"Crook never lied to us. His words gave the people hope." -- Lakota Chief Red Cloud General George Crook, considered by many of his contemporaries, and historians alike to be the US Army's most skilled Indian fighter, respected Native Americans as valiant foes who deserved to be treated fairly and humanely in defeat. Early Years Born near Dayton, Ohio, September 8, 1828, George Crook graduated near the bottom of his class from the US Military Academy at West Point in 1852. As a young lieutenant in Oregon and California, he received his first experience with Indians and saw first-hand how...