Pioneering in the Northwest : Niobrara-Virginia City wagon road

Front matter

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Contents

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Niobrara-Virginia City Wagon Road—Its Object - 1

The Sawyer Expedition and Its Organization : 9 The Trip : . . . . ay: - 12 General Connor - - ae mes . 28 The Trip Continued . . - - : - 30 Postscript - - . - - - - - 48 Pioneers ofthe Northwest -— - oe hea or Oe Sergeant Charles Floyd - . - - 51 War Eagle” - . - - - - - - YQ] Theophile Bruguier_ - - . ; - 104 William B. Thompson . - . - : 128 Elias Shook: 2-=)) enc as mig its ie a alag 145 Longfoot - - - : ay a - - 150

Chapter I

Y In attempting to write a paper on this subject of the Niobrara Virginia City Wagon Route I can find but very little matter in past records, or gather but little information from any source that has been of much help to me. So that in presenting this subject I find it is very unsatisfactory to me.

It would seem that an event so important as the scheme of establishing a great overland wagon route from Sioux City to the Gold fields of Montana and the expedition for which congress made an appropriation, should have found a place in the history of Sioux City and of Woodbury County. However, but little is known today of this early expedition, and so far as I can learn, no complete record of it has ever been made.

In the History of Woodbury County published in 1890-91 by A. Warner & Co., reference is made to the “Niobrara - Sawyers” ex: pedition, but this reference is to the second expedittoh and ‘ne mention is made of the first trip from Niobrara to Virginia City by Colonel Sawyer.

: This account covers in general the second expedition. The only -mis-statement in it, which is of importance, is that the route became : a great western thoroughfare and was traveled by thousands of mule some:

and ox teams. The fact is, no trains ever traveled over the route after this second trip in 1866.

The reader will notice in these official replies to Colonel Sawyer’s request for an escort, some influence was brought to bear to handicap the expedition and prevent the opening of any other route than the regular overland Omaha-Salt Lake trail. The fact is, it was the same opposition to the Niobrara route that had manifested itself the year before on Colonel Sawyer’s first L_trip,—the. trip_to which I wish to confine myself in this paper.

The opening of the rich: placer mines in Bannock and Virginia City in 1863 and ’64 caused a great emigration across the plains, and Council Bluffs and Omaha were the great outfitting points for this overland travel. Sioux City, then as well as now, was scheming and striving to find ways and means to make a greater Sioux City. Omaha had the advantage of the old government and Mormon trails to Salt Lake. In the minds of a few Sioux City men, a large part of this emigration could be diverted this way and Sioux City became the outfitting point for a nearer and better route to the gold fields. The fact was apparent, that at least, 500_ miles: in travel to Virginia City | could be saved If. practicable route could be found t this” “way. No “white man, unless soldiers, had penetrated northwest of the Missouri © River one hundred miles—or fifty miles west of the mouth of the Niobrara River, but if the Platt Valley was practicable for travel there was no reason to think but that the Niobrara Valley would > afford as good a route.

There were no commercial clubs or organizations in those days to take up such a project but the few men, who used to gather of an evening in the office of T. J. Stone on lower Pearl Street talked and planned of how to bring about the desired object.

The Hon. A. W. Hubbard, then member of congress from this district, was a conspicuous figure in this group of men.

All realized that without congressional aid Sioux City was not able to send out an expedition to find a route across the plains, and these deliberations resulted in the efforts put forth by Mr. Hubbard to secure an appropriation from congress for this purpose. »? ” Or ‘

pak have been unable to get much of the proceedings of OS al! o A felative to this matter, although I was promisea, and had hoped to en ade

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; get copies of the congressional action concerning the “Niobrara- ViPw \ ginia City Wagon route” appropriation. ° \ a

In December 1864 a bill was introduced in the House, (by whom I do not know) entitled “A Bill for the establishing of an Overland Emigrant trail from the Missouri River to the States and Territories on the Pacific.”

It was read the first and second times and referred to the Military committee.

