Where Did the Nez Perces Go in Yellowstone in 1877?

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1-1-1990 Where did the Nez Perces go in Yellowstone in 1877?

William L. Lang Portland State University

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Citation Details Lang, W. L. (1990). Where did the Nez Perces go in Yellowstone in 1877?. Montana: The Magazine Of Western History, 40(1), 14-29.

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by William L. Lang On October 5, 1877, at the end of one of the trulyheroic episodes in the Indian Wars in the Northwest, Chief Joseph of the Nez Percessurrendered to General Nelson A. Miles on a snow-dustedbattlefield along Snake Creek near present- day Havre, Montana. The Indians gave up just forty-some miles short of their destination-the international border with Canada,where they hoped to find a sanctuary.They had been pursued for nearly three months and over thirteen hundredmiles fromtheir reservationin central Idaho,testing the military'sskill and their own stamina. In his surrender message,Joseph describedhis people's condition as destitute and his warriorsas tired of the struggle."I will fight no more forever"-purportedly Joseph's words-became an anthem and was symbolic of the Nez Perces' struggleand failure to . . : escape the military's inevitable maw. A few more daysof either better weatheror more strength might have changed the tragicoutcome of this nearly legen- dary tale of heroics on the Montana plains. What had pre- vented the Nez Perces from outdistancing their pursuers? How had they been able to succeed for hundredsof miles and months of deprivationonly to fall short duringthe firstweeks of autumn? Partof the explanation is in YellowstoneNational Park.It was in Yellowstone that the Nez Perces took their only rest duringthe long march. Having consistently outmaneuvered the military since their flight in central Idaho in July, the eight hundredor moreNez Perceshad pushedthemselves and their nearlytwo thousandhead of stock as hardas they could. But in Yellowstone, with the military several days behind them, they pausedfor nearlytwo weeks, time enough to have outracedthe harsh autumnweather and the military'spincer to gain sanctuaryin Canada. Why did the Indiansstay so long in the Park?And exactly where did they go?These two questionshave puzzledjournal- ists and historiansever since the surrender,and the answers that have been proposedhave never been satisfactory.Too manycontradictions remain unresolved and too many important issues have been ignored by historians, whose inatten- tion to details of the geography and ignorance of the landformshave sent them literallyon the wrong trails.Their misreadingof the documentsand their mistakenassumptions about Indian leadershiphave led them even furtherastray. Most importantly, they have misunderstood the Indians' purpose. The clues have been there all along, both in the documentsand on the groundin YellowstoneNational Park.z

14 MONTANATHE MAGAZINEOF WESTERNHISTORY

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This content downloaded by the authorized user from 192.168.52.75 on Fri, 7 Dec 2012 11:48:26 AM All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions R etracing the physicalroute of the Nez Reservation directly to Canada and safety. But Perces and the documentarytrail left by LookingGlass urged going south and east to the military,civilian, and Indian sources is part Yellowstone country and the Crows because, as detectivework and partprimer on the importance LookingGlass reportedlyargued, "theCrows had of details in reconstructinghistoric events. The promisedthem that whenever the Nez Percesfought sourcesare meager: military reports and official his- the whites they wouldjoin them."3 tories; contemporarynews stories and articles; This was one of several times duringthe flight popularaccounts; a few diaries,letters, and mem- when Nez Perce leadershotly debatedwhat tactics oirs of participants;and Indianoral histories. But to employ and which route to take. Whites have the informationis there, if only the right questions consistently misinterpretedthe content and pur- are asked. pose of these councils.To observersfamiliar with The rightquestions begin withthe historyof the militarydecision making,the Indians'discussions events during the summer of 1877. Because of have suggested confusion and disorganizationof political, economic, and especially religious and the worst kind, dominatedby indecisionand ineffi- culturalconflicts, bands of Nez Perces on their res- ciency. Although we do not know many of the ervationin centralIdaho (led principallyby Joseph, details,it is clear that the Nez Perce leaders chose LookingGlass, and White Bird) chose to flee for theirroute as theywent by solvingproblems through sanctuaryrather than engage frontier military forces council discussions. In this case, Looking Glass thathad been sent to chastise them.Akey figurein evidentlyconvinced his fellow chiefs that going to the conflict,Chief Joseph, had unwillinglyled his Crowcountry by way of the Bitterrootand Big Hole bandfrom its homelandin northeasternOregon to valleys was the safest route.4 the reservationin Idaho just before the military Their decision to campin the Big Hole Valleyin began its disciplinaryaction. Heading east fromthe earlyAugust, however, turned out to be tragic.John ClearwaterRiver in July, with General O. O.Howard Gibbon'stroops from Fort Shaw and an undisci- and the 7th Infantryin pursuit, the Nez Perces plined company of volunteers surprised the Nez engaged in a flee-hide-and-retreatstrategy to suc- Percesin a pre-dawnraid. The whitesinflicted heavy cessfully outmaneuverthe often slow movingmili- losses anddestroyed most of the Nez Perces'house- tary, followinga difficulttrail over Lolo Pass and hold goods. "Itwas a dreadfulsight," Major Edwin down into Montana'sBitterroot Valley. Mason of the 7th Infantrywrote his wife afterthe In Montana,the Nez Perces made their second battle, "dead men, women and children. More majordecision, which committedthem to travers- squaws were killed than men."5The Nez Perces ing some of the roughestterrain in NorthAmerica. ralliedto fight off the raidersand then reeled from After the Indianshad skirted the barricadesthat the battlein angerand facing a diresituation. In pain CaptainC. C. Rawnfrom Fort Missoula had thrown and sorrow,they carriedwith them the remnantsof up at the bottomof LoloCanyon-afterward known theirhouseholds and racedheadlong east fromthe as "FortFizzle"-the chiefs argued about where battlefield,trying to shake Howardand Gibbon.By they shouldgo. Mostwanted to avoida fight,with at 2. The best historicalaccounts of the Nez Perceflight are Merrill D. least one leader warningthat it could only end in Beal, "IWill Fight No MoreForever," ChiefJoseph and theNez Perce War (Seattle:University of WashingtonPress, 1963);Mark H. Brown,The complete destruction.White Bird and Red Owl Flightof the Nez Perce(New York:Putnam, 1967); Francis Haines, Red wantedto head norththrough the FlatheadIndian Eaglesof the Northwest: The Story of ChiefJosephand His People (Portland: ScholasticPress, 1939);Alvin M. Josephy, Jr., The Nez Perce Indians and 1. Withintwo years,articles were publishedin nationalperiodicals the Openingof the Northwest(New Haven,Connecticut: Yale University aboutthe Nez Perceflight and ChiefJoseph. The firstby a participantwas Press, 1965).The best histories from Indiansources are LucullusV. The Wondersof GeyserLand: A Tripto the YellowstoneNational Park of McWhorter,Hear Me MyChiefs! Nez Perce History and Legend (Caldwell, Wyoming(Black Earth, Wisconsin: Burnett & Son, 1878), written by Frank Idaho:Caxton Printers, 1942); McWhorter, Yellow Wolf: His OwnStory Carpenter,a tourist captured by the Nez Perces in Yellowstone. Carpenter's (Caldwell,Idaho: Caxton Printers, 1940); Allen P. Slickpoo,Nonn Nee-Me- accountcreated several myths aboutthe Indians?motives and actions. Poo (We,the Nez Perces)Culture and Historyof the Nez Perces(Lapwai, Oneyear later, Rt. Rev. W. H. Hareedited "Chief Joseph's Own Story," in Idaho:Nez PerceTribe, 1973). NorthAmerican Review (April 1879), which told the storypurportedly in 3. A confidantof the Nez Perces,fur trader Duncan McDonald, got Joseph'sown words. ThomasA. Sutherland,a journalistwho accompa- this informationin conversationswith Nez Perces in Canadaafter the nied the militaryduring part of the pursuit,wrote Howard's Campaign flightand reported them in a series of letterspublished in NewNorthwest Againstthe Nez Perce Indians (Portland: A. G.Walling, 1878) and contrib- (DeerLodge, Montana), January 10, January 17, February 7,1879. At this uted significantlyto the imageof Josephas a militarygenius. Ami Frank pointof decision,and likely others, the Nez Perceshad alternative plans. Mulford'sFightingIndians in the7th United States Calvary (Corning, New Accordingto McDonald,White Bird had been preparedto chargeRawn's York:Paul L. Mulford,1878) added to Joseph'smilitary reputation. By breastworks,torch the whole area, burn out ranchers,and race north 1881,when O. O. Howardwrote Nez PerceJoseph: An Accountof His to Canada. Ancestors,His Lands,His Confederates,His Enemies,His Murders,His 4. Accordingto McDonald,there were discussions among the chiefs War,His Pursuitand Capture(Boston: Lee andShepard, 1881), Joseph's about going to Crow countryand staying there over the spring and field generalshipand sagacitywere alreadyestablished in the popular returningto Idahothe next spring.New Northwest,January 17, 1879.In mind,although Howard believed Joseph and his bandto be "savages"and Flightof the Nez Perce (202), Mark Brown described the Indians'decision "treacherous."See O. O. Howard,letter to editor,(Portland) Oregonian, to flee to Montanaas likely the result of Indians"quarreling among May3, 1879.For a correctiveon Josephas a militarygenius, see Mark themselves"and "their naive and simpleanalysis of theirproblem." H. Brown,"The Joseph Myth," Montana, the Magazine of WesternHistory 5. EdwinMason to Mrs.Mason,August 13,1877, Mason Letters, MC 22 (Winter1972): 2-17. 80, MontanaHistorical Society Archives, Helena [MHSA].

