Battle of Camas Creek

Battle of Camas Creek
Part of the Nez Perce War
Camas Meadows, 2003
Date August 20, 1877 Location Southeastern Idaho, United States Camp: 44°21′11″N 111°53′6″W / 44.35306°N 111.88500°W / 44.35306; -111.88500Coordinates: 44°21′11″N 111°53′6″W / 44.35306°N 111.88500°W / 44.35306; -111.88500 Siege: 44°24′45″N 111°47′41″W / 44.41250°N 111.79472°W / 44.41250; -111.79472 Result Nez Perce victory
Belligerents
United States Army	Nez Perce tribe
Commanders and leaders
General Oliver O. Howard Capt. Randolph Norwood	Chief Joseph Looking Glass White Bird Ollokot Toohoolhoolzote
Strength
300 men	<200 warriors
Casualties and losses
3 killed 6 wounded	probably only 2 wounded

The Battle of Camas Creek, August 20, 1877, was a raid by the Nez Perce Indians on a U.S. Army encampment and a subsequent battle during the Nez Perce War. The Nez Perce defeated three companies of U.S. cavalry and continued their fighting retreat to escape the U.S. Army.

After sustaining heavy casualties at the Battle of the Big Hole on August 9–10, the Nez Perce proceeded southward though Montana, crossed into Idaho again at Bannock Pass, and descended into the valley of the Lemhi River. The Nez Perce were aware that the U.S. army was pursuing them and, to confound the army, they took a circuitous route less familiar to them than their usual direct route to the Montana Great Plains. During this section of their retreat, their guide and the leader of their march was a half-Nez Perce, half-French man of several names, the most common being Poker Joe. The White settlers in the Lemhi Valley had been warned that the Nez Perce might be coming their way and most of them had fled to the town of Lemhi.

The pursuer of the Nez Perce, General O. O. Howard did not follow the Nez Perce directly, but rather took a shorter route across southern Montana hoping to intercept them near Yellowstone National Park. Howard had 310 soldiers plus a varying number of civilian volunteers, usually several dozen, and Indian scouts, primarily Bannocks, but also some Nez Perce friendly to the U.S. Howard detached 50 men, including Indian scouts, under Lt. George R. Bacon to rush ahead and guard Red Rock Pass, thus hoping to catch the Nez Perce between his and Bacon's soldiers. Howard was coming under severe criticism for his failure to defeat the Nez Perce during a campaign that had now lasted two months.

The Nez Perce pursued by Howard probably numbered, after their losses at the Big Hole battle, about 700 persons with less than 200 warriors.

The death of many Nez Perce women and children at the Big Hole Battle caused a thirst for revenge among the young warriors of the Nez Perce and their leaders were not able to restrain them.

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Wikipedia