Posted on 05/19/2006 10:24:43 AM PDT by robowombat
Major Joel Haworth Elliott (b. October 27, 1840, d. November 27, 1868)
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Joel Haworth Elliott (son of Mark Elliott and Mary S. Haworth) was born October 27, 1840 in Centre Township, Wayne County, Indiana, and died November 27, 1868 in White Rock, on the Washita River, Indian Territory.
Notes for Joel Haworth Elliott: Joel Haworth Elliott was born to a stanch pacifist Quaker family in Wayne County, Indiana and lived on the family farm until the age of 21. He was recorded in the 1850 and 1860 U.S. census records living on the family farm in Centre Township in Wayne County, Indiana. His father, Mark Elliott, died unexpectedly in 1858. The early demise of his father resulted in Joel, at age 17, having to help run the family farm.
However, Joel ended up choosing a different path in life, which undoubtedly caused much concern to his family and Quaker friends. In the furor of the Civil War over 1200 young Quaker men of military age in Indiana were moved to join the fight against the Southern Rebellion. Joel H. Elliott was among those young Quaker men who, in spite of the Quaker Peace Testimony, took up arms to fight the rebels. He enlisted in Company C, 2nd Regiment, Indiana Volunteer Cavalry on August 28, 1861. Joel Elliott served in the Battles of Pittsburg Landing (Shiloh), Chaplin Hill and Stones River. In May of 1862 he was detailed as bodyguard on General Mc Cook's staff. After the Battle of Perryville he was transferred to Company M of the 7th Indiana Cavalry and promoted to Captain on October 21, 1863. He assisted in organizing Company E, 7th Regiment, Indiana Cavalry and was slightly wounded in skirmish with the famed Confederate Nathan Bedford Forrest. He survived a critical wound to his left lung and shoulder during the Battle of Brice's Cross Roads on June 10, 1864 in Guntown, Mississippi. In December 1864, commanding 200 men he was in Grierson's raid from Memphis to Vicksburg and participated in the fight at Verona, Mississippi capturing 4000 stands of arms. Through influence of Governor Oliver P. Morton, the Indiana war governor, he was raised to the rank of Major in the Seventh United States Cavalry in March of 1867. Major Elliot was assigned to the 7th Michigan and reported immediately to Fort Riley, Kansas. There he served under the command of Lt. Col. George Armstrong Custer in Kansas.
The following letter accompanied the Indiana Distinguished Service Medal presented to Major Joel H. Elliott (posthoumously) for Outstanding Meritorious Service.
. MILITARY DEPARTMENT OF INDIANA . 2002 South Holt Road . Indianapolis, Indiana 46241-4839 . PERMANENT ORDERS 085-003 . 29 September 1997
"By direction of the Governor of the State of Indiana, under provisions IC 1971, 10-2-9-1 (b), the Indiana Distinguished Service Medal for unusual, distinguished, or meritorious service is awarded to: . MAJOR JOEL H. ELLIOTT . COMPANY M, 7TH INDIANA CAVALRY REGIMENT . (POSTHUMOUSLY) "The Indiana Distinguished Service Medal (822) is hereby awarded to Major Joel H. Elliott for distinguishing himself by his heroism and leadership, while as a Captain, Commanding Company M, 7th Indiana Cavalry Regiment. Major Elliott participated in the expedition to Meridien, Mississippi, a retrograde movement to West Point, Mississippi, The Battle at Brice's Crossroads, and Grierson's Raid. The memory of Major Elliott's exemplary leadership, bravery, and loyalty to the colors he was serving, remain with us today as an inspiration and example to which all military personnel may aspire."
"BY THE ORDER OF ROBERT J. MITCHELL, Major General INARING, the Adjutant General"
The face of the medal reads: "INDIANA - LOYAL IN PEACE OR WAR" This medal is in the possession of the Wayne County Historical Museum, Richmond, Indiana.
The records of West Grove Meeting make no mention of him during the time he fought for the Union during the Civil War. As the Indiana Quakers were strongly in support of the Union it appears that Joel Elliott's Quaker Meeting simply looked the other way. However, after the war when Joel decided to make his profession in the military, he was disowned from West Grove Friends Meeting, Wayne County, Indiana, 4th month (April), 13th, 1867 "for serving in the army and accepting an office in the army."
