By Mike Bowen, co-author, We Found the Lost Sand Creek Site
A man who claimed to be Elbridge Gerry, the grandson of the signer of the Declaration of Independence, of the same name, did something quite remarkable in the summer of 1864.
Irving Howbert, a soldier at Sand Creek, wrote about Gerry in his book, Memories of a Lifetime in the Pike’s Peak Region. Howbert was aware of the countless attacks on wagon trains, the killing and scalping of white settlers, driving off of stock, and taking white captives by Cheyenne and Arapaho Indians, all reasons Howbert enlisted to fight with the Third Colorado Cavalry.
If you missed our blog on the Minnesota Massacre, check it out here: MinnesotaMassacre. That massacre was a catalyst to Sand Creek. It’s important to understand that Sand Creek was not a starting point. General Curtis ordered Sand Creek due to the many pleas for help from Colorado Territory Governor John Evans. Colonel Chivington was simply following orders from his general.
The citizens of Colorado Territory were left fearful a repeat of the Minnesota Massacre would happen to them.
An attack on citizens in Colorado Territory was planned for August of 1864. Colorado Territorial Governor, John Evans, learned about it and informed a man named Elbridge Gerry, a trusted source, so he could send warning to the citizens.
A messenger arrived at Colorado City, who had been sent by Governor Evans to warn the people of an impending attack by the Cheyennes and Arapahoes upon all settlements along the eastern frontier of Colorado. It appeared that the Governor had received information from Elbridge Gerry, one of his secret agents, that eight hundred hostile Cheyenne and Arapahoe warriors in camp at the Point of Rocks, near the head of Beaver Creek in eastern Colorado, had planned a simultaneous attack upon all the frontier settlements of Colorado from a point in the valley of the Platte River, one hundred miles north of Denver, to the Arkansas River at the mouth of the Fontaine-qui-Bouille. According to the program agreed upon by the Indians, one hundred warriors were to go to the valley of the Platte, two hundred and forty to the head of Cherry Creek, and the remainder of the eight hundred to the valleys of the Fountain and Arkansas Rivers. Upon reaching the appointed localities, these parties were to be divided into small bands, each one of which was to attack a farmhouse, kill its occupants, loot the property and run off stock.
Elbridge Gerry, from whom the information of this proposed raid was received, was the grandson of the signer of the Declaration of Independence, and although an educated man, had lived with the Indians for a good many years and married a Cheyenne woman. At this time he was living with his Indian wife on a stock ranch in the valley of the Platte River, sixty to seventy miles below Denver. It was here that the information reached him through two Cheyenne chiefs, who came to warn him of the impending danger. Gerry received the word about midnight and early the next morning started on horseback for Denver to notify Governor Evans, arriving there about eleven o’clock that night, having ridden the sixty or seventy miles without resting.
The following day, small bands of Indians appeared along the whole eastern frontier of El Paso County, but their raid was a failure, as the warning given through the occurrence on Monument Creek, and that sent by the Governor, had put every one on guard. Consequently, the savages found that the settlers at every point either had fled, or were ready to defend themselves. That the information given by Gerry was absolutely correct was shown by the fact that the Indians appeared at the appointed time along the entire frontier of Colorado, from the Platte to the Arkansas River (Howbert, Irving, Memories of a Lifetime In the Pike’s Peak Region, page 110-112).
Governor Evans spoke before the Committee on the Conduct of the War, in March of 1865, and he expressed that if the plan of the Indians had been carried out without previous notice, “it would have resulted in the most wholesale and extensive massacre that ever has occurred in this country” (Howbert, Irving, Memories of a Lifetime In the Pike’s Peak Region, page 114).
The failed raid didn’t deter the Indians—they continued to steal stock, destroy property, and threaten the lives of settlers during the summer of 1864, months before Sand Creek.
We’re constantly told the Cheyenne and Arapaho were peaceful. A planned attack like that shows otherwise.
It’s unclear if the Elbridge Gerry that Howbert wrote about was the grandson of the signer of the Declaration of Independence.
“According to ancestry records, Gerry’s grandson was born July 6, 1818, in Maine. He enlisted as a Private in the 8th Maine infantry on September 7, 1861, promoted to Corporal in 1865. He died of an illness on November 17, 1865, in Virginia, at the age of forty-seven. According to the timeline, it couldn’t have been the same person. The man claiming to be Gerry in Colorado couldn’t also be fighting in the 8th Maine infantry back East. Was the guy in Colorado using an alias, and if so, why? We’ll probably never know” (We Found the Lost Sand Creek Site).
Whatever the case is with the man’s real identify, what he did saved many lives and also likely significantly changed the future of the state. He is known as the Paul Revere of Colorado. If he had not warned the citizens, the events at Sand Creek would have likely happened sooner and somewhere else in the territory. It’s likely he used the alias to improve his chances of having a better and new life.
Planned attacks like that of the Cheyenne and Arapaho, the Hungate murders, along with many other settlers that were killed, scalped, or taken captive, led to Governor Evans seeking help.
Multiple requests were made by the Governor of Colorado Territory to call the attention of the “General Government to the helpless condition of our settlements, and asked that government troops be sent to protect them from the raids of the Indians; but at this time the entire military force of the nation was employed in suppressing the Rebellion, and little aid could be given (Howbert, Irving, The Indians of the Pikes Peak Region page 93).
After these many appeals, the Governor was allowed to organize a new regiment with a term of service to be 100 days known as the Colorado 3rd Cavalry (Howbert, Irving, The Indians of the Pikes Peak Region page 94). At 18 years of age, Irving Howbert from El Paso County joined and fought at Sand Creek under the command of Colonel John Chivington.
Soldier accounts, like Irving Howbert’s, are often dismissed because many don’t like what they say. However, Howbert and many other Sand Creek veterans were well respected leaders in their communities. Howbert was one of the founding fathers of Colorado Springs. He was well accomplished and a pillar in his community. See more about Irving Howbert in chapter six of our book, We Found the Lost Sand Creek Site.
When people learn that what they’ve long believed to be the truth is a lie, their response is generally anger.
We don’t have a dog in this fight. We’re just about telling the truth based on the artifacts that were found at the Lost Sand Creek Site on the Bowen family ranch. All of the artifacts Chuck and Sheri Bowen found started about two miles up the creek from the bluff at the National Park Service Sand Creek site. The village artifacts were found scattered for several miles, which shows the Indians weren’t camped in a small clustered area. George Bent said the Indian camps were 2-3 miles long. There are a few reasons for this: the Indians camped close to water sources. Sand Creek was known as Dry Creek by the Cheyenne, according to Bent. There would have been small scattered pools of water along the creek, all fed by underground aquifers. The Indians also often tethered their horse next to their tipi. Both of those reasons would require extra space between tipis, and a village of over 100 tipis could easily stretch for 2-3 miles.
The artifacts also reveal many running battle areas. It’s hard to believe, based on where artifacts were found, and what was found, it was a village of defenseless women, children and elderly. There was over 70 soldier casualties at Sand Creek. Was that from elderly or little kids? Doubtful. In reality, there was a significant battle.
We need to get back to using critical thinking instead of emotion.
The Bowens discovered multiple tipi sites which shows where much of Black Kettle’s village was located. There was very little fighting in the village. Most of the bullets and other battle artifacts were found up the creek from the village site. The Indians saw the soldiers from miles away and began to flee the village. See chapter four of our book.
Oral history tells us the Dog Soldiers (warriors) were all off hunting. George Bent didn’t mention any Dog Soldiers off hunting in his letters to historians. Chuck has over 400 pages of Bent’s letters in his archives. Bent mentions Dog Soldiers that were in the camp, including himself, his brother and Little Bear. The artifacts also don’t line up with the oral history account. Bullets and arrowheads found at the Lost Sand Creek Site show there was fighting between soldiers and Dog Soldiers. Robert McFarland, a soldier with the Third Colorado Cavalry, was killed by a Dog Soldier. It would be nearly impossible for that to happen if the village was women, children and elderly.
The massacre story isn’t verified—it’s just been told through oral history for nearly 160 years. That story has also changed over the years. See our blog about how many Indians were killed at Sand Creek here: SandCreekIndianDeaths The running battle account by Irving Howbert and other soldiers is verified by over 4,000 battle and village artifacts.
As a Christian, I believe the words of Jesus—He said to let your yes be yes and your no be no (Matthew 5:37). In other words, be honest, tell the truth.
We’re often told there’s two sides to a story. When it comes to Sand Creek, there’s also the artifacts. The artifacts do not lie—they are truly objective.
The artifacts bring the clarity needed to give us a better understanding of what happened on November 29, 1864 at Sand Creek.
No bullets, no battlefield. No village artifacts, no village.
Many have looked back on that date in history with horror, due to a false story. The massacre story was initially used as a political weapon to destroy Colonel Chivington. Chivington’s enemies, Lt. Col. Sam Tappan and John Smith both had motive. See JohnSmithblog. The false massacre story is now being used to destroy patriotism. NPS Sand Creek site visitors are supposed to leave feeling ashamed of their white American ancestors. It’s not just the NPS site, but also any Sand Creek exhibit that portrays the massacre story.
This isn’t simply about a love for history, but about honesty and truth.
Truth matters. Truth wins.
Read the truth in We Found the Lost Sand Creek Site.
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