Indians lost their lives here that morning in consequence of the inexperience, and un-soldier-like careless shooting by our boys.

The boys all meant well but they didn't know any better, and notwithstanding the assertion of dapper-fingered historians to the contrary, the In¬ dians falsified said history by carrying their dead from the field of carnarge before day. Only one white man was seriously wounded.

est City but a day or two before and was sleeping in the back of Mr. Hoyt's house and awoke just in time to see the Indians firing the front end of the house, and had the good luck to slip out at a back window and secrete himself in a corn patch in the garden, and while in this interesting position saw five dead Indians piled into a double wagon by the side of the burning house.

The next morning, at the request of this gentle¬ man, we gave him a letter to Gov. Ramsey which enabled him to get out of Minnesota, and have not seen him since, but we have heard that he is not a believer in "going west."

The celebrated "crazy" Irishman came strolling into town some days prior to the attack, as a spy for the Indians, and had he been allowed to return to his employers, the attack would probably have been more successfully made some days earlier.

Not being able to pronounce the word "Shibbo¬ leth" he was placed in 'durance vile' and ultimate¬ ly shipped under guard to Monticello - thence to St. Paul where he was .magnified into a harmless martyr by the moccasin aristocracy of the Saintly City and thence was allowed to depart to parts unknown.

Six dwelling houses and one barn were burned at Forest City on the morning of the 4th, of Sep¬ tember, viz: of Wm. Richardson, Milton Gorton, James P. Howlett. Dudley Taylor, A. B. Hoyt, William Richards and A. C. Smith.

There were 12 persons killed in Meeker County and 12 in Monongalia the names of which were, in Meeker, Robinson Jones, Ann Baker. Viranus Webster, Clara D. Wilson, Philip Deck, Joseph Page, Linus Howe, Wilmot Maybee, Nels Olsen, Caleb Sanborn and Cross, and in July 1863 James McGannon. In Monongalia three Olsen's, father and two sons, Anderson and son, Carl Carlson and son, Mr. Backland, Mr Lawrenson and the Lumberg family, and nine in McLeod County, contiguous to Meeker, viz: Mr. Spondy, wife and two children, one child of John Adams (taking John Adams prisoner) and four of the White fam¬ ily at Lake Addie. Mr. Adams was taken priso¬ ner Sept. 4th.

July xst, 1863 McGannon was shot between Kingston and Fair Haven, probably by Little Crow in person, as this distinguished chieftain was a few days after shot by Mr. Lamson on sec¬ tion 30 Town 118 - 29 (Collinwood) Meeker County, and was found in possession of McGannon's coat.

The great native warrior, together with his son - young Crow, were quietly making a dinner of raspberries, when the Irishman's bullet called him to his final account.

Little Crow and son were dining together - and Lamson and son were out hunting together - the hunters came suddenly in sight of the In¬ dians and seeing them first, quickly resolved that white man must scoop Indian, or Indian would scoop white man, and suiting the action to the word, and being a good shot, Lamson scooped Crow - while his son aimed at young Crow, miss¬ ing him, but disabling Ins gun - whereupon young Crow fled and left the country - subsequently fol¬ lowed the trail of Gen. Sibley's army across the plains, as we were informed, and finally ran into Gen. Sibley's camp in pretty much the condition of Lee's army when he ran in into Gen.

Little Crow was a small sized man and a savage chieftain of singular power and genius, always evil disposed to the whites, as was his father 30 or 40 years before. With strong intellect and an un¬ bending will, but had become disgusted with the management of the war by the other chieftains of the hostile tribes.

The last we heard of them some live Yankee near Hutchinson had his bones in an old soap¬ box, and was trying to drive a sharp bargain by selling them to the Minnesota Historical Society- - with what success we never learned - alas for hu¬ man - or rather inhuman fame and greatness. Re¬ port has it, that said Society is in possession of Little Crow's scalp (we doubt whether he was ever scalped) which had been carefully tanned and consequently will not decay - so that future generations can look on the polished top knot with a due amount of reverence.

archives of the State Historical Society ever covered Little Crow's pate or not, if after-genera¬ tions only think so, it is just as well, and the man who scalped Christopher Columbus, and could not find w'here John Rogers was burned Feb. 14th, 1554, will be dead long before the fraud will be dis¬ covered, and as there is no prospect of his leaving any male heirs, posterity will not be likely to trouble itself about the fact. Another report has it, that one J. D. Farmer, of Spring Valley,Minn, became possessor of Little Crow's skull soon after his death and presented it to Dr. Powell of Lanesboro, and that one Dr. Twitchell of Chatfield has thejbalance of Little Crow's "frame work," - doubt¬ ful.