On October 11, 1867 at Fort Leavenworth a court martial found Brevet Major General George Armstrong Custer, Lieutenant Colonel of the 7th U.S. Cavalry, guilty of "Absence without leave from his command" and two counts of "Conduct to the prejudice of good order and military discipline." The court sentenced him to suspension from rank and command for one year, and forfeiture of his pay for the same time. Major Joel H. Elliott was put in command of the 7th Cavalry during the year Custer was suspended from his command and his rank after being court martialed. That same month Major Joel Elliott took 150 men from the 7th U.S. Cavalry, and a battery of the 4th to Medicine Lodge Creek (Kansas) to meet with the five major plains tribes to sign a peace treaty. Artillery provided the escort for the "Peace Commission" who were to go to Medicine Lodge Creek and meet the Indians. The troops left Ft. Larned on October 12th, 1867 with over 200 wagons, 30 of which were filled with gifts for the Indians. They arrived at Medicine Lodge Creek on the morning of the 14th. Over 5000 Indians from five different tribes were present at that meeting. By Monday, October 28th, 1867 all tribes present (the Kiowa, the Comanche, the Kiowa-Apache, the Cheyenne and Arapahos) signed the "Medicine Lodge Peace Treaty."
Custer returned to active duty at the request of General Sheridan in September 1868 to assume the command of the 7th Michigan. He was to immediately take to the field, seek out and engage hostile Kiowa, Comanche, Cheyenne and Arapaho Indians in Indian Territory. On November 27th, 1868 Custer's 7th U.S. Cavalry lead a surprise attack at dawn on a sleeping Cheyenne village located at White Rock along the banks of the Washita River, Indian Territory. Major Joel Haworth Elliott lost his life that day as he pursued a group of Cheyennes seeking escape from the slaughter. The leader of that band of Southern Cheyenne was Peace Chief Motatavo (Black Kettle). He and his wife were mercilessly killed as they sought escape. Hanging from the top of his teepee was a white flag. Chief Black Kettle had assured the members of that village that the Americans would not attack them as long as the white flag flew above his teepee. He was dead wrong.
The following statements are from the web site of the National Park Service Washita Battlefield National Historic Site. [Source: http://www.nps.gov/waba/story.htm]
"Black Kettle and Arapaho Chief Big Mouth went to Fort Cobb [Indian Territory] in November 1868 to petition General William B. Hazen for peace and protection. A respected leader of the Southern Cheyenne, Black Kettle had signed the Little Arkansas Treaty in 1865 and the Medicine Lodge Treaty in 1867. Hazen told them that he could not allow them to bring their people to Fort Cobb for protection because only General Sheridan, his field commander, or Lt. Col. George Custer, had that authority. Disappointed, the chiefs headed back to their people at the winter encampments on the Washita River."
"Black Kettle, who had just returned from Fort Cobb a few days before, had resisted the entreaties of some of his people, including his wife, to move their camp down river closer to larger encampments of Cheyennes, Kiowas, and Apaches wintered there. He refused to believe that Sheridan would order an attack without first offering an opportunity for peace."
"Before dawn, the troopers attacked the 51 lodges, killing a number of men, women, and children. Custer reported about 100 killed, though Indian accounts claimed 11 warriors plus 19 women and children lost their lives. More than 50 Cheyennes were captured, mainly women and children. Custer's losses were light: 2 officers and 19 enlisted men killed. Most of the soldier casualties belonged to Major Joel Elliott's detachment, whose eastward foray was overrun by Cheyenne, Arapaho, and Kiowa warriors coming to Black Kettle's aid. Chief Black Kettle and his wife were killed in the attack."
"Following Sheridan's plan to cripple resistance, Custer ordered the slaughter of the Indian pony and mule herd estimated at more than 800 animals. The lodges of Black Kettle's people, with all their winter supply of food and clothing, were torched. Realizing now that many more Indians were threatening from the east, Custer feigned an attack toward their down river camps, then quickly retreated to Camp Supply with his hostages."
More details on the November 1868 massacre at Chief Black Kettle's winter camp on the Washita can be found at: http://www.forttours.com/pages/tocwashita.asp
J. R. Mead, writing in the Wichita Eagle many years after the battle, called the Washita affair a massacre of innocent Indians. The writer declared that Black Kettle was not a hostile and never had been, that General Hazen had given the chief a letter guaranteeing him and his band protection, and that when William "Dutch Bill" Greiffenstein, a friendly trader and afterwards mayor of Wichita (1878-1884), accused Sheridan of striking a camp of friendly Indians he was ordered out of the Indian territory by Sheridan and threatened with hanging if he returned. [Source: The Wichita Daily Eagle, March 2, 1893].