This bill called for $15,000.00 from Sioux City up the Niobrara Valley and $15,000.00 for the Omaha route via the Elkhorn Valley to form a junction with the Sioux City Route in the Niobrara Valley.

In the proceedings of the House, Jan. 5, 1865, Mr. Hubbard, by unanimous consent, introduced a bill to provide for ‘the construction of a wagon road from the Missouri River to Virginia City, Montana” which was read first and second times and referred to the committee on “Roads and Canals.”

In the Sioux City Journal of Jan. 21, 1865, there was an editorial setting forth the importance of such a measure and what it would mean not only to Sioux City, but to this part of the northwest, and also its national importance.

On Feb. 9, 1865, the committee on Roads and Canals reported on Mr. Hubbard’s Bill and it was ordered printed and recommitted. General Todd of Dakota, Mr. Donelly of Minnesota and the delegates from Idaho and Montana with Mr. Hubbard labored in its behalf.

The Bill seems now to have been made to read “For construction of Wagon Roads in the Territories of Idaho, Montana, Dakota, and Nebraska.

“Hirst: Wagon Road Niobrara, the mouth of Turtle River.”

“Second: From a point near mouth of Big Sioux River, via Yankton to a point near the Big Cheyenne River.”

“Third: From a point on the Western boundary of Minnesota to a point near the Big Cheyenne.”

“Mourth: Virginia City, Montana to Lewiston, Idaho.”

In all the Bill called for an appropriation of $140,000.00, of which f $50,000.00 was for the road from Virginia City to Lewiston, Idaho.

Fifty thousand dollars for the Niobrara Road and branch to Omaha.

Twenty thousand dollars for the road Big Cheyenne to intersect with the Niobrara Road.

Ten thousand dollars for the construction of a bridge over the — Big Sioux River and the balance, if any, or any unappropriated money © for improving the road from Sioux City to the Big Cheyenne.

(Taking out the Virginia City to Lewiston and the Big Sioux bridge appropriations we see that there was about $80,000.00_ that 4 could ‘be used on the Sioux City and Virginia City road.) 4

Whether any one of these appropriations was ever expended on tay! road except the Niobrara route I have not been able to find out. “Yn the Sioux City Journal of April 15, , 1865 appeared the follow- |

= ne ing notice:

“The undersigned having been appointed under the late act of j congress superintendent of the establishing of the wagon and emi- 4 grant road to Idaho via the Niobrara Valley gives notice that a freight © and emigrant wagon train with construction teams and hands of the j road with 200 cavalry and a battery of artillery will leave Sioux City ~ in a few days. The escort will afford ample protection and all per- : sons wishing to go by this route must be on hand.” |

(Signed) Col. Jas. A. Sawyer.

In the Journal of April 22 appeared the same notice of the expe- © | dition as a full page advertisement. | Mr. Hubbard in Washington had been exerting himself to pro- © | cure an escort of 200 cavalry, but Colonel Sawyer was given only 4 parts of two companies of Infantry—“Galvanized Yankees’—118 men. | Col. Sawyer then appealed to Brigadier General Sully, command- | ing the department of the northwest, who detailed an additional escort of twenty-five men from Company “B” first Battalion Dakota Cavalry and also furnished Springfield muskets for all of the men in the train. This made bay heioy an escort of 143 men for 80 ‘wagons. — Meanwhile Mr. N. C. Hudson of Sioux City was ‘sent to Washington to arrange for the placing of the funds in Chicago for Colonel Sawyer’s disposal. But before this could be arranged it became necessary for Colonel Sawyer to go to Chicago and then to Washington, which | took time and further delayed him in his preparation. It was not until April 27 that the funds were placed to his credit in Chicago.

