Did Black Kettle Hold White Captives at Sand Creek?

By Mike Bowen, co-author, We Found the Lost Sand Creek Site

Indians taking captives, killing and scalping white settlers, and running off stock, are among the reasons soldiers were organized to fight at Sand Creek. 

It has been argued over the years that Black Kettle was a peace chief, but what many don’t realize, is that he held white captives in his camps. 

It’s believed he had captives in his camp at Sand Creek. His camp also harbored warriors, known as Dog Soldiers. George Bent was one of them, and most of the quotes in this blog come from him. Our information comes directly from letters he wrote to historians. George was the son of William Bent who built Bent’s Fort. 

The Indians didn’t always take captives, they sometimes killed white women and young children. 

Early in the engagement at Sand Creek, Jim Dubois a soldier of company D, ended up on foot after his horse gave out. He saw what we believe were captives being taken out of the camp. 

“During the night’s march to Sand Creek, the horse of Jim Dubois of company D gave out, and he was left afoot and alone miles in the rear, not by any means a desirable situation… When Jim had led his horse until he would move no further, he stripped him and turned him loose. Then taking all his ammunition, and a little grub, he took the trail and exerted himself to the utmost to overtake the command. In this he entirely failed. At daybreak he was still on the open plain with no one else in sight. Soon after sunrise he heard the boom of the artillery, and firing of guns, and knew the battle had opened. 

…within two or three miles of the battle ground, he saw a large party of Indians a mile or so to the west, and as they approached he was enabled to count them two or three times, and made out seventy-five in number; there being nine horses carrying two Indians each,” Morse Coffin said (The Battle of Sand Creek). 

As Dubois looked to the west, the Indians were heading away from the village to the south, down the creek, the same direction the soldiers just came from. The rest of the Indians fleeing the village were heading up the creek. Why were these Indians he counted heading in a different direction? 

It’s possible the second person on each horse was a captive. This is how Indians moved them. It was early in the morning, just at sunrise, when it’s fairly dark. It would have been difficult to discern whether it was an Indian or white captive. If captives, they may have been dressed in Indian clothes. It’s possible it was an effort to thwart the attack. 

From our book: 

“I found artifacts that suggest there were captives, including buttons from a woman’s dress on the west side of the creek by the lodgepole trail. The dress could have been taken during a raid on a wagon train or from an attack on settlers such as the Hungate family. I also found a lady’s ring with a red setting. It’s a haunting thought, but perhaps it belonged to Ellen Hungate or a captive” Chuck Bowen, We Found the Lost Sand Creek Site.

George Bent wrote about a few captives, Mary Fletcher and Fanny Kelly. 

“Mary Fletcher and Mrs. Fannie Kelley (Fanny Kelly), who wrote book. I do not know the name of it but I have seen it. For some time Mrs Fannie Kelley work at Patent Office as clerk. I heard Indians speaking of her when Little Robe and Stone Calf went to Washington. She was captured by Siouxs. Mary Fletcher was captured by Southern Cheyennes and returned to Maj. Wynkoop at Fort Larnerd Kas in spring of 1866” (Bent to Hyde, 5-3-1905).

Fanny Kelly’s book was titled, Narrative of My Captivity Among the Sioux Indians. As a captive, she was passed around a few different camps. At one time, she was with Sioux Indians that were part of the Minnesota Massacre. She was separated from her husband, her daughter was killed, and she witnessed gruesome atrocities. There will be more detailed information in a future blog. 

“Cheyennes and Spotted Tail’s band of Siouxs were camped on Solomon River in summer of 1864 and had big council. I was at this council and they got me to write letter to agent at Fort Lyon, saying in this letter that they wanted to make peace and return two white women that had as prisoners. This letter was taken to the agent to Fort Lyon by two Cheyennes, One Eye and Minimick, both headmen” (Bent to Hyde, 3-15-1905). 

When Indians claimed to request talks of peace, they would offer to return white captives. It was established months before Sand Creek that the window for any peace talks had closed due to the actions of the Indians in the spring and summer of 1864.    

George Bent wrote to historian George Hyde that when whites were captured, they were shown off in the camp.