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This content downloaded by the authorized user from 192.168.52.75 on Fri, 7 Dec 2012 11:48:26 AM All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions mid-Augustand after another battle, the Nez Perces enteredYellowstone National Park, exhausted and edgy about whites but relieved that the military lagged a few days behind them. Once in the Park, the Nez Perces complicated their flight and put themselves in additionaljeop- ardy. As they moved east up the Madison River, their advanceguard encountered and captured two prospectors and nine Montanatourists near the LowerGeyser Basin along the FireholeRiver. Fear- ing that any one of them might alertthe militaryto their location,the Nez Perces decided to keep the whites in their camp and under surveillance.They had little alternative,but their decision had signifi- cantconsequences in the enfoldingdrama. Several touristswould escape fromthe campand give valu- ableinformation to the militaryabout the Nez Perces' route,allowing Howard and his superiorsto planan encirclementof the Indians.The Nez Perces' capture of the tourists also increasedthe pressure on Howardto catch the fleeing Indians.And in the Indians'camp, the presence of the touristscreated frictionbetween those who wantedto take venge- ance on them for the brutalityof the Big Hole battle and those who wantedto avoidany more conflict.6 Duringthe next thirteendays, from August 24 to September5, the Nez Perces slowed their march, while Howardcaught up and other militaryunits movedin fromthe northand east to interceptthem. The Indianstraveled slowly, taking hours to string into camp and hours more to move back on to the trail.Each familyand largerband trailed their own horses, carried their own household goods, and camped together. The white prisoners, traveling behindthe women'spack train, were underthe con- trol of LeanElk, a mixed-bloodwho spoke English. Chief Joseph, shown here in about 1877, was in the mistakenlytaken to be the warriorchief who In reconstructingthe events.fromthis point guided the Nez Perces on their 1,200-miletrek. story,three things should be kept in mind:the Nez Percestraveled in separatebands with no individual Nez Perces had captured in the Park. Shively had in overall command;they were unsure of which been held by the Indians for eleven days before he route they wantedto take; and, althoughthey had managed to escape in early September and hike some knowledge of the military'spositions, they through the wilderness to the nearest Montana had no idea of its strategy. settlements, where he began telling his incredible story. Shivelygave the New Northwesteditor a de- tailed account of the Nez Perces, complete with descriptions of camp life, speed of travel, and pre- he standard versionof whatthe Nez sumed conflicts among Indian leaders. As compel- Perces did in Yellowstoneoriginated in an ling today as it must have been in 1877, Shively's articlepublished in JamesMills's New North- story emphasized danger and his backwoods savvy westin mid-September1877, while the Indianswere in making a thrilling dash for freedom. His descrip- stilleluding the military'sgrasp in centralMontana. 7. NewNorthwest, September 14,1877. ForJames Mills's changing Its source,John Shively,was one of the people the attitudestoward the Nez Perces,see Brown,Flight of theNez Perce,216- 217,248, and Rex C. Myers,"The Settlers and the Nez Perce,"Montana, 6. For descriptionsof the conflictamong the Nez Perce, see Mrs. theMagazine of WesternHistory 27 (Autumn1977): 20-29. GeorgeF. Cowan,"Reminiscences of PioneerLife," Contributions to the 8. NewNorthwest, September 14,1877. Mills was equallycritical of HistoricalSociety of Montana, 10 vols. (Boston:J. S. Canner,1966), 4:156- the military.Writing in an editorialin this same issue, he chargedthat 187; Carpenter,Wonders of Geyserland,58-62; McWhorter, Yellow Wolf, Howardwas off "geysergazing," rather than pursuing the Nez Percesin 170-173;Heister Dean Guieand LucullusV. McWhorter,Adventures in Yellowstoneand furtherthat the whole campaignwas the productof Geyserland(Caldwell, Idaho: Caxton Press, 1935),111-122. corruptIndian agents and the infamous"Indian Ring."

