GOV. SIBLEY APPOINTED COMMANDER.
While these scenes which I have related were being enacted in the
upper country excitement ran high at St. Paul, and for a time the
great struggle then going on in the South was forgotten. The news of
the outbreak soon reached St. Paul, and couriers, with horses covered
with foam, kept coming in one after another, until the officers at Fort
Snelling were ordered by Governor Ramsey to be in readiness with their
men to move at a moment's notice, and we did not have long to wait.
The Sixth Minnesota, of which I was a member, had just organized, and
was assigned to Hancock corps, Army of the Potomac, but the events
transpiring in the Indian country made it necessary for all available
troops to go there. When I say that the whole country was seething with
excitement it is no exaggeration. The towns, big and little, were filled
with frightened refugees; the rumors that came in were of the most
frightful nature, and the whole state was clamorous for protection.
Governor Ramsey, in his desire to protect the panic-stricken people and
liberate the captives, cast about for a suitable commander for this
important work. Of all the men in and about St. Paul who seemed eminently
qualified for this position, Governor Henry H. Sibley, who at that time
was living in quietude in his home in Mendota, just across the river from
the fort, was his choice.
Governor Henry Hastings Sibley, the hero of these Indian campaigns, was
born in the city of Detroit February 20, 1811. His sire was Chief Justice
Solomon Sibley, of Detroit, and his mother was Sarah Whipple Sproat,
whose father, Colonel Ebenezer Sproat, was an accomplished officer of the
Continental army, and the granddaughter of Commodore Abraham Whipple, an
illustrious commander in the Continental navy. He came from a long line
of illustrious ancestry on both sides, of good Puritan stock, and dating
his lineage back to the Sibleys of William the Conqueror of England in
the fifteenth century.
He was not a fighter; his heart was too tender for that, but he felt
the weighty responsibility he had assumed when he consented to lead
the soldiers and save the lives of the captives. For delaying he
was denounced on all hands. The press denounced him for not falling
immediately upon the Indians; but he knew the enemy better than his
censors. If he had heeded the behests of the clamorous people not a
captive would have been spared; but to-day hundreds live to bless him for
his cautious, conservative movements. Until his death, which occurred
but a few months since, he lived in his beautiful home in St. Paul; and,
although a half century of winters in the far Northwest had whitened
his head, and a great deal more than a half century of time had made
his limbs tremble, neither time nor frost had sapped the citadel of his
mind. He was a member of Aker Post, No. 21, Department of Minnesota, and
the comrades, in deference to his declining years, went in a body to his
beautiful home where he was mustered in. He lived in peace and plenty,
surrounded by his family and friends, who esteemed him for his worth.
He passed away respected and regretted by a host of friends throughout
the land, who knew him as a citizen and a soldier. I knew him personally
and intimately since 1857; and in his death, with others great in our
nation's history, we are reminded that in war the bullet is no respecter
of rank; the commander and the soldier fall together.
Governor Sibley was commissioned by Governor Ramsey as Colonel of
Volunteers, and assigned to the command of the expedition. He was
selected because he had spent many years of his life among the Indians
as a trader, he spoke their language, he knew them personally, and knew
their characteristics. He was a man of large experience, education and
ability, and possessed, withal, a cool head. He knew the Indians, and
they knew him and respected him. He consented to lead the forces against
the Indians when appealed to by Governor Ramsey, upon conditions that he
should not be interfered with by His Excellency, or any one else, and
that he should have adequate supplies of men, stores and transportation.
Colonel Sibley, afterwards Brigadier and Brevet Major-General of
Volunteers, with his staff and Companies A, B, and E, of the Sixth
Minnesota Infantry, embarked on a small steamer then at anchor near the
fort, and steamed up the Minnesota river to Shakopee, distant about forty
miles by water. We started in a furious rain, and after a slow trip up
the narrow and winding Minnesota, arrived at Shakopee, where we found the
frightened citizens ready to receive us with open arms, although all the
firearms we had were worthless and condemned Austrian rifles, without
ammunition to fit them. All serviceable material of war had been shipped
to the South. Our first guard duty was on picket in the suburbs of
Shakopee, and our instructions were to press all teams into the service.
We felt the gravity of the situation, and obeyed orders to the letter as
nearly as we, raw recruits, could. While here the news was spread that
Indians were in the vicinity, and the women and children began to flock
to the vicinity of the soldiers; the alarm was without foundation. As
we were stationed on the various roads leading to and from the town,
the citizens who had been so badly scared seemed to feel comparatively
safe. The news from the upper country, however, was discouraging, and
appeals for protection very urgent. We could not move at once from lack
of transportation, and had no adequate supplies, either of food, arms or
ammunition, for we had been so hurriedly dispatched from Fort Snelling
that only about half of one company had been supplied with even the
worthless muskets spoken of, and the whole command with but two days'
rations. It was necessary, however, to make some quick demonstration to
appease the panic-stricken people. After a delay of one day, by various
routes by land and water, the regiment concentrated at St. Peter, under
command of Colonel William Crooks, where it was inspected and remained
four or five days, awaiting the receipt of suitable arms and ammunition
and also reinforcements.
Our guns were so absolutely worthless that it was necessary to delay
a little, as the Indians, in large numbers, were then besieging Fort
Ridgely, and were well armed with Springfield rifles, while our own arms
were condemned Austrian muskets.
We embarked on a boat at Shakopee and sailed up to Carver, forty miles
above, and there pressed in teams to carry us through what was known as
the "Big Woods." It had been raining for days, and the town of Carver
was literally packed with refugees. There was not an empty building in
it, even the warehouses were filled, and the muddy streets were a sight
to behold. The mud was ankle deep, and you may imagine in what condition
everything was. I cannot describe it.
The frightened people, who had flocked in from all the country round,
told most woeful tales of Indian atrocities. In some cases they were
overdrawn, but later on we saw evidences enough to warrant them fleeing
to a place of safety. There was no safety, however, in coming to these
small towns, for they were without protection.
After loading up the teams, we started through the "Big Woods," and the
roads were in such a horrible condition that we made but slow progress.
However, we had to make Glencoe, twenty-five miles distant, before night
or camp down in the woods in the mud. It became pitchy dark, but we kept
on the move, and in time got through the woods and could see the lights
of Glencoe afar off. This was only a small place, but the twinkling
lights from the houses were a pleasant sight, and when we arrived there
the people were glad to see us. We remained over night, and the next day
started for St. Peter. We could see evidences of Indian devastation in
every direction, among which were the burning buildings and grain stacks
on the beautiful neighboring farms.
On the route to St. Peter, which we reached early in the evening, we
discovered a few dead settlers, and took some families along with us.
Upon our arrival we went into camp with the rest of the command, and were
soon placed under strict military discipline, and in a brief time our
commander, Colonel William Crooks, a West Pointer, brought order out of
chaos.
Of the preparation and forward march to relieve Fort Ridgely I will
reserve for another chapter.
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