Hualapai War (1865–70)

Hualapai War
Part of the American Indian Wars, Yavapai Wars
A map of Camp Date Creek and the adjoining Hualapai reservation in 1869.
Date 1865 - 1870 Location Arizona Territory Result United States victory
Belligerents
United States	Hualapai Yavapai Havasupai
Commanders and leaders
William Hardy William Redwood Price	Anasa † Wauba Yuba † Sherum Leve Leve Hitchi Hitchi Hualapai Charley
Strength
unknown	~250 warriors

The Hualapai War, or Walapai War, was an armed conflict fought from 1865 to 1870 between the Hualapai native Americans and the United States in Arizona Territory. The Yavapai also participated on the side of the Hualapai and Mohave scouts were employed by the United States Army. Following the death of the prominent Yavapai leader Anasa in April 1865, the natives began raiding American settlements which provoked a response by the United States Army forces stationed in the area. By the spring of 1869 disease forced the majority of the Hualapais to surrender though some skirmishing continued for almost two more years.

Tensions between the Hualapai people and settlers began with encroachment of Indian lands. The Hualapai lived in the area between the Grand Canyon and the Bill Williams River. In 1857 Edward Fitzgerald Beale carved a road through Hualapai territory, leading to Needles, California, and in 1863, gold was discovered in the Prescott Valley. The gold rush brought a steady flow of miners and other settlers to the area so in 1864 Captain William Hardy built a toll road through Hualapai territory between Prescott and Bull Head City, which was then known as Hardyville. The road later spread out, leading to other places such as Fort Mohave and the Colorado River ports. Relations with the natives were generally peaceful and Hardy was able to acquire a fortune by building a ferry across the Colorado River and by taxing the settlers who used his road. However, in April 1865, drunken settlers killed Anasa during a meeting which led the Yavapai to wage war. The Hualapai called on their Havasupai and Yavapai allies to help them fight and they accepted, warriors under Chief Leve Leve (half-brother to Sherum and Hualapai Charley, both Chiefs of the Middle Mountain People subtribe) of the Amat Whala Pa'a (Mad hwa:la Ba:' – “Hualapai Mountains band”) of the Yavapai Fighters subtribe assembled. In all there were about 250 Hualapai warriors, and an unknown number of Yavapai and Apache allies, facing hundreds of United States Army troops and militia. At the time, there was no distinction between the Yavapai and the Western Apache people. Due to their close relationship with tribes such as the Tonto Apache, the word Yavapai was not then in use so the Yavapai was considered as Tonto Apaches, or Apache-Mohaves. The actual fighting took the form of guerrilla warfare, in which small bands of natives cut off Hardy's road and raided using hit and run tactics. It was not until Captain Hardy negotiated a peace treaty with the Hualapai at Camp Beale's Spring that the raids were ceased. Nine months later, during another meeting with the Hualapai chiefs, settlers killed Wauba Yuma which renewed the hostilities.

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