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Antagonists had surely been at work from the first to prevent the opening of the Niobrara route. It delayed Colonel Sawyer’s start. It followed his entire journey. An instance of the continuation of this opposition was a report circulated in the fall from Ft. Laramie, (on the Platte Route) that “Colonel Sawyer arrived at Ft Conners in a idestitute condition and reported that Niobrara-Virginia City Wagon Route unpracticable.” The Sioux City Journal of September 23 had an editorial commenting on these malicious reports and another on the 30th telling of a dispatch from Fort Laramie to the Chicago Journal, which stated that Colonel Sawyer’s wagon train which had been missing for nearly a month was safe, with the exception of three men killed by the Indians.

But though enemies of the route were at work all through, they succeeded only in delaying the starting time of this first expedition, and and handicapping the second expedition.

On May 13, the ‘Sioux City Journal ‘announced, ‘““The construction train ef Colonel James A. Sawyer, whose object it is to open a wagon jroad from the mouth of the Niobrara to Virginia City, will start in a |few days. The steamer “J. H. Lacy” passed this place for Niobrara, having on board a company of Infantry who are to act as an escort.”

The next notice which appeared in the Journal relative to the

expedition was, and is, of very little importance perhaps to anyone save myself. That paper stated on the 22nd that “Our young friend Albert M. Holman, formerly of this office (but more recently of Chicago) arrived in town a few days ago for the purpose of accom- | panying Colonel Sawyer’s expedition. Albert carries with him the : best wishes of a host of friends, including the Journal office. May jhe never “get out of sorts,” may he get a “fat take’ and “make up his pile.” : It was the latter part of May when we, who had been gathered | together by Colonel Sawyer here in Sioux City crossed the river with | cattle and wagons and proceeded to Niobrara where the various sup- ‘plies were loaded and the regular organization of the train was made. i Interest of the Omaha and Salt Lake Route, both politically and from a military standpoint were doing their best in opposing the | second expedition of the nye emia yer the eae se route to mw le pvt] HONG ; Met. Lerting, dee - Sia Vi . j Mk B; om ss ; ‘oy ' : 5 Cr ar" fre ce b ? qs ee Puy ES : Bh. fith

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Through the courtesy of Miss Kate Hubbard, of Sioux City, daughter of Hon. A. W. Hubbard, I have been permitted to look over some of the letters which Miss Hubbard finds among her father’s } correspondence. These letters pertain to the second expedition of Col. Sawyer, in 1866. ag —q

“Sioux City, May 17, 1866.

Friend Hubbard.

Yours of the 12th was received today. .. .. ..

General Sherman arrived here yesterday just after dinner and left for Fort Ridgley today, afternoon. He held a reception here today—we have rather enjoyed his visit, although we have been unable. to convince him that he should give Sawyer an escort. He says | Sawyer can go through with perfect safety if he has seventy men with him. Headquarters is removed to Sully and the stores will all be removed in a month or two. General Sherman thinks it unnecessary to have a Post here. I regret this move, but I suppose it cannot be remedied. It is unfortunate that the headquarters of this department are at Omaha—as the aim will be to wipe out everything that interferes with Omaha or its interests—the Missouri river ought to be independent of Omaha—that is, that part of it above here.

Truly yours, N. C. Hudson.”

This letter to Mr. Hubbard, from Major General Sherman, plainly shows his strong feeling against the Niobrara route, especially. Quoting his letter entire.

“Headquarter Military Division of the Mississippi. . Saint Louis, May 1, 1866. |

Hon. A. W. Hubbard,

M. C. of Iowa, Washington, D. C.

Dear Sir:

Yours of April 27 is just received and I have nothing at all from Mr. Currier of Sioux City, and assure you that I have not been in-— fluenced one iota by any cause other than purely military reasons in ~ distributing the very limited force you and others in congress have given us to continue the western routes of emigration. The Platte 4 route is established and much expense already incurred thereon. . The | Missouri river is a natural route, and on it are some fifty boats. ;

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These two western roads are already determined. The only open question is an intermediate route. General Pope influenced by expe- | ditions made for the last forty years gives preference to that by the | Big Cheyenne and I have ratified his choice. It has been made public | and emigrants have made their arrangements. So no matter what

| the influence east of the initial points, we must for this year adhere

} to that choice. The Niobrara route is too close to the Platte to be

| adopted until Iowa is boiling over with people who are forced out on | the plains.

| I start tomorrow for Fort Riley and Fort Kearney and will travel | north to Minnesota and Lake Superior, crossing every western line of emigration and will see for myself. After which I think I can better understand the influences brought to bear on congress by these | roads.

