DUANE
Duane's take
Here's my telling of what the official marker says about Custer on the Sweetwater, out in Wheeler County. Now before we get to the standoff — and there is one heck of a standoff coming — you need to understand what this creek meant. Sweetwater Creek was essential to millions of southern buffalo.
Millions. The Plains Indians camped along this freshwater stream to seek shelter from harsh winters, and for good reason — this was the heart of a region known as the Comancheria, and that water was life. As Anglos continued to settle the southern plains, two incompatible cultures fought for survival.
That's the marker's word: survival. Not a misunderstanding. Not a disagreement.
Survival. In 1868, on two separate occasions, members of the Cheyenne and Sioux tribes kidnapped two Anglo women out of Kansas. Their names were Sarah White and Anna Brewster Morgan.
And that set in motion everything that follows. Enter George Armstrong Custer. Now the marker calls him flamboyant and fearless — that's the reputation he earned during the Civil War — and he was leading the 7th Cavalry and the 19th Kansas Volunteers in an Indian removal winter campaign of 1868 into 1869.
During that campaign, Custer's mission included recovering Morgan and White. March 15, 1869. That's the day everything gets interesting.
Custer's chief scout — a man named Hard Rope — crests a rise and looks down. What he sees stops him cold. A Cheyenne village of two hundred and sixty lodges, sitting right there on the banks of the Sweetwater.
And grazing nearby, a large herd of Indian ponies. Hard Rope raced back to tell Custer. Now here is where you've got to appreciate the position Custer is in.
He's got troops. He's got firepower. But he also knows — he is keenly aware — that a single fired shot would signal the execution of the two captured women.
So this decorated cavalry commander does something that takes a different kind of nerve. He proceeds ahead of his troops, alone, hoping to make a truce. The Cheyenne led him to a meeting with Rock Forehead, also known as Medicine Arrows, the Cheyenne chief, along with other head men of the tribe.
Talks begin. Then — and this is the move that changes the shape of the negotiation — when a dozen Cheyenne arrived at Custer's camp to entertain and serenade the officers and chiefs, Custer ordered the detention of the principal chiefs present. He released one hostage to carry his demand back: the unconditional surrender of the two women.
Three days of intense negotiations followed. On the third day, Custer delivered an ultimatum. If Morgan and White were not released by sunset the following day, hostile activities would commence.
That's the line in the sand. Peace was achieved. On March 19, 1869, Anna Brewster Morgan and Sarah White were returned.
Right there on the banks of the Sweetwater Creek — the same stream that had sheltered Plains Indians through countless harsh winters, the same water that had sustained millions of buffalo across the Comancheria — the standoff ended without a shot fired. The creek had seen a great deal. It saw this too.
What the marker says
Sweetwater Creek was essential to millions of southern buffalo In a region known as the Comancheria. Plains Indians camped along this freshwater stream to seek shelter from harsh winters. As Anglos continued to settle the southern plains, the incompatible cultures fought for survival. On two separate occasions in 1868, members of the Cheyenne and Sioux tribes kidnapped two Anglo women from Kansas, Sarah White and Anna Brewster Morgan. George Armstrong Custer, who earned a reputation for flamboyant and fearless leadership during the Civil War, led the 7th Cavalry and the 19th Kansas Volunteers in an Indian removal winter campaign of 1868-69. During this campaign, Custer rescued Morgan and White. On March 15, 1869, Custer's chief scout, Hard Rope, viewed a large herd of Indian ponies grazing. The Cheyenne village of 260 lodges lay below them on the banks of the Sweetwater. Hard Rope raced back to tell Custer. Aware that a fired shot would signal the execution of the two captured women, Custer proceeded ahead of his troops hoping to make a truce. The Cheyenne led Custer to a meeting with Rock Forehead (Medicine Arrows), the Cheyenne chief, and other head men of the tribe. When a dozen Cheyenne arrived at Custer's camp to entertain and serenade the officers and chiefs, Custer ordered the detention of the principal chiefs present. Custer released one hostage to relay his demand of the unconditional surrender of the two women. On the third day, after intense negotiations, Custer gave an ultimatum that if the women were not released by sunset the following day, hostile activities would commence. Peace was achieved, and on March 19, 1869, Morgan and White were returned. (2017)