This content downloaded by the authorized user from 192.168.52.75 on Fri, 7 Dec 2012 11:48:26 AM All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions lead them through the AbsarokaMountains-the east boundaryof the Park. But once the Indians were east of the Yellowstone River and heading towardthe Shoshone Riverand the route to Crow country,a "Snakechief' had claimedhe knew the way andShively was retiredas guide. But insteadof turningsoutheast and heading toward the Shoshone, the Nez Perces had ended up on the headwatersof the LamarRiver (the EastFork of the Yellowstone). Shivelyclaimed that he had known they were lost but had said nothinguntil after a "councilof chiefs," when the Nez Perces asked him: "Whichway to Crowcountry?" Shively had shown them "theopen countryabout 20 miles off towardthe CrowCoun- try,"evidently from a high pointof landnear the Nez Perces' camp. He had escaped from his captors duringthat night,leaving the Indiansto pursuethe route he had shown them.8 The only other detailedaccount we have of the Indians'movements in Yellowstonecomes fromthe journalof S. G. Fisher, chief of Howard'sscouts. Staying as close to the retreatingIndians as they could,Fisher and some fortyBannock Indian scouts followedthe Nez Perces east fromthe Yellowstone Riverto the headwatersof the Lamar,sending back reports to Howard.The only description of the Indians'route throughthe AbsarokaMountains is in Fisher'swords.9 I!l:W$ Using Fisher'spublished journal, the reportsof militarycommands, Shively's account, and informa- tion from a few Indianinformants, historians have proposedseveral different routes that the Nez Perces mighthave takenthrough the mountains.All of the creeks that drainwest fromthe Absarokasinto the Lamar River-Soda Butte, Calfee, Cache, and WilliamHenry Jackson took this photographof Miller-have been identified as the Nez Perces' LookingGlass when the Nez Percechief was on an earlier to Crow in 1871. route,but the most recent historieshave settled on trip Country either Cache Creek or Miller Creek as the most tion of the Indians'behavior in Yellowstone,how- likely.10A fresh examination of the sources and ever, is the most importantpart of his testimony. Yellowstone'stopography, however, suggests that Shivelyclaimed that the Indianshad become lost the mainbody of the Nez Perces followedthe upper andhad wanderedaimlessly for several days. This Lamar,that the Indiansdid not travelin one large versionof events has been repeatedin one form or group, and that they were never lost in the Park. anotherby historiansever since.7 10. E. S. Topping,Chronicles of the Yellowstone(St Paul:Pioneer the Nez Perces as Press,1883), 219-220, describes the Nez Perce"going up Cache Creek" to Shively portrayed disorgan- cross the mountains.In 1895,in The YellowstoneNational Park (1895; ized and confused. At one point, he reported,the reprint,Norman: University of OklamonaPress, 1964), HiramMartin leaders had become so disorientedthat had Chittendendescribed the Nez Perceroute as "thenorth-east boundary of they the Park"(105); but in a subsequentedition (Cincinnati: Stewart & Kidd, mistakenone side of a majormountain divide for the 1917),Chittenden wrote that the Nez Perce"left the Parkby wayof Miller other,a significanterror that convinced Shively that Creek"(126). MerrillD. Beal, in 7 WillFight No MoreForever," 209, describedthe Nez Perceroute as upCache Creek. Brown, Flight of the Nez the Indians were lost. As Shively told Mills, the Perce,338, believedthat the Nez Perce "turnedsouth-eastward up the Indianshad originallytaken him alongas a guide to divide between Cache and Calfee creeks."In The Nez PerceIndians, Josephyput the Nez Perceon CacheCreek, as didAubrey Haines in The 9. "Journalof S. G. Fisher,"Contributions to theHistorical Society of YellowstoneStory, 2 vols. (Boulder:Colorado Associated University Press, Montana,10vols. (Boston:J. S. Canner,1966), 2:269-282. Fisher's original 1977),1:236, and RichardA. Bartlett,Yellowstone: A WildernessBeseiged journal,from which the Contributionsarticle was taken,is in the Idaho (Tucson:University of ArizonaPress, 1985),27. In "Loston ColdCreek," HistoricalSociety Archives, Boise. The originaljournal differs in several Montana,the Magazine of WesternHistory 33 (Autumn1973): 2-19, Daniel respectsfrom the publishedversion, which omits crucialdetails and Goodenoughdid what other historians had failed to do:he scoutedout the introducesphrases and terms not present in the original.I amindebted to trail,with documents and maps in hand.He concludedthat the Nez Perce CherylWilfong for firstpointing out these discrepanciesto me. wentup MillerCreek.