I again assure you that I cannot seem even to have heard from | Mr. Currier of Sioux City by letter or otherwise, certainly nothing to | your detriment.

I am with respect,

Your Servant,

W. T. Sherman, Maj. Gen.”

RSPB IE IRC

| way home from the. first expedition :

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“Salt Lake City, U. T., Nov. 10th, 1865.

| Hon. A. W. Hubbard. | Dear Sir:

| I arrived at this place a few days ago. .. .. .. I met Col. McClain, | M. C. from Montana, he was glad to see me and very much pleased | when I told him what I had done. I told him that I had brought | over 36 wagons coupled together, made the road all the way good : enough so that we did not have to uncouple them once all the way ! to pass over bad places. I took him to look at the wagons, he said “he was sunprised to see them look so well after being drawn over

1,000 miles of new road, he said it was a thing never done before, | taking a heavily loaded train over a new road so far. .. .. .

| _ The fact is, Judge, I feel more interest in the road today than | ever. If possible I find so much opposition to it. I had a long talk today with General Conner about the road. He was much pleased with pty gee

The following letter from Col. Sawyer, from. Salt Lake, on his | Aes eens RENEE RIT ER OH BIE ali I told him of the road from Ft. Conner to Virginia City, but when I would talk of Running Water, White Earth River and the Cheyenne country he said it would be impossible to get a road through that eountry. I told him I had already made it and had drawn a heavy freight train over it. “Well,” he said it was too sandy. Every one on this line will do all they can against the road. Would to God I had an escort so that I could have returned over the road and finished the whole thing up. I could have done so and not spent all the ap-- propriation either, if I had the soldiers. In going to Virginia City from Sioux City I traveled 1,112 miles, 1,022 from Niobrara and 90 to ‘Niobrara. In going home I will travel 1,820, 410 miles from this place to Virginia City, 1,300 to Omaha, from Omaha to Sioux City 110 miles, “making 708 miles farther this way than the way I came. These are facts and cannot be denied. That is what gets the hounds. Then the advantages on the Niobrara route for grass, wood and water, are far superior to this route, but the interested parties on this line are rich and will make a strong fight. Ben Holaday is the head of the concern. He charges for stage fare alone from Virginia City to Omaha, $375 and two dollars per pound for all your baggage over 25 pounds. A stage company could coin money on the Niobrara route at one-third of that price. .. .. ..

Respectfully yours, James A. Sawyer.”

Chapter II The Sawyer Expedition

‘Organization,

) The train was made up of 15 wagons each with three yoke _ of oxen, 18 trail or double wagons drawn by six yoke of oxen, fiy, ye ons, a twenty-six” ‘Tulé wagons ; belonging | to the escort. As to this escort we may as well have had none. There “was tant friction ‘between the officer, _Captain _Winiford, commanding

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‘the soldie ers_and Colonel. ‘Sawyer ‘commander of the entire. “expedition all the way through to Fort Conners where the escort left us. So marked was this friction that the escort made and broke camp when and where they wished and we men in the train hardly realized that we had an escort for protection, as we did our own guard duty.

We Jeft Niobrara _ June 13, 1865 with our cattle train in two di- Peas.” Newell ‘Sawyer, Scirathor not of Colonel Sawyer, and Jas. Harding, wagon masters, each of a division. There was a cook and a mess “wagon to about every twelve men.

lodge,.was engineer of the expedition.

A. M. Tingley, (brother of Rev. Wm. Tingley, then pastor of the Congregational church in Sioux City) was surgeon, geologist, and botanist. Chas. Sears of Onawa was secretary to Colonel Sawyer. Ben F. Estes, a squaw man, who had been a guide and interpreter to General Warren in his 1856 expedition on the plains was guide, and Baptiste De Fond, a Yankton Sioux, was assistant guide.

