Battle of Slim Buttes

Battle of Slim Buttes
Part of the Great Sioux War of 1876
"General Crook's headquarters in the field at Whitewood (Dak. Terr.). On starvation march 1876."
Date September 9–10, 1876 Location Great Sioux Reservation (Harding County, South Dakota) Result United States victory
Belligerents
Lakota	United States
Commanders and leaders
American Horse  † Crazy Horse	George Crook
Strength
~600–800	~1,200
Casualties and losses
10 killed unknown wounded 23 captured	3 killed 13 wounded

The Battle of Slim Buttes was fought on September 9–10, 1876, in the

in June.

Following the Little Bighorn debacle,

. The campaign resumed on August 5, and on August 10 the combined force, leaving its wagon train behind to unencumber the pursuit, moved east toward the Black Hills. Bad weather, extreme muddy conditions on the trail, and overtaxed men and animals led to the combined force breaking up on August 18, with Terry's men returning to their bases.

General Crook's force continued the pursuit but soon began running short of supplies. The general ordered his men to go on half rations. Soon, many of the men resorted to eating mule and horseflesh. A column under Captain Anson Mills was dispatched to Deadwood, a Black Hills mining town, to find supplies, and en route stumbled onto the Miniconjou Sioux village of American Horse.

On the evening of September 8, 1876, near the present town of

, and other cavalry had arrived.

Crazy Horse and 600-800 warriors quickly rode 10 miles northward towards American Horse's village, set in a depression among several hills. They reached an overlook, where they saw much larger than expected numbers of well-armed soldiers surrounding the village. From their positions atop the bluffs, the warriors opened fire, causing Crook to immediately form a defensive perimeter around his horses and mules. The general soon ordered the village to be set ablaze. Crook sent forward a line of skirmishers, with four companies of infantry in the lead, followed by dismounted troopers from three cavalry regiments. After a 45-minute steady firefight, the advancing soldiers drove most of the warriors from their hilltop positions. A few Sioux held their ground, even charging the perimeter of the 3rd Cavalry at one point, but were eventually chased away.

The soldiers seized 110 ponies in the village, as well as a supply of dried meat that was divided among Crook's ill and wounded men. Of emotional interest to the cavalrymen, they recovered a number of artifacts of the Battle of Little Bighorn, including a 7th Cavalry

, government-issued guns and ammunition, and other related items.

On September 10, Crook led his famished force away from the smoldering village, headed for the Black Hills and the promised food and supplies. The Sioux kept up a running fight with his troops for the next few days, before Crook finally made it to a supply column on September 15. The fighting at Slim Buttes cost the lives of two cavalrymen and one of Crook's civilian scouts, Charles "Buffalo Chips" White, as well as those of at least 10 Sioux.

Aftermath

The army continued to seek out the remaining Indian encampments. Further significant battles were fought on November 25 with

.

The Slim Buttes battle site is on private land. A nearby monument commemorates the fighting.

Order of battle

Sioux

• American Horse's band of Miniconjou Sioux (37 lodges; perhaps 30-40 warriors)
• Crazy Horse's mixed band of Sans Arcs, Brule, and others (600-800)

U.S. Army

• Department of the Platte - Brig. Gen. George Crook
  • 2nd U.S. Cavalry
    – Troops A, B, D, E, and I
  • 3rd U.S. Cavalry
    – Troops A, B, C, D, E, F, G, I, L, and M: Capt. Anson Mills
  • Eugene A. Carr
  • 4th U.S. Infantry
    – Companies D, F, and G
  • 9th U.S. Infantry
    – Companies C, G, and H
  • 14th U.S. Infantry
    – Companies B, C, F, and I

• History of South Dakota
• Plains Indians Wars

• Werner, Fred H., The Slim Buttes Battle, San Luis Obispo, CA: Werner Publications, 1981.
  ISBN 0-933147-01-5
  .
• National Park Service description of Slim Buttes
• The History Net: The Last Stand of Crazy Horse

45°32′36.3″N 103°07′29.1″W / 45.543417°N 103.124750°W / 45.543417; -103.124750