“Scalps were given to men that were head of the war-party. When these head men of the war-party got near the village, they tied the scalps on to pole and run into the circles of the village and fire off their guns. If they had any prisoners they took them behind them on horseback to show the people that they captured prisoners” (Bent to Hyde,  4-17-1905). 

That is also an example of how Indians moved captives. The captive was placed behind the Indian on the horse. 

In early 1865, three hearings were held concerning Sand Creek. One of the soldiers that testified was B. N. Forbes, Company D, First Colorado Cavalry. 

“I was with that expedition,” with Major Wynkoop to recover some white prisoners. “It was about the middle of September, 1864,” Forbes said.

“They were pretty saucy for friendly Indians. A few that could talk English used pretty hard words…they would say, ‘Damn you.’” They were armed. They had their bows strung and arrows in their hands. “Lieutenant Hardin went to Black Kettle and got him to talk to the Indians; they dispersed. They then commenced saddling up their ponies and striking off, after setting fire to the grass to the windward of the camp” (Report on the Conduct of the War, 38 Congress, 2nd session, Washington, Government Printing Office, 1865).

Simeon Whiteley, Indian agent, made a report of the proceedings at Camp Weld  two months prior to Sand Creek. Governor Evans made it clear that it was past the point of making peace. 

“…Black Kettle then said…there are two women and one child yet in our camp…Laura Roper, aged sixteen or seventeen years; Ambrose Asher, aged seven or eight years; Daniel Marble, aged seven or eight years; Isabel Ubanks, aged four or five years. The prisoners still with us, are Mrs. Ubanks and babe; and a Mrs. Morton, who was taken on the Platte. Mrs. Snyder is the name of the woman who hung herself,” Whiteley testified (Report on the Conduct of the War, 38 Congress, 2nd session, Washington, Government Printing Office, 1865).  

Governor Evans replied: “you have gone into an alliance with the Sioux who were at war with us; you have done a great deal of damage, have stolen stock—your people went away and smoked the ‘war pipe’ with our enemies.”

“So far as making a treaty now is concerned, we are in no condition to do it; your young men are on the war path, my soldiers are preparing for the fight. The time when you can make war best is in the summer time; the time when I can make war best is in the winter. I have learned that you understand that as the whites are at war among themselves, you think you can now drive the whites from this country, but this reliance is false. The Great Father at Washington has men enough to drive all the Indians off the plains, and whip the rebels at the same time. Now, the war with the whites is nearly through, and the Great Father will not know what to do with all his soldiers, except to send them after the Indians on the plains” (Report on the Conduct of the War, 38 Congress, 2nd session, Washington, Government Printing Office, 1865).

“…these attacks during the summer,…were of very frequent occurrence. The destruction of property was very great. Our people suffered…in their loss of life. They murdered a family (Hungate family) some twenty-odd miles east of Denver. The attacks by hostile Indians…were very numerous along the Platte. There was an attack as I came in, about the month of November. It was in the evening, about sundown, and I passed over the ground in the night in the stage with my family, and a few days afterwards a party of emigrants, returning from Colorado, were murdered near the same ground…near Plum Creek; and for a considerable length of time…the attacks were very numerous and very violent,” C.T. Governor John Evans, Superintendent of Indian affairs (Report on the Conduct of the War, 38 Congress, 2nd session, Washington, Government Printing Office, 1865). 

In the summer of 1864, Bent saw scalp dances in the center of each village he rode past on his way to one of the largest Indian villages of Cheyenne, Sioux, and Arapaho on the Solomon River (Bent to Hyde, 2-28-1906). “Dog Soldiers were in fact outlaws. Their young men were always in mischief,” Bent said (Bent to Hyde, 6-20-1904). They made raids from the South Platte River to the Little Blue River, and the Dog Soldiers were coming in from all directions bringing in lots of plunder (Bent to Hyde, 2-28-1906). Interestingly, Bent used the word mischief to describe the activities of the Dog Soldiers. He also said that tornadoes caused mischief to towns (Bent to Hyde, 7-?-1908). Due to his limited vocabulary, Bent at times used the wrong word or a not strong enough word. 

Sometimes the white settlers were killed. 