This content downloaded by the authorized user from 192.168.52.75 on Fri, 7 Dec 2012 11:48:26 AM All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions he explanations for the Nez Perces' thereby slowing the tourists' travel to the settle- routeand the timethey spentin Yellowstone ments. Taking Shivelyand Irwinalong with them, begin with the landscape.Traveling east of the Indianscontinued east towardthe Absarokas.11 where the Yellowstone River emerges from the The next day, while S. G. Fisher and his scouts southernextremities of YellowstoneLake, the Nez were inspecting the site where Cowan had been Perces ascended the meandering Pelican Creek shot, the Indiansmoved their camp north to Yellow- through a lush valley of knee-deep grass, where stone Lake near present-dayIndian Pond. On Au- their large herd of stock could feast. From this gust 28, Fisherquickened his pursuit,following the verdanthaven, there were only a few routes that Nez Perces' trail and crossing the Yellowstone, would take the Indiansto buffalocountry on the where they "passedone of the enemy'scamps" and lower Yellowstone.There were not many passes very nearlycaught the Indiansin campby the lake. through the Absarokas and few easy pathways More interested in booty than conflict, Fisher's through the dense lodgepole forest that carpeted BannockIndian scouts scatteredwhen they sawtwo the terrainbelow 8,000 feet in elevation.Heading to- Nez Perce warriors.As Fisherjotted in his journal: wardthe Absarokarange from PelicanCreek, the "I told them [Bannocks] what I thought of their Indianshad to make their trail over a low divide. bravery."Switching to a fresh horse, Fisher pur- Then they could either turn south and cross a sued the Indians alone, going "up Pelican Creek higher divide to the Shoshone River drainageor about10 miles, left it andwent onto Mt.,saw smoke continueeast to the headwatersof the LamarRiver from enemys camp." He got a good fix on the at the base of the imposingAbsarokas. The easiest Indians'position and made his way down Pelican path to the lower Yellowstone was down the Creek,arriving in camp on the Yellowstone"about Shoshone River;the next easiest routes, especially midnight."12 for such a largegroup, were eitherdown the Lamar Fisher spent the next two days in camp,arguing Riverand the lower canyons of the Yellowstoneto with his scouts and recoveringfrom a stomachail- broadervalley terrain near present-day Livingston, ment.Howard's scouts broughtFisher a new horse Montana,or east up SodaButte Creek and the upper andword that GeorgeCowan had been foundalive. sectionof the Clark'sFork of the Yellowstone, which Emma Cowanand the Carpentershad also made cut throughthe eastern section of the Absarokas. theirway safelyto Mammoth,after being pickedup The most difficultroutes pierced the 11,000-foot- west of Mt. Washburnon August 27 by soldiers high Absarokamountain chain-the narrowslots from Fort Ellis who had been sent on a scouting createdby Miller,Cache, and Calfee creeks andthe partyinto the Park.After dismissing twenty-two of upperLamar River. his Bannockscouts, Fisher selected afew Bannocks After capturingJohn Shively and the Montana and some good frontiersmenin his camp,prepared tourists near the Firehole River on August 23-24, his gear, and startedoff on the morningof August the Nez Perces movedeast towardthe Yellowstone 31 to trackthe Nez Perces throughthe dense lodge- River on a route that took them south of Mary pole forest below the Absarokas.13 Mountain.Along the trail,there was a commotion when severalwarriors threatened the tourists and shot George Cowan at point-blankrange, leaving him for dead. Duringthe fracas,five of the tourists WV hile Fisher had been weedinghis escaped,taking their story and a descriptionof the A/force, the Nez Perces had moved their Nez Perces'location to Howard'stroops at Henry's v camps over the Pelican divide. By August Lake.The three remainingtourists-Emma Cowan 31, they were on the headwatersof the LamarRiver, and Ida and FrankCarpenter-along with Shively at the base of the Absarokas.Probably the largest and James C. Irwin,a recently dischargedsoldier groupto everpenetrate the Yellowstonewilderness, the Indianshad also captured,were pulledback into the Indians moved slowly, caravaningin several the Indians'procession. The Nez Perces trailed largebands. The groupspread out over a mile wide eastwardalong the southernfringe of the Hayden when they crossed the PelicanValley's lush mead- Valleyto a fordacross the YellowstoneRiver about ows, then narroweddown to practicallysingle-file four miles below YellowstoneLake. They camped columns when they ascended and descended the on the east bank of the river,discussed what to do canyons.They left an unmistakabletrail, one Fisher withthe captives,and decided to releaseMrs. Cowan had little difficultyfollowing. Howard's aide-de- andthe Carpenterson August25. The Indiansgave the women horses but put FrankCarpenter afoot, 12. Journalof S. G. Fisher,typescript, p. 5, IdahoState Historical SocietyArchives, Boise [FisherJournal]. See also FisherJournal, Contri- 11. Cowan,"Reminiscences of PioneerLife," Contributions, 4:172- butions,2:273. 176;Carpenter, Wonders of GeyserLand, 5862; Guieand McWhorter,Ad- 13. FisherJournal, pp. 6-7;Fisher Journal, Contributions, 273-274; venturesin GeyserLand, 201-231; McWhorter, Yellow Wolf, 170-176. Mrs.George Cowan, "Reminiscences of PioneerLife," 184-187.

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This content downloaded by the authorized user from 192.168.52.75 on Fri, 7 Dec 2012 11:48:26 AM All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions camp, Charles E. S. Wood described the Nez wantedno partof the Nez Perces'trouble. The Nez Perce "horde": Perces then set their route down the Lamarand Yellowstone as told with their vast band of horses, [they] swept their rivers, Joseph Scott, because pathclean of subsistence,forage, and supplies,so "theydid not wish to encounterany more troopson that where they had abundanceour ration was their front,with the risk of being caught between scanty... Wheretheir animals grazed ours starved; twoforces." Ironically, if the Indianshad gone down where they had a horde of 2,000 fresh horses to the Yellowstonethey wouldhave runheadlong into replacetheir exhausted stock, we found only the Colonel S. D. Sturgis's360-man force, which was useless ones they had abandoned.14 then at CrowAgency on the StillwaterRiver ready to Howmuch Joseph, Looking Glass, and other Nez catch the Nez Perces in a pincer.16 Perce leaders knew about the army'smovements In Shively's account, after the Indians had re- and how they respondedto the informationfrom movedhim as guide, they had "merelygone around theirown scouts is not clear,but it is certainthat the a mountainand came down on the same tributary Indiansknew of Howard'sposition, the locationof waters instead of crossing the divide [to the ranchesalong the YellowstoneRiver, the existence ShoshoneRiver]." As Shivelysaw it, the Indianshad of tourist parties in the Park, and the advance of become confusedby the landscapeand had gotten additionaltroops from Fort Ellis. Once over the "lost."7To questionsput to them manyyears later Pelican Creek divide on August 28-with Fisher by historianLucullus McWhorter, Nez Perce veter- trailingthem-the Nez Perces sent scouts to find ans of the trek throughYellowstone had other an- the best route through the mountains.It is likely swers. that one of these scouting parties brought back McWhorter:Was Joseph lost in YellowstoneNa- informationthat turned the Indians away from tionalPark? crossing over to the Shoshone River.According Nez Perce: ChiefJoseph never lost there, maybe to Hugh L. Scott,a young officerwho accompanied anotherman lost there. LieutenantGustavus Doane's commandfrom Fort McWhorter:Was Joseph lost in YellowstoneNa- Ellis,Chief Joseph told him repeatedlyin lateryears tionalPark? Nez Perce:I am no to because that the Nez Perces had intendedto go down the (surely) way get lost, PaulJackson father was leadingthe entirepro- Yellowstone,"leaving the mountainswhere the river cession at that He namewas it turnsnortheast-now the site of the townof day. Ho-to-toe-e, Living- means somethinglike mix with tobacco ... he ston."The Indians decided against the route, Jo- was familiarwith the countryeast of the Rocky seph told Scott, when Nez Perce scouts encoun- Mountains... he alwayslive there, raised there, tered Doane's small force coming up the Yellow- and the Indiansdepend on him at that day.18 stone on August 31.15 The Indianswere not lost in Yellowstone,but This explanationraises questions. If the Nez Perces intendedto descend the theywere in a quandaryabout which route would be Yellowstone,why the safest. Their informationcame from the didthey cross the riverin the firstplace? Why not go only downthe riveron the west bank?When the Indians severalscouting-raiding parties they had sent out as enteredthe came the MadisonRiver they movedeast acrossthe Park.On August 26, one Park,they up of these a of tourists from to the Firehole, not north to IndianCreek on the parties charged group Bannock a traditionalIndian route across the Helenain theircamp at OtterCreek, not far from the Trail, falls of the Yellowstone.The raiders fired on the YellowstonePlateau. When they enlistedShively as chased them on horseback,looted their a guide on August24, the Nez Perceswanted to take campers, the mostdirect route to Crow camp,and left one touristdead before they returned country-east through to the Nez Perces'main at IndianPond. Three Yellowstoneand down the Shoshone. Once they camp later, another descended the had crossed the Yellowstoneon August25, the Nez days raiding party Perces sent to enlist the aid of the Yellowstonebelow present-day Gardiner and looted representatives and burnedthe ranch of the Hendersonbrothers. Crows,but they returnedwith bad news:the Crows Scott's men chased the Indiansback up the river, 14. CharlesE. S. Wood,General Field OrdersNo. 6, Reportof the 17. New Northwest,September 14, 1877. There is some question Secretaryof War,45th Cong., 2nd sess., H. Ex. Doc. 1 (Serial1794), 619. whetherShively was actuallythe Indians'principal guide. Responding to 15. HughLenox Scott, Some Memories of a Soldier(New York: The queriesby LucullusMcWhorter, J. W. Reddingtonsuggested that Irwin CenturyCompany, 1928), 64-65. Scott wrote: "I was firsttold of this by guidedthe Indiansand that Shively was actually"boss of the packtrain." Josephin 1877,and his informationwas confirmedby a signedstatement J. W. Reddingtonto LucullusMcWhorter, January 20, March10, 1931, obtainedby the Nez Perceagent at Nespelem,Washington." Folder175, #13, and Folder 158, #93, Lucullus McWhorter Papers, Wash- 16. LeanElk, the mixed-bloodwho had responsibility for Shively and ingtonState University Archives, Pullman [McWhorter Papers]. Yellow Irwin,told them afterthey had crossedthe Yellowstonethat scoutshad Wolfalso told McWhorter that Shively guided the Indiansfor only part of been sent to get aid fromthe Crows.Shively's account, New Northwest, one day, when they were west of the YellowstoneRiver. McWhorter, September14,1877; Scott, Memories of a Soldier,65; Thomas B. Marquis, YellowWolf, 170. Memoirsof a WhiteCrow Indian (NewYork: Century Company, 1928), 18. LucullusMcWhorter'sinterrogations, Folder 158, Misc. notes#14 128-130. and#15, McWhorterPapers.

