MINNESOTA. 



587 



proportion 01 these settlers were Germans, es- 

 pecially in Brown and the adjacent counties ; 

 a considerable number were Norwegians, and 

 the remainder generally of* American birth. 

 Most of them had purchased considerable 

 farms, and they had built up small but thriving 

 villages throughout the tier of western coun- 

 ties. They were on terms of friendship with 

 the Indians, and had no apprehension of any 

 treachery from them. 



Though an insurrection had been deliberately 

 planned, there is reason to believe that the mas- 

 sacre was precipitated somewhat sooner than 

 was at first intended. On the 17th of August, 4 

 drunken Indians, belonging to Little Crow's 

 band of Sioux, roaming through the country and 

 becoming intoxicated on whiskey obtained from 

 a white man, had a violent altercation with each 

 other as to which of them was the bravest, 

 and finally determined that the test of their 

 bravery should be the killing of a white man. 

 After committing several murders, and be- 

 coming somewhat sober, they fled to their vil- 

 lage (Red "Wood), and told their chief, Little 

 Crow, who was one of the conspirators, what 

 they had done. He, expecting retaliation for 

 this outrage, at once determined upon com- 

 mencing the intended attack, and on the morn- 

 ing of the 18th, with a force of 250 or 300 In- 

 dians, proceeded to the agency at Yellow Med- 

 icine and engaged in an indiscriminate slaugh- 

 ter of all the whites he could find there. Mr. 

 Galbraith, the agent, was absent, having left 

 home three days before, but his family were 

 among the victims of this murderous assault. 

 A force of 45 soldiers, sent up from Fort Ridg- 

 ley at the first rumor of disturbance, were at- 

 tacked by the Indians in ambush, and half their 

 number slain. The marauders, flushed with 

 success, pressed on with their work of death, 

 murdering, with the most atrocious brutalities, 

 the settlers in their isolated farmhouses, violat- 

 ing and then killing women, beating out the 

 brains of infants or nailing them to the doors 

 of houses, and practising every species of atro- 

 city which their fiendish natures prompted. On 

 the 21st of August, they had attacked Xew 

 Ulm, a flourishing German settlement, the cap- 

 ital of Brown county, with a large force, had 

 beleaguered Fort Ridgley. and were advancing 

 upon other settlements. The only Indians en- 

 gaged in these outrages were Sioux, and that 

 portion of them under the special command of 

 Little Crow. The Chippewas, the inveterate 

 enemies of the Sioux, who had also a reserva- 

 tion in Minnesota, were uneasy, and assumed a 

 threatening attitude. They alleged gross frauds 

 on the part of their agent, who escaped from 

 the reservation and committed suicide ; but 

 they took no part in the Sioux massacres, and, 

 indeed, a few weeks later, offered to raise a 

 force of their warriors to fight the Sioux, an 

 offer which the Government did not think it 

 wise to accept. On the first intelligence of 

 this insurrection Governor Ramsey sent four 

 companies of the 6th regiment of volunteers 



from Fort Snelling, and, two days later, on 

 fuller information, he sent forward seven com- 

 panies more. Col. (now Gen.) II. II. Sibh-y, 

 who had 30 years' experience among the In- 

 dians on the frontier, was placed in command. 

 Mounted volunteers were also called for by 

 proclamation to join these forces, and large 

 numbers obeyed the call. The 3d Minnesota 

 regiment, then on parole at St. Louis, was also 

 ordered to report at St. Paul, and arrived there 

 on the 4th of September. 



On the 23d of August New Ulm was at- 

 tacked by the Indians, who were repulsed after 

 a severe battle by a body of the citizens under 

 Judge Flandrau ; but remained in the vicinity, 

 intending to renew the assault. The next day, 

 a detachment of Col. Sibley's troops relieved 

 them from siege, and scattered the marauders ; 

 but as 2,000 women and children, who had fled 

 in terror from the surrounding region, had tak- 

 en refuge there, it was deemed best to evacu- 

 ate the place, in order to convey them to a 

 place of permanent safety. Fort Ridgley had 

 been besieged for 9 days, and its little garrison 

 had sustained and repelled three desperate at- 

 tacks ; they were relieved on the 26th by a 

 force under the command of Lieut.-Col. Mc- 

 Phail, sent forward by Col. Sibley. Finding a 

 large force concentrating on their trail in this 

 direction, the greater part of the Indians pro- 

 ceeded northward, burning and killing every- 

 thing in their way, toward Breckenridge, a 

 town at the junction of the Bois des Sioux and 

 Red River of the North, which at that point 

 formed the west boundary of the State, massa- 

 cred the settlers there, and crossing the river, 

 laid siege to Fort Abercrombie in Dakota Ter- 

 ritory. Intelligence of these movements hav- 

 ing reached St. Paul on the 27th. two compa- 

 nies were forwarded at once to reenforce Fort 

 Abercrombie. On the 3d of September a force 

 of 150 Indians unexpectedly appeared at Cedar 

 City, in McLeod co., in the centre of the State, 

 attacked a company of volunteers there, and 

 drove them to Hutchinson, while another band 

 about as numerous attacked Forest City not far 

 distant, and were repulsed by the citizens. A 

 few days later, the Indians attacked Hutchin- 

 son, but were repulsed. Troops were sent at 

 once to these points. Driven back here, the 

 savases next extended their raid to Jackson, 

 Noble, and Pipeston counties, in the S. "W. part 

 of the State on the border of Iowa, and Col. 

 Flandrau. who had so valiantly defended New 

 Ulm, was sent with 500 troops to protect that 

 region. Gov. Ramsey had meantime apprised 

 the United States Government of the condition 

 of affairs, and had called the Legislature of 

 Minnesota together to meet in extra session on 

 the 9th of September. At their assembling, he 

 laid before them, in his message, the circum- 

 stances of the Indian insurrection, and suggest- 

 ed the measures requiring their action, all of 

 which were promptly passed. Meantime the 

 Government had despatched Maj.-Gen. Pope to 

 command in that department, and aid in sup- 