Samuel H. Cassidy, then one of Sioux City’s leading men, politically and financially, was with the expedition as an emigrant, accompanying him was a Mr. Edwards (a brother- in-law of Mr. John Lewis of Sioux City.) A Mr. Merrill of Waterloo was also an emigrant and

was killed by the Indians on Tongue river. Other men I now recall were C. L. Lee, a gunsmith in the early days on Pearl street, Joe Stager, a stage driver, and a gunman named McCurdy, a young man, pe Oise

Jas. Dilleland, who was also killed on Tongue river. Wm. Frazier, of Dakota City, two Edwards boys of Elk Point, a young man named Churchill from Monona County, B. F. Morgan, now of Minneapolis, and one Jefferson, from Wisconsin.

These men were all teamsters as was I. Our wages were the setae eral Besa same right through, whether we drove six yoke of oxen Say, three— $40.00 per.month.

There was some surprise later on at Virginia City, where we were paid off, to find that teamsters were classified as belonging to the engineering corps, pioneer corps, or bridge builders and some of them at first refused to sign, as having served in these various government corps. There was no difference between the interests of the government as represented by Colonel Sawyer and the Hedges Brothers, so far as we know. A very important part of the expedition was the $20,000.00 stock of goods which the Hedges were sending out to Virginia City, where they wished to open a branch house in charge of Nat., the youngest of the three Hedges brothers.

Many who were acquainted with Charley and Dan. Hedges, their characters, and their business ability, never knew the boy Nat whom they intrusted with so much responsibility. He was nineteen at the time of this expedition and just came from school in St. Louis.

His mind was remarkable and that his wisdom was far beyond his years was proven to the men on that trip many times, for, as risks were encountered and as discontent with the command grew, this young man quietly guided affairs without assuming to do s0, and without raising any conflict with the command, but the men saw this and placed great reliance on him.

He shouldered responsibility and we knew that he felt that much of the success of this expedition rested on his shoulders. It was this shouldering of responsibility that made him break his vow and leave the train to look for water, whereby he lost his life.

The expedition was nearly | five months on the road reaching Virginia City October 12, 1865, having traveled 1,089 “miles from

— fanaa en

‘Niobrara “py Odometer | measure.

It was a long tedious journey frought with many mishaps and many unpleasant incidents.

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We suffered in the sand hills for want of water. We found places we could not cross and went around. We went down hills where it was necessary to hitch cattle behind the wagons to hold back. We found that, if three or six yoke of cattle could not pull over or out of seemingly impossible places ten or twelve yoke could. We were corralled by Indians about twenty-five days in all, and six of our men were killed.

That the country generally, through which we passed was well adapted for an overland wagon road was demonstrated then and has since been proven by the settling up of most of that region.

But the building of the Union Pacific railroad immediately following the efforts of the expedition made wagon routes unnecessary and after the second expedition in 1866 no wagon train ever traveled this route to Montana. (On this second expedition Colonel Sawyer took up the remains of Nat Hedges and sent them to the eastern part of this state for interment.)

CHAPTER III ue ce

We were mostly young inexperienced men, who had never before even placed a yoke on a team of oxen, but who, fired by the idea of — reaching the gold fields of Idaho, were determined to endure the ~ hardships of the trip, in spite of fears of fathers and mothers.

For several years there had been a large emigration to Idaho, — with Omaha as a starting point. Everyone was talking of the gold : fields. Gold, gold, everywhere it seemed to us lads, if only we could q reach Idaho! And now came the chance!

