TURMOIL

IN THE

WALLA WALLA VALLEY

The Battle of Walla Walla
at
Frenchtown

December 7-10, 1855

 

By

STEVE C. PLUCKER

February 16, 2011

 

 

INTRODUCTION

 

The following excerpts and First Hand Accounts (FHA) are from reports and diaries from those who participated in the Battle of Walla Walla that occurred between December 7-10, 1855 in the Walla Walla Valley.

These reports and diaries are not intended to be one-sided.  If for any reason another “side of the story” comes to light by the Native Americans who also participated in the battle, it will be included within this report.

As you can see, there seems to be some confusion of just when some things occurred as within the different reports (some days are off, some events are different)…typographical errors???!

Some narrations are short and to the point…others are very detailed.  Some were given during and  shortly after the battle occurred, others were given months, even years later.  What was seen on the right, was not seen on the left and vise-versa; what was seen up front was not seen in the rear and vise-versa; and maybe some failing memories by some over the years…who knows for sure.

True or false, one must make up his or her own mind as to what happened during this time period before and during The Battle of Walla Walla.

All spelling errors in the official documents have been corrected.

OBJECT OF THIS:  To try to determine the routes, if possible, taken and the spots for which the incidents happened before and during the main battle.  Also to give the reader an idea of the events that took place during a certain day.

Known area Native American Indian Tribes that participated in the battle were believed to be the Palouse, Walla Walla, Umatilla, Cayuse, and Stock Whitley’s band of Deschutes.

The First Regiment of the Oregon Mounted Volunteers was created on October 11, 1855.  It was commanded by Lieutenant Colonel James K. Kelly.  It consisted of 10 companies, all from counties in the Oregon Territory.  Those counties which participated in the upcoming events were: Companies A (Multnomah County); B (Wasco County);  F (Marion County); H (Linn County); I (Benton County); and K (Marion County) with Companies D (Washington County) and E (Yamhill County) coming up from Fort Henrietta on the last day of the battle, December 10, 1855, with supplies.

The Muster Rolls for the First Regiment Oregon Mounted Volunteers were found in the book “Indian Wars of Oregon” by Francis Victor Fuller and the originals are located in the Oregon State Archives located in Salem, Oregon.  It is unknown if there is more to the story concerning the Muster Rolls listed in this book.  The following chart is a list of the number of men in each company of troops per Fuller’s book.

TROOPS WITH KELLY’S COMMAND
THROUGHOUT THE BATTLE

COUNTY COMPANY NUMBER OF TROOPS EXTRA TROOPS LISTED TOTAL KILLED WOUNDED
Multnomah
A
73
14
87
2
2
Wasco
B
76
06
82
0
2
Marion
F
69
09
78
1
2
Linn
H
63
27
90
2
8
Benton
I
62
08
70
1
2
Marion
K
42
27
69
0
1
TOTAL
385
91
476
6
17

 

TROOPS LEFT AT FORT HENRIETTA
WHO CAME UP ON DECEMBER 10, 1855 WITH SUPPLIES

COUNTY COMPANY NUMBER OF TROOPS EXTRA TROOPS LISTED TOTAL KILLED WOUNDED
Washington
D
87
24
111
0
0
Yamhill
E
87
42
129
0
0
TOTAL
174
66
240
0
0

NOTE:  There were also other men from the other companies who stayed behind to man the fort when Colonel Kelly left on December 2, 1855.

 

These Muster Rolls leave a lot to be desired.  These are a list of men who
enlisted in the First Regiment Oregon Mounted Volunteers who enlisted on a certain date.  Also in relation to this, there are many mis-spellings among names.

Then there are those “extra” men who are also listed but without an enlistment date.  Did these men enlist before or after the battle?  Did those “extra” troops participate in the battle itself?  That is unknown at this time.  Therefore it is hard to tell just who and who did not participate except for those named in the narratives which follow.

CHAPTERS

The following days are broken down into “chapters” in order to include any new information that may surface without distorting a particular document.

(click on chapter link to view chapter pdf file, or right-click to save file to your computer)

Chapter 0: Introduction; (this page)

  1. CHART: Troops with Kelly’s Command;
  2. CHART: Troops Left at Fort Henrietta;
  3. Chapters;

Chapter 1: In The Beginning (Fort Dalles to Fort Henrietta);

  1. CHART:  Troop movementfrom The Dalles To Fort Henrietta;

Chapter 2: December 2, 1855: The March To The Walla Walla Valley;

Chapter 3: December 3, 1855: The Volunteer’s Arrival In The Walla Walla Valley;

Chapter 4: December 4, 1855: A Day of Decision;

  1. Incident at Hudson’s Bay Company’s Fort Walla Walla;
  2. Incident at the main army camp east of Hudson’s Bay Company’s Fort Walla Walla;

Chapter 5: December 5, 1855: Chief Peopeomoxmox And The White Flag Of    Truce;

  1. Major Chinn’s march to the mouth of the Touchet River;
  2. Colonel Kelly’s march to the Indian camp North of the mouth of the Touchet River;
  3. Colonel Kelly’s rendezvous with Walla Walla Chief Peopeomoxmox;

Chapter 6: December 6, 1855: Return To The Mouth Of The Touchet River;

  1. A deserted Walla Walla Village;
  2. Detachment from Major Chinn’s camp to assist Colonel Kelly’s command;

Chapter 7: December 7, 1855: First Day Of The Battle Of Walla Walla;

  1. From the Touchet River to the Larocque cabin before crossing the Touchet River;
  2. From the Touchet River to the Larocque cabin after crossing the Touchet River;
  3. The Fight at the Larocque cabin and the death of Chief Peopeomoxmox;

Chapter 8: December 8, 1855: Second Day Of The Battle Of Walla Walla;

Chapter 9: December 9, 1855: Third Day Of The Battle Of Walla Walla;

Chapter 10: December 10, 1855: Fourth Day Of The Battle Of Walla Walla;

Chapter 11: The Aftermath;

  1. CHART: Noted Indian Casualties;
  2. CHART: Noted Volunteer Casualties;
  3. The Frenchtown Settlers During This Time;

Chapter 12: A List of Known Books and Documents Concerning The Battle Of Walla Walla;

  1. Accounts Used In This Document;
  2. Accounts Yet To Be Looked At;
  3. The Muster Rolls of the First Regiment, Oregon Mounted Volunteers;
  4. First Hand Accounts from those Involved;

Chapter 13: The First Regiment Oregon Mounted Volunteers Muster Rolls