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As S. G. Fishertracked the Nez Perces - _~ -- 0. O. Howard'smilitary march throughthe Park,he keptin touch ..- .--_ . Fisher'spursuit route withthe main command, O route recommendingthat Howard and his .0...* Shively's escape troopsavoid the brokenterrain and Placesand Events denselodgepole pine forest east of PelicanCreek. 1. Fisher'sscout camp 2. Fisher discoveredNez Perce camp 3. Fisher met up with Irwin 4. Roughcanyon where Nez Perces pushed horses through dense forest 5. Where Reddingtoncaught up with Fisher 6. Fisherwatched Indians move into the "trap"

This content downloaded by the authorized user from 192.168.52.75 on Fri, 7 Dec 2012 11:48:26 AM All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions where they fired on three courierswho had been stone,where the BannockTrail intersects the river, sent by ColonelSturgis. It is likely that this is the is near present-dayTower Fall.23Many of the Nez raidingparty that alertedJoseph that the military Perces knew the Bannockroute, and if any of them blockedthe Indians'route downthe Yellowstone.19 had been with the young YellowWolf that day it is Anothergroup of scouts includedYellow Wolf, likely that they would have forded the river and who latertold McWhorter:"It was a few suns after followedthe trailacross SpecimenRidge and down the chiefsturned the whiteman and women [Emma to the Lamar. Cowanand the Carpenters]loose that what I am WhenYellow Wolfs group-and likelythe group telling you happened."At McCartney'sHotel in that had burned Henderson'sranch-returned to Mammoth,Yellow Wolf s raiderssurprised Richard camp, they told Joseph that more whites and the Dietrich,one of the Helenacampers, and shot him armywere thick downthe Yellowstone.This infor- down.The Indianwho pulled the trigger shouted: mationmust have put Joseph, LookingGlass, and "Weare going to kill him now. I am a man! I am otherchiefs in a quandary.They had rejectedgoing going to shoot him!"After the killing,Yellow Wolf to the Shoshone River,their primeroute down the and his friends skirmished with other whites, Yellowstonewas blocked,and they wantedto avoid roundedup some horses, and headed back to the the white settlement at the Clark'sFork mines, Nez Perces' campon the LamarRiver.20 which lay to the northeast up Soda Butte Creek. Shivelydescribed the scene:"Here scouts were sent out, the Snake chief going to Baronette'sbridge, n some accounts, the raiderswho burned whichhe burned.Then they knewthey were lost."24 the Hendersonranch are linkedto the Dietrich Knowingthat soldierswere on their trailand mov- killing and also to the burning of Baronett's ing at them fromat least two directions,Joseph and bridgeon theYellowstone. Historians have assumed the other chiefs had only one option:travel directly thatall of these raidingparties came fromthe same throughthe Absarokas,up one of the streamsrun- camp,were underthe controlof one or two chiefs, ningwest fromthe divide.Butwhich one was safest? and had first crossed Baronett'sbridge from the There are few clues about exactly where the east beforeburning it when they re-crossedit from Nez Perces were on the LamarRiver when they the west. In YellowWolf's case, his scouting was realizedtheir predicament.Shively told Mills that due as muchto his own sense of purposeas to direc- the Indians were about fifteen miles southeastof tives from warriorchiefs. As he told McWhorter, the Clark'sFork mines, but that cannotbe correct; there were severalscouting parties and "eachparty the easternmostextremities of the Lamardrainage did scoutingevery sun."Whether the raidersused aresouth and westof the mines. Shively'sestimates Baronett'sbridge is also questionable.Under re- of distancewere also inaccurate.Fisher, Irwin, and peated questioningby historianMcWhorter, Yel- J. W. Reddington, an experienced scout who low Wolfinsisted that he knew of no bridge across tracked the Indianswith Fisher for several days, the Yellowstone.21 were trainedobservers who drewmaps of the area, fixed and estimated McWhorter:Whatway did warriors go to the bridge locations, accurately mileage. thatwas partlyburned? Their accountsprovide the most reliableinforma- YellowWolf: There was no bridgethat I knowof but tion aboutthe locationof the Nez Perces' camp on some of the Indiansburned up some bedingand the LamarRiver. grube. Fisher began his pursuitof the Indianson Sep- McWhorter:West or east side ofYellowstone River? tember 1 from his camp below YellowstoneLake. YellowWolf: We went over into Yellowstone River.22 Followingthe Nez Perces' trail up Pelican Creek, Fisher in his he "meta white man If YellowWolf did not use Baronett'sbridge and reported journal, I coveredhim with and had not heard of it, then how did he get from suddenly. instantly my gun orderedhim to advance... at the MammothHot Springs to the LamarRiver? And believeing time that he to the he evaded does his route tell us anythingabout the Indians' belonged Enemy.... an answer who I was."The two men strategy?Yellow Wolfs answer to McWhorter's asking swapped us a clue: He said he went into the 21. McWhorter,Yellow Wolf, 175-177. General Howard, in "Supple- questiongives mentaryReport. Non-Treaty Nez PerceCampaign" (December 26,1877), river.The traditionalcrossing point on the Yellow- Reportof the Secretaryof War, 1877,621, reported that his scoutsbrought himinformation that one groupof raiders,"probably not more than ten in 19. Brown,Flight of the Nez Perce,329-334; Col. John Gibbonto number,"had burned a store,killed a citizen,fought with Doane's troops, AssistantAdj. Gen. Dept of Dakota,October 18, 1877,in Reportof the and then recrossedthe Yellowstoneand burnedBaronett's bridge. To Secretaryof War,1877, 522; Scott, Memories of a Soldier,61-63; Shively's questionsabout the couriersfired on by raidersnear Tower Fall, Yellow account,New Northwest, September 14, 1877;Mary Allen Phinney,Jirah Wolfresponded: "I don't know any thingabout this question... I never IshamAllen (Rutland,Vermont: Tuttle PublishingCompany, n.d.), 96; heardof it."Brown, Flight of the Nez Perce, 331-333, repeated the storiesof OrrinH. and LorraineBonney, Battle Drums and Geysers(Chicago: separateraiding parties without distinguishing between the groups. SwallowPress, 1970),77-80. 22. McWhorterinterrogations, Folder 158, #124, McWhorter 20. McWhorter,Yellow Wolf, 172,177. Papers.