A letter written by Joel Elliott less than 30 days before his death in Indian Territory to Theodore Russell Davis, a significant frontier journalist and artist of that era. This letter from the Miscellaneous Collection, Theodore R. Davis, Manuscripts Department, Kansas State Historical Society, Topeka:
. "Camp 7th U.S. Cavalry . "Near Ft. Dodge, Kansas . "October 31st, 1868
"My Dear Davis,
"Yours of Sept. 21st. reached me a short time ago. I fear I can give you but little satisfaction in most of your queries but will answer as much because 'I feel out of humor' [underlined] and so am fit for nothing but writing as from any other cause. "A grand winter campaign is being planned. Our column of the seven companies of the 5th cavalry, commanded by Bat. Maj. genl. Sears, are to go south from Fort Lyon. One of ten companies of the 7th cav. to go south from Fort Dodge and from Fort Larned. Genl. Custer is to command our column. He is already here. The regiment is in much better shape than I ever saw it before. Genl. Custer and Col. West seem to agree in letting the "Dead past bury its dead". Both the 5th and 10th have been having a little brush or two with the Indians. These with Forsyth's fight on the Republican, which by the way was about the best thing that has been done for some years in the way of Indian fighting, make all the 'real war' [underlined] we have had. "I recently read a long article in the "Herald" from some scribbler who was trying to make some reputation for Genl. Sully out of his expedition to the Canadian in Sept. I had the honor to command the cavalry on that expedition and if it was 'fighting' [underlined twice] then Indian Wars must be a huge joke. (Don't allow this to be public if you please for "Old Sully" is an amiable old fellow and I would not like to hurt his feelings.) "I see some of the papers are pittying the "Poor Indian" as usual, while the Peace Commisioners are making heros and saints of them again. I only wish some of the most enthusiastic of their admirers both male and female could have been the recipients of the "Noble Reds" kindnesses instead of the unfortunate settlers on the Saline and Solomon. One of the women brought into Fort Harker was ravished by twenty three of the villians and then shot through the body. Strange to say she bids fair to recover from all this. Ed. Wyncop is out in a letter defending the Indians. If he were not so insignificant I would like to see him "Touched up" in good style. Comstock was one of the first victims to the savages. He and a scout named Grover had visited the camp of "Black Kettle" a Cheyenne Chief then supposed to be friendly and were leaving it when they were followed and shot. Grover feigned death and escaped with his life. Comstock was killed [in] the first fire. From some cause the Indians did not scalp him. He is the only one of our scouts who have been killed to my knowledge. Under present circumstances I think my chances of getting coyote skins are at least no better than they are of being 'eaten by the coyotes' [underlined]. We are in the field and 'move light' [underlined], which latter means as uncomfortable as possible. "When I began this letter I had an idea of conveying to you my 'grumblings' [underlined] about "Army Life on the Border" but have already written a tolerably long letter and haven't begun my subject yet. So I'l (sic) wait for a more favorable oportunity (sic). Many thanks for those stamps. If you owed me any you have a better memory than I have but I was just as glad to receive them as though you had been my debtor for a thousand."
. Very truly yours, . Joel H. Elliott
In Custer's report on the "Battle of the Washita" to Gen. Sheridan he wrote in part: "The Indians left on the ground and in our possession, the bodies of 108 of their warriors, including "Black Kettle" himself, whose scalp is now in the possession of one of our Osage guides. My men charged the village, and reached the lodge before the Indians were aware of our presence. ..... We captured in good condition 875 horses, ponies and mules, 241 saddles, some of very fine and costly workmanship; 523 buffalo robes, 210 axes, 140 hatchets, 35 revolvers, 47 rifles, 535 pounds of powder, 1050 pounds of lead, 4,000 arrows, 90 bullet-molds, 35 bows and quivers, 12 shields, 300 pounds of bullets, 775 lariats, 940 buckskin saddle-bags, 470 blankets, 93 coats, 700 pounds of tobacco. In addition, we captured all their winter supply of dried buffalo meat, all their meal, flour, and other provisions, and, in fact, everything they possessed, even driving the warriors from the village with little or no clothing. We destroyed everything of value to the Indians." [Source: http://www.hillsdale.edu/dept/History/War/America/Indian/1868-Washita-Custer.htm]
What is officially referred to as the "Battle of the Washita" ought in truth be remembered as the "Washita Massacre". This incursion was the second time that Chief Black Kettle's village had been attacked by soldiers of the U.S. army. The first massacre of this band's village took place in what is now Kiowa County, Colorado in 1864 and is "officially" dubbed the 'Sand Creek Massacre. [More info on the Sand Creek Massacre: http://www.nps.gov/sand/]
Joel Elliott's body along with the other 17 fallen soldiers was recovered from the battlefield two weeks later on December 11th, 1868. Major Elliott's body was taken to Fort Cobb, Indian Territory for burial. When Ft. Cobb was closed his remains were removed to Fort Arbuckle, Indian Territory. After Fort Arbuckle was decommissioned in 1870, his remains were disinterred and taken from there to Ft. Gibson and reburied in the Officers' Circle at Ft. Gibson National Cemetery, Ft. Gibson, Muskogee Co., Oklahoma in 1872.
