One hundred forty-nine years ago tomorrow, Col. Patrick Edward Connor led the forces of the Third California Infantry against a village of Northern Shoshone in Idaho. When the battle was over, 14 California troops and an unknown number of Native Americans were dead.
The battle was first named the Battle of Bear River, but history has come to call it the Bear River Massacre since losses among the Northern Shoshone range between 224 and 493 dead. These are higher casualty figures than either Wounded Knee or Sand Creek, both of which are better known to students of western American history. (In addition to the 14 dead, the California forces suffered 49 injuries, seven of which were mortal.)
Click on the links below for additional information on the Bear River Massacre:
Wikipedia entry on the Bear River Massacre
Online Utah entry on the Bear River Massacre
Military History Online entry on the Bear River Massacre and the American Civil War
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