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Baronett's bridge, which the Nez Perces burned during their flight in 1871, was built by Jack Baronett who would become one of the first assistant superintendents of Yellowstone National Park. The toll bridge was built to provide access to newly discovered mines at the Clark's Fork of the Yellowstone. questions warily for a few minutes before Fisher the few open passages in the timber.Fisher could acceptedhis claimthat "he was an escapedprisoner not believe the trailand the Indians'determination: from band."It was the soldier who Josephs Irwin, September, Monday 3, 1877. Off on trail at hadbeen capturedby the Indiansa week earlieron daylightpassed down the roughist canyon I was the Firehole River.He had escaped with Shively's everthrough dead and fallen timbr and rocks found help and had backtrackedon the Indians' trail. plenty of dead crippledhorses left by the enemy Fisherpumped Irwin for informationand then sent they evidentlyhad a hard struggle to get through himback to Howard'sheadquarters before continu- this place for the trees and logs was smearedwith ing into the wildernesson the Indians'track.25 bloodfrom their horses cut on the sharpstones & "Wemade aboutsix miles... we are now on the pine knots.... waterof EastFork ofYellowstone... liveingon meat At this point, Fisher and his few remainingscouts streight,"Fisher wrote on September2, two days came up quicklyupon the Nez Perces' camp. 'We afterJoseph and Looking Glass had discussedtheir sawthe Enemy'scamp about 7 or 8 miles to the East optionsin a council meeting. The next day Fisher of us on or nearthe Sumitof a high Mt,"Fisher wrote pressed on into the dense lodgepole pine forest, on September3, just as J. W. Reddington"brought wherethe Nez Perces had takenan incredibletrail, us some Bacon& beans andletter from Command." pushing their livestock hard and funneling down Reddingtonfound Fisher camped in a meadowon lower Mist Creek,not farfrom the LamarRiver.26 23. AubreyL Haines,"The BannockIndian Trails of Yellowstone NationalPark," Archaeology in Montana4 (March1962): 1-8; Haines, YellowstoneStory, 2:27-28; Brigham D. Madsen,The Bannockof Idaho 26. FisherJournal, p. 8. The publishedversion of Fisher'sJournal in (Caldwell,Idaho: Caxton Press, 1958),20, 23,180. Contributionsdoes not includethese passages,which pinpoint Fisher's 24. NewNorthwest, September 14, 1877.In his reporton the events locationin the lowermeadows of MistCreek. Working from the published in Yellowstone,Colonel Gibbon wrote that the Nez Percestraveled down version,Daniel Goodenough assumed that Fisher was on ColdCreek, but the eastbank of the Yellowstone"as far as Baronette'sbridge, which they in his uneditedjournal Fisher wrote: "We were severalhours makeing burnt,.. ."Report of the Secretaryof War,1877, 522. downto the Maincreek, one of the branchesof EastFork." This mustbe 25. Fisher Journal,p. 7; Fisher Journal,Contributions, 274; New Mist Creek,not ColdCreek, which Fisherwould not have describedas Northwest,September 14, 1877;Idaho Statesman, September 20, 1877. "theMain creek."

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The mouthof the upperLamar River is wide and inviting,with plentyof room on each side of the riverto drivehorses. Fartherup the river,the canyonnarrows but the riverbottom remains wide and relativelyclear of timber.

isher and Reddingtonclimbed to the top quickly if they expected to elude the military. of a ridge at dawn. As Reddingtonremem- Their respite in Yellowstone National Park was beredit, "welooked right across a deepcanyon aboutover.27 andinto hostile camp, and it struckus thatthey were Fisher sketched a mapof the Indians'camp and putting up log breastworksto make a stand and wrote to Howard,advising him to strikeout for the give battle."The two men saw activityin the Nez Clark'sFork "by some other route"to interceptthe Perces' camp,but it is more likely that the Indians Nez Perces, because he thought it "nextto impos- were preparingto leave ratherthan digging in for a sible for him [Howard]to move his Commandover fight. The night before, Shively had escaped after this trail."Sending Reddingtonback to Howard's he had showedthe Indiansa routeto Crowcountry. command,Fisher left campearly on September4 to It is clear that the Nez Perces were worriedabout keep watch on the Indians.After working his way how much the militaryknew about their location. throughthe thick timber,Fisher Lean Elk had warnedShively after Irwin'sescape: sawthem gather their horses andpull down lodges "I no care [aboutIrwin] but if you try to go I get about noon .... They are following up Canyon heapmad." The Indiansknew that they hadto move 29. This descriptionis based on personalobservations in the Lamar Riverarea in 1983.The Yellowstoneforest goes through a full cycle 27. J. W. Reddingtonto LucullusV. McWhorter,November 1931, approximatelyevery 100 years, so whatwe see inthe mid-1980sis probably Folder 175, #167, McWhorterPapers; J. W. Reddington,"Scouting in the kind of conditionsthe Nez Perces saw. DanielGoodenough, in his Montanain the 1870s,"typescript, John W. ReddingtonPapers, SC 683, 1973article, assumed that the "trap"was MillerCreek, even though, as he MHSA;Shively's Account, New Northwest, September 14, 1877.Redding- noted,"Miller Creek is not, in facta complete'trap'." He calls it a "trap," ton wroteseveral articles about his yearsas a scoutfor Sunset Magazine, because"a party moving on horseswould have no sensibleroute through PacificMonthly, and other publications. He was consistentin his tellingof the mountainsexcept to followthe streamup and over Bootjack Gap." This the Nez Perce story. See manuscriptarticles in John W. Reddington is faultyreasoning, assuming beforehand that BootJackGap was their Papers,University of WashingtonArchives, Seattle. destination,an area that provided no reasonablecamping area or placefor 28. FisherJournal, p. 8; FisherJournal, Contributions, 275. 2,000head of livestock.Goodenough, "Lost on ColdCreek," 26.