Mary Haworth Elliott wrote to General Sherman on December 5, 1868 requesting that her son's body be returned to the family for burial in Centreville, Indiana. Her request was never fulfilled.
Obituary printed in the "Richmond (Indiana) Palladium", December 8, 1868: "Major Joel H. Elliott, whose parents reside near Economy, in this county, was killed in the recent severe fight between the Indians and Custer's Command--Major Elliott entered the service as Lieutenant in the Seventh Indiana Cavalry, and by meritous conduct was promoted, step by step, until he attained the rank of Major, in the regular Army." --Telegram
In 1875 Fort Elliott, a military post, was established in Wheeler County, Texas. Troops from Fort Elliott patrolled both the Panhandle and western Indian Territory. Their main task was to stop small hunting parties of Indians from entering the Panhandle, but on several occasions during the late 1870s they pursued bands seeking to escape the reservation. Fort Elliott was named in honor of Major Joel H. Elliott.
The following was written by Lawrence H. Hart, a Cheyenne Peace Chief, a Mennonite minister and great grandson of Afraid of Beavers, a survivor of Custer's attack on Black Kettle's village on 11/27/1868: It is called "A Cheyenne Legacy on the Washita River":
"O dai! (listen)," a Cheyenne woman whispered in the early morning of November 27, 1868. The noises she heard struck fear to her heart. Four years before, she had survived a terrible massacre at Sand Creek in eastern Colorado. Her fear was especially heightened the evening before when Cheyenne Peace Chief Black Kettle—traveling with warriors Little Robe and Spotted Wolf and Arapaho Chief Big Mouth—returned from his visit with Colonel William H. Hazen at Fort Cobb. They had gone seeking an assurance of peace and safety.
"Surely the colonel would honor Black Kettle’s peaceful cooperation. Had the chief not received a peace medal from the hand of Abraham Lincoln, president of the United States? Was he not flying the American flag given him in the nation’s capital as a symbol of his peaceful intentions, as well as a white flag of peace? Had he not signed the treaties of 1865 and 1867? Had he not survived the terrible Sand Creek massacre without making any resistance?
"Colonel Hazen refused to give them the protection they sought. He told them that the federal government had initiated a winter campaign to punish them for attacks against Kansas settlers. When the chiefs returned to their respective winter camps with the bad news, everyone was alarmed.
"Cheyenne men discussed the impending campaign in Black Kettle’s lodge. His wife, Medicine Woman Later, was listening. She had survived nine bullet wounds at Sand Creek and wanted the camp moved immediately, but it was midnight and very cold. The men decided to stay one more night by the banks of the Hooxeeohe, the Cheyenne name for the Washita River in Indian Territory, later to become the state of Oklahoma.
"As it turned out, Medicine Woman Later’s intuition was right. The unsettling noises she heard that night came from eight hundred approaching troops. Lieutenant Colonel George Armstrong Custer led the Seventh U.S. Cavalry to within striking distance, arriving at midnight. At dawn on November 27, with a foot of snow on the ground, the regimental band of the Seventh Cavalry played their marching song, "Garry Owen," signaling the attack.
"Terror struck the Cheyenne. The sword-wielding Custer, who himself would one day die by the sword, ordered the attack from four sides. The troops charged through the cluster of fifty-one lodges, shooting right and left. Hearing the noise of the weapons and the screams, Arapaho and Cheyenne warriors from nearby villages came running. Eventually, Kiowa, Comanche, and Plains Apache warriors joined the fight.
"Twenty-two soldiers were killed and thirteen wounded. Custer’s troops captured fifty-three Cheyenne Indians, mostly women. They torched Black Kettle’s village, including the winter supply of food and clothing, and slaughtered over eight hundred Cheyenne horses. Black Kettle and Medicine Woman Later tried to escape, but they were shot off their horse and fell into the Washita River.
"Lieutenant Colonel Custer reported to his superior officer: "After a desperate conflict of several hours, our efforts were crowned with the most complete and gratifying success." He claimed to have killed 108 warriors, when in fact most of the victims were women and children. Furthermore, he was pleased that Black Kettle’s scalp was in the possession of one of his Osage guides.
"Chief Black Kettle did what weaker men could not do; he refused to fight violence with violence. He had been taught the words of Cheyenne prophet, Sweet Medicine:
"If you see your mother, wife, or children being molested or harmed by anyone, you do not go and seek revenge. Take your pipe. Go, sit and smoke and do nothing, for you are now a Cheyenne chief."
More details on the "Battle of the Washita" are found on Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_the_Washita
More About Joel Haworth Elliott: Burial: 1872, National Cemetery/Grave #2233 (Officers' Circle of Honor), Ft. Gibson, Muskogee Co., Oklahoma.
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