The people of Sioux City had been wishing to open a shorter 3 route from the Missouri river to Virginia City, and believing that they 3 could make the distance 500 miles less than what was known as the ©

Overland Route to California, which followed the entire length of the

Platte river from Omaha west to Salt Lake, had secured through the efforts of Hon. A. W. Hubbard, representing northwestern Iowa, an appropriation from congress to open a wagon or emigrant road from the mouth of the Niobrara river, in Nebraska, to Virginia City, which was then in 1865 a city in Idaho. The projectors hoped to make Sioux City the commercial center for supplying and outfitting emigrants for

».. this route, just as Omaha was the base of supplies for the Platte route.

Col. James A. Sawyer of Sioux City was appointed by the government to locate and open this “Niobrara and Virginia City Wagon Route” and as he must have drivers and helpers of all kinds, we boys at last saw our opportunity to reach the gold fields.

It was the later part of May, 1865, when Col. Sawyer, with his train, crossed the Missouri river at Sioux City and proceeded to Niobrara, where final details of the expedition were made ready. ‘The government furnished us an escort of parts of two companies of ee ee ET Re ee ee Wag oe, aT beeen ed

Si eet SA ell angie kU rg ee Be infantry, paroled rebel soldiers, known as “Galvanized Yankees,”— and a detachment of twenty-five soldiers of Dakota cavalry with a six- SON Gy) be pound brass Howitzer, which made the path to the gold fields appear very easy to a courageous youth, whose only experience with the Indians had been in Iowa, which was then thickly enough settled to make the dangers comparatively small. But our safety not only depended upon the soldiers and guns, but upon two guides, whom Col. Sawyer had engaged to pilot us through this country, which had never been traversed by white meh,’ _One of the guides was a full-blooded Yankton Sioux Indian, the de his brother-in-law, was a “Squaw man.” While those two men proved suffiently familiar with the country to have guided a rapidly moving body of men, yet we found their knowledge of distance vague, and the distance to be traveled each day in order to camp near water, was a pony’s ride, which might mean anywhere from ten to fifty miles.

Leaving Niobrara, we followed closely the South bank of the Running water™ In a few days we had all settled down to the various duties assigned each man, and were progressing slowly but surely with our oxen and their laden wagons.

On reaching Long Pine Rive was found necessary to gO Up the river on the East side, possibly twenty miles, in order to find a place where the banks would admit of crossing. We camped on the west bank July lst for that night, and the next day we broke camp and proceeded due west, hoping to be able to camp on the Running Water that night, but every mile took us deeper into the sand hills and the sun of a July day pouring its hot rays upon the burning sand, glistened so that we were nearly blinded. By afternoon it was impossible to go but a few rods at a time, it being necessary to stop often and let the cattle ‘breathe and rest, for the poor creatures were prostrated and were suffering so for want of water that their tongues protruded from their mouths, and several of them died. The men too, were nearly prostrated from the heat, and in fact, some of them were so nearly overcome that they had to be placed in the wagons.

Scarcely any progress had been made during the whole afternoon, and after waiting for the sun to decline, so that we might move in the cool of the evening, we hitched from twelve to fifteen yoke of cattle to a wagon, and turned due north, reaching the bank of the Running Water about ten o’clock that night.

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It had been necessary to leave half of the wagons behind, as they were lodged in sand up to the hubs, so it was necessary to go back for them the next day. After much difficulty we succeeded in pulling them out to camp. The next day was the Fourth of July and we celebrated it, not only as the great National holiday but as a day of deliverance from the sand hills.

Continuing our travels, we crossed the Running Water about three hundred and twenty-five miles from its mo , and. thence bearing northwesterly, crossed the White River and He Creek. The Black Hills, looming up in the distance, grew more distinct day by day. Finally we reached and camped on what was known as “Old Woman’s Fork, a river emptying into the Chyenne, at the southern extremity of the Black Hills.

By this time, the soldiers accompanying us had become nearly barefoot and the officers insisted that they could travel no further without shoes. For this reason a detachment of twenty soldiers was ordered to go to Fort Larime, which was about one hundred miles south of us, for a supply of shoes. Ten days’ time was alloted them to make the trip and our train was to await their return at this camp. While waiting, hunting, fishing and even prospecting for gold in the foot hills were indulged in ‘by our party.