Part 3-Buffalo Soldiers-The Meeker Incident: Legends of the Old West

Matthew Kerns
16 hours ago
2 min read

In 1879, the simmering tensions between the Ute people and the U.S. government finally boiled over in northwestern Colorado. At the center of the conflict was Nathan Meeker, an idealistic Indian Agent who believed he could force the Utes to abandon their nomadic culture for farming and fences. When Meeker’s rigid demands met Ute resistance, the situation escalated into a crisis that drew Major Thomas Thornburgh and a column of 200 soldiers into the territory. But instead of quelling the unrest, Thornburgh’s command walked into a devastating ambush at Milk Creek, leaving the major dead and his men pinned down in a circle of wagons and rotting horseflesh.

For days, the survivors endured a living hell—tormented by thirst, sniping from the ridges, and the stench of death—while waiting for a rescue that seemed impossible. Then, just before dawn on the third day, the besieged men heard the sound of hoofbeats. It was Captain Francis Dodge and D Troop of the 9th Cavalry. The Buffalo Soldiers had ridden seventy miles in twenty hours to reach the battlefield, crashing through the Ute lines to join the fight. Their arrival brought a surge of hope to the trapped men, even as the Ute warriors on the ridges mocked the "black whitemen" who had come to die alongside them.

Among the Buffalo Soldiers, Sergeant Henry Johnson emerged as a beacon of courage. As the thirst became unbearable and wounded men begged for relief, Johnson voluntarily left the safety of the barricades. Under heavy fire, he led a small party to the creek, filling canteens while bullets kicked up the dirt around him. His bravery not only kept the men alive but earned him the Medal of Honor, cementing his place as one of the standout heroes of the Indian Wars. This episode tells the story of the disastrous "Meeker Incident" and the Buffalo Soldiers who rode into the jaