What happened in the Fetterman Massacre?
What happened in the Fetterman Massacre?
The soldiers rode straight into the ambush and were wiped out in a massive attack during which some 40,000 arrows rained down on the hapless troopers. None of them survived. With 81 fatalities, the Fetterman Massacre was the army’s worst defeat in the West until the Battle of Little Bighorn in 1876.
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What happened in the Wagon Box Fight?
The Wagon Box Fight was an engagement which occurred on August 2, 1867, in the vicinity of Fort Phil Kearny during Red Cloud’s War. A party of twenty-six U.S. Army soldiers and six civilians were attacked by several hundred Lakota Sioux warriors….
Wagon Box Fight | |
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7 killed 2 wounded | ~6 killed 6 wounded |
Were there any battles fought in Wyoming?

A number of skirmishes, battles, and massacres occurred during these turbulent years. Fort Phil Kearny saw some of the most dramatic incidents such as the Wagon Box Fight and the Fetterman Massacre. Compiled by Kathy Weiser/Legends of America, updated September 2020.
How many Indians were killed in the Fetterman Massacre?
William Judd Fetterman arrived at Fort Phil Kearny on Nov. 3, 1866, as the Indian attacks were peaking. Seven weeks later, on Dec. 21, 1866, Fetterman and 79 soldiers and civilians were killed in a lopsided battle that was soon mythologized as the Fetterman Massacre.

What happened to William J Fetterman and why?
William Judd Fetterman (1833 – December 21, 1866) was an officer in the United States Army during the American Civil War and the subsequent Red Cloud’s War on the Great Plains. Fetterman and his command of 80 men were killed in the Fetterman Fight.
What does wagon box mean?
Definition of “wagon-box” [wagon-box] The part of a wagon mounted upon the wheels and axles, and used to contain the freight or passengers. Also wagon-bed. (
What happened at Fort Phil Kearny?
All three forts along the trail were abandoned as part of the Treaty of Fort Laramie (1868). Shortly after, it was burned by Cheyenne Indians….Fort Phil Kearny.
Location | Johnson County, Wyoming, n SR W off U.S. 87 |
Nearest city | Story |
Coordinates | 44°31′56″N 106°49′35″W |
Built | 1866 |
Significant dates |
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What Indian tribe was in Wyoming?
The historic Indians in Wyoming were nomadic tribes known as the Plains Indians. They were the Arapaho, Arikara, Bannock, Blackfeet, Cheyenne, Crow, Gros Ventre, Kiowa, Nez Perce, Sheep Eater, Sioux, Shoshone and Ute tribes.
Where was the site of the Fetterman Massacre?
Fort Phil Kearny State Historic Site
Wyoming
Fetterman Fight/Location
Who won the Fetterman Massacre?
All 81 men under the command of Captain William J. Fetterman were then killed by the Native American warriors. At the time, it was the worst military disaster ever suffered by the U.S. Army on the Great Plains. The Lakota alliance emerged victorious and the remaining U.S. forces withdrew from the area.
Where was Fetterman Massacre?
Where was the Wagon Box Fight?
Bozeman Trail
Fort Phil Kearny State Historic SiteWyoming Territory
Wagon Box Fight/Locations
Where was the Fetterman Massacre?
How did the Bozeman Trail End?
Native American raids along the trail and around the forts continued. When the Lakota annihilated a detachment under William J. Fetterman at the Fetterman Fight near Fort Phil Kearny on December 21, 1866, civilian travel along the trail ceased.
How accurate is Wind River movie?
There are some details of Wind River that are extremely accurate. One in three Native American women will be sexually assaulted in her lifetime, and murder is the third leading cause of death among American Indian/Alaska Native women.
Why are Indian reservations so poor?
To explain the poverty of the reservations, people usually point to alcoholism, corruption or school-dropout rates, not to mention the long distances to jobs and the dusty undeveloped land that doesn’t seem good for growing much.