This content downloaded by the authorized user from 192.168.52.75 on Fri, 7 Dec 2012 11:48:26 AM All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions nearlyEast. They are now in what the Bannockscall Reddingtonleft for Howard'scommand on the the trap; they tell me that there is no way of morningof September3, beforeFisher saw the Nez getting out of it except at each end being about15 perces packup theircamp and before he continued miles throughit. After dogging them alongabout 3 down the LamarRiver toward Soda Butte Creek. miles at 2 we p.m. heard rapidfireing imediately When went to LeanElk's on the below us in the Canyonabout 100 shots fired.We Shively lodge night left our horses and starteddown towards the fire- of September2-"with his boots on"as he put it- ing but find a perpendicularwall between us and and then escaped under a clear and dark sky, he the row... 28 "startedsouth... then circledaround north... and headed for Baronette'sbridge on the Yellowstone, Fisher's of the Nez Perces' description escape forty miles away."Shively guided himself by the route- presumablythe one thatShively had showed "SodaButtes and the North Star,"which he could them-is the most clue to the Indians' important see from the ridge. It is likely that Shivelyleft the track the Absarokas.On a through topographical Nez Perces' camp near present-dayLittle Saddle of Yellowstone National Miller Creek map Park, Mountain,crossed the LamarRiver near its junction and the LamarRiver upper look like good candi- with the upper Lamar (where Reddingtonwould dates for the Bannock's both are "trap"; long, deep have seen his bootprint),and traveledon the ridge canyons,with few or no exits. But when you look at west of the riverto Baronett'sbridge.32 the on the canyons ground,they are very different. Afterhe watchedthe Indiansflee into the "trap," MillerCreek is a steep andthickly forested canyon, Fisherreturned to campand waited for his scouts to matted with a tangle of fallen lodgepole pines, return with informationabout the location of the sometimes three logs deep. The upperLamar is a fleeingIndians. The scouts had exchangedfire with deep slash in the volcanicmountainside, with pre- the rearguardof the fleeing Indians-the shots that cipitouscliffs and only two exits nearthe end of its Fisherhad heardechoing in the canyonbelow him. canyon.Because of frequentrun-off floods, the river As Fisher recorded in his journal,his scouts told has cut a wide swathas it dropsto the canyonfloor. him that the Nez Perces had tried to negotiate, Pavedwith riverrock and free of timber,the upper holleringto them: Lamaropens like an inviting causeway and then we dont want if quicklyturns into a narrowingfunnel as it climbs to fight you for you are Crows toward the Absarokasummit. This was the Nez Bannocksor Snakesyou are our friendslet us talk and Smoke.but the knew their too well Perces'shortest and most directroute to the Clark's boys game and told them they wouldtalk with theirguns the Fork.Given the choice, it seems very unlikelythat boys stood them offuntill after dark left theirextra the Nez Perces wouldhave passed by this "trap"for animalsand slid out cautiously.33 the jumbleof MillerCreek.29 logjam This left no doubt in Fisher's mind that the There is other evidencethat the upperLamar is report the and the route the Nez Perces Nez Perces were moving east to the Clark'sFork. "trap" principal He 5 in writ- took the Absarokas.When recountinghis spent September campcleaning guns, through for the and on his with Fisher, Reddington remembered ing reports command, reflecting scouting situation."Am Fisherwrote in his "of searchingfor Shively: tired," journal, tryingto get Soldiers& hostiles together. U.S.too No,we didnot see Shively,butwe sawhis big tracks slow for business." in the mudalong the creekwhere he escaped.They On September6, Fisher led his scouts downthe as he was a no. 13boot. We looked though wearing Lamarabout fifteen miles to Soda Butte Creek, followed his trail some distance, and yelled fre- so that if he was in the brush he where they followed the now fast-movingcom- quently hiding mand to the Clark'sFork. But on the down wouldcome out;but we got no response.30 way the Lamar,the scoutsagain found "the enemys trail" Reddingtonhad been with Fisher only a few hours, at "apoint where it [Lamar]formed a junctionwith whenthey were "onthe headwatersof the EastFork another Stream betwixt the Stream we followed of the Yellowstone."The onlystreams he couldhave down and Soda Butte Creek. They [Nez Perces] inspectedwere the upperLamar, Mist Creek, and then turnedSouth of East followingup this middle Cold Creek.31 stream."34 30. Reddingtonto McWhorter,March 10, 1931, Folder 158, #93, McWhorterPapers. 32. New Northwest,September 14, 1877.Little Saddle Mountain is 31. Reddingtonto McWhorter,November 1931, Folder 175, #167. high enough to providea clear view over the Absarokadivide to the Whenhe was askedwhether the Indianswent up MillerCreek, Redding- Clark'sFork of the Yellowstone,so it could be the peak from which ton replied:"I never heard of MillerKrick [Miller Creek was namedin "Shivelyshowed them [Indians]the open countryabout 20 miles off 1880],and know that the hostile'smain trail led up PelicanKrick, and on towardCrow country." the northwesttowards the headof EastFork." Reddington to McWhorter, 33. FisherJournal, p. 9. February1935, Folder 175, #99. Reddington corrected McWhorter's map, 34. Ibid.Using Fisher's mileage estimates, it is clearthat he was near whichhad the Nez Perces travelingdirectly across the MirrorPlateau, the mouthof the upperLamar River when he watchedthe Indianshead Folder175, #100, McWhorter Papers. east intothe "trap."

This content downloaded by the authorized user from 192.168.52.75 on Fri, 7 Dec 2012 11:48:26 AM All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions This description in Fisher'sjournal is prospectorGeorge Huston, and two of Howard's confusing.How could he watchthe Indians officersfound the Nez Perces'trail on September8. dive into the "trap"and then discovertheir From CrandallCreek, the Indianswent up Dead trail again twelve miles down the Lamar?35The Indian Hill, drew Colonel Samuel Sturgis out of answer to the riddle begins with the assumption position, and droppeddown to the mouth of the thatthe Nez Perces traveledin onelarge group and Clark'sFork Canyon and out towardthe Yellow- that Joseph and LookingGlass camped together. stone River.That deception and the subsequent There is no reason for this assumptionand much fight at CanyonCreek against Sturgis'stroops is evidence to the contrary.Yellow Wolf tells us that anotherchapter in the story of the flight.From the severalscouting parties canvased both sides of the Nez Perces'exit fromYellowstone National Park in YellowstoneRiver and that they operatedfrom dif- Septemberto the horrificbattle at Snake Creek in ferent camps. And McWhorter'sinformants told the Bears Paw Mountains one month later, the him that Joseph was not lost but perhapsanother sequence of forcedmarches, skirmishes, and battle grouphad become disoriented.36 rushed the Indiansheadlong into a tragic history. We know that Shively was with Lean Elk and What remains importantin this story is the Nez LookingGlass and that the "SnakeChief' who had Perces' respite in the Park. been sent to scout for soldiershad been the one to There is no proofthat the upperLamar was the burn Baronett'sbridge. What we do not know is primarycourse taken by the Nez Perces,even though whetherthe "SnakeChief' was with LookingGlass the preponderanceof evidence, both in the docu- or Joseph. It is likely that Joseph, who had later mentary record and on the landscape, strongly insistedto Hugh Scottthat he had wantedto travel suggests this route.It is an interestingfinding, but downthe Yellowstone,had moveddown the Lamar if thatwere allthat we couldlearn from the evidence to nearMiller or Calfeecreeks. This wouldhave put this wouldbe an only an engaging exercise. There the two main Nez Perce camps about eight to ten is somethingof more substancehere. milesapart, with the livestocknear the upperLamar, Whatthe evidence indicatesis that the Nez Pe- the onlyplace along the LamarRiver with sufficient rces were not lost in Yellowstone NationalPark. pasturefor such a largeherd. We also knowfrom a Severalof the leaders,including Looking Glass and newspapercorrrespondent that Howard'smilitary LeanElk, had been on the YellowstoneRiver many scouts, who ascended the Lamarfrom Soda Butte times beforeand knew the region.While they made Creek after Fisher had caught up with Howard's their way through the Park-especially afterthey command,followed the Indians'trail to had capturedthe tourists-the Indianskept scouts for the best routes and on the a washed-outbasin, where the constantaction of busy searching theelements has left pinnacles, towers and battle- lookoutfor the militaryand more tourists. More im- mentsof titanicstructure [where].... we couldin portantly,the Nez Perces remainedset on avoiding halfa daybagthe lot [NezPerces] if we were strong conflict,even though they could not alwayscontrol enough.They now number nearly 200 lodges.37 young warriorswho wantedto count coup or were bent on forthe Holebattle. set the was the Hoodoo revenge Big They The correspondent describing free anddid not membersof the the head of the a of Carpenters pursue Basin at upper Lamar, place Cowan who had fled or Irwin after he had rock formationsand the exit party exotic-looking logical their trek the Park, from the The Hoodoo Basin is also escaped. During through they "trap." easily maintainedno rear untilFisher's scouts the BannockTrail between guard pur- reached by ascending sued them as fled into the Cacheand Calfee creeks and south they "trap." traversing along The evidencealso indicatesthat the Nez Perces and Glass's theAbsarokadivide. SoJoseph's Looking madetheir andtactical decisions in a council have rendezvousedin the area strategic bands could easily of leaders after the alternatives. ParkerPeak to the Hoodoo Basin. discussing They extendingfrom made these decisions as each also in the which could they went, facing There are large parks area, situationand the inherent have the livestockwith evaluating dangers.They provided amplegrazing. made some serious mistakes,both before and after Fromthe HoodooBasin area, the Nez Perceshad severaleasy routes they could have taken to Cran- dallCreek and the Clark'sFork River, where Fisher, 36. McWhorter,Yellow Wolf, 177; McWhorter interrogations, Folder 158,#124. 37. FrankJ. Parkerin IdahoWeekly Statesman, September 29, 1877. 35. InFlight of the Nez Perce (338-339), Brown noted Fisher's discov- Parkerreported on the army'sprogress after they crossed the partially ery of the "enemystrail" but did not findthe contradiction,conjecturing burnedbridge. The datelinefor this segment was September 9,1877, in the that "itis highly probablethat the Indianscontinued to followthe old Yellowstonewilderness. BannockTrail," which went over the divide at Canoe Lake. Aubrey 38. New Northwest,September 14, 1877. Over the years, I have Haines,The Yellowstone Story, 1:235-236, also mentionedFisher's double profitedimmensely from discussions with Stu Connerof Billings,Mon- discovery,but he putthe Indiansin bothinstances on the BannockTrail, tana,about the terrainnear the Clark'sFork and the Nez Perces'route even thoughFisher had traveled twelve miles between sightings. downto CanyonCreek.

This content downloaded by the authorized user from 192.168.52.75 on Fri, 7 Dec 2012 11:48:26 AM All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions At the top of the Absarokadivide, where the two mainNez Percegroups may have joined up, there are severalopen parkareas where the Indians'large herd could have grazed. theywere in Yellowstone,but there is littlequestion kept movingafter the Big Hole battleand had done that they succeeded in eluding the militaryand little hunting. In Yellowstone it was different,as thoroughlyfrustrating their pursuers.While they Lean Elk had told Shively:the Indiansplanned to were in the Park,they operatedwith limitedknowl- stayin the Parkfor a few days,because the "elkwere edge of the military'spositions and strategy and abundantand they were living off the fat of the theymade mistakes, but their errors were notdue to land."38Finally, they may have remainedbecause ignoranceabout their location,confusion about the the terrain and grasses looked disarminglylike landscape,or fickleness in their goal. The Nez Perces their homelandin Idahoand Oregon. wanted to stay in the Park. In other words, they Regardlessof why they remainedin the Parkfor decidedto remainin the Park;they were not there thirteendays, it probablywas the crucialdifference because of disorientationor incompetence. between a late summer escape to Canadaand the cold and snowy Snake Creek seige that brought their surrenderin earlyOctober. Throughout their ordeal,the Nez Perces had pursuedthe same strat- ut this still does not answerthe larger egy: avoidanceof conflict with whites and attain- questions:why did the Nez Perces want to ment of sanctuary.What they wantedwas theirtrue stay in the Park, and why did they stay so andjust homeland and an end to harassment.Those long?The few clues suggest some educatedspecu- days in the Park may have been the closest they lations.For one thing, the Nez Perces were tired came to their goals duringtheir heroic flight. o^_ and needed to rest. They had been under steady ever since had entered WILLIAML. LANG,former editor of Montana,has writ- military pressure they ten manyarticles on the historyof Montanaand the West Montana,and Yellowstone offered them a measure and is the co-authorof Montana:Our Land and People of relativesafety. They also expected aid and sanc- (2nded., 1989).Lang has taughthuman history courses, tuaryfrom the Crows,whose territorylay just be- including one on the Nez Perces in the Park, at the yond the mountainson the east edge of the Park. YellowstoneInstitute since 1981.He is currentlyworking Foranother, the Nez Perceswere hungry.They had on a book aboutthe ColumbiaRiver.

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