“Cheyennes made good many raids towards Denver,” (Bent to Hyde, 5-3-1905). It is unknown if Bent participated in the Hungate massacre but likely included some Cheyenne and Arapaho. The summer before Sand Creek, about the time the Hungate family was murdered, the Arapaho were raiding in the Denver area (Bent to Hyde, 2-28-1906). The two Hungate children slaughtered by the Indians were  2 ½  years old and 6 months old. 

The Hungate headstone at Fairmount Cemetery in Denver:

Nathan W. Hungate born Jan. 18, 1835  
Ellen His Wife born Aug. 31, 1838  
and their children 
Laura V. born Nov. 3, 1861  
Florence V. born Jan. 18, 1864  
killed by Indians June 11, 1864

Some claim there are emotional scars that Cheyenne descendants still feel today. What about the Hungates? There aren’t any descendants of Nathan Hungate to have any emotional scars—the entire family was killed. And per Governor Evans’ testimony, that event was a leading cause for soldiers going to Sand Creek. 

Bent raided with the Dog Soldiers and some Arapaho in September 1864 when they attacked General Blunt on Ash Creek sixty miles northwest of Fort Larned, Kansas. They killed two Shawnee and several soldiers (CHS Bent to Hyde, 10-15-1904). 

“In summer of 1864 small war party of Cheyennes ran off Charley Autobees stock. I seen these horses myself and also Little Geary’s horses. These were all fine horses. Most of these were spotted horses” (Bent to Hyde, 1-12-1906).   

Bent wasn’t finished telling Hyde about atrocities committed by the Cheyenne and Arapaho in the months leading up to Sand Creek. 

“I was in one of the largest villages on Solomon River of Cheyennes, Siouxs and Arapahoes in summer of 1864. I had just returned from my father’s ranch on Purgatoire River that summer. As I rode by each village I seen scalp dances in centre of these villages. War parties came in from all directions, bringing in lots of plunder. Cheyennes and Siouxs made raids on South Platte down to Little Blue River. I seen all kinds of stuff. They brought fine silks, cloaks, bonnets, in fact everything in line of fine dry goods they took from trains that they plundered. Old Indians wore ladies fine bonnets for hats. I seen fine cloaks worn also by old men. Silks were made into squaw dresses and shirts for young men. I had 1/2 doz made of same silks. There was no particular leaders in these war parties. Those white women that Maj. Wynkoop came out after on Smoky Hill were captured in these raids that summer. At Fremont Orchard was the fight where Bull telling Tales killed an officer. Several trains were captured on Little Blue River by Cheyennes and Siouxs. Arapahoes made raids towards Denver” (Bent to Hyde, 2-28-1906).

George Bent wrote very candidly about wagon train raids, taking captives, scalping enemies, killing white settlers and more. 

Governor Evans made it clear the actions of the Cheyenne and Arapaho had consequences. Sand Creek was not a random attack. It was fighting back. The command to send troops to Sand Creek came from General Curtis, not Governor Evans or Colonel Chivington. Evans made appeals to the government to send troops to help fight against the Indians for what they were doing in Colorado Territory. General Curtis sent that help. We will go into more about the orders made by Curtis in the next blog. 

As we mentioned in our book and previous blogs, we can’t dismiss the reasons for Sand Creek based on the actions of a few bad soldiers at the event. Most of the time we call it, “Sand Creek,” or the “Sand Creek event.” It has a lot of layers and can’t be painted with a broad brush.

Chuck Bowen has spent over 30 years studying Sand Creek and discovering period artifacts. He is truly the expert on this event. And no one else has come close to spending the amount of time on that part of Sand Creek than him—he grew up there. 

Most historians that try to put together what happened at Sand Creek ignore the most important piece of evidence, the artifacts. The location of the artifacts doesn’t simply provide a different location, it changes the story. 

Over 4,000 period artifacts and eyewitness accounts show that at Sand Creek, there was a significant fight between soldiers and Dog Soldiers (warriors). For example, Indians and soldiers were both armed with guns. See Lant Williams’ account here: Jayhawker at Sand Creek.

Learn more about the Sand Creek location discovery made by Chuck and Sheri Bowen by browsing this website. Check out the Artifacts tab at the top of any page. Be sure to pick up our book, We Found the Lost Sand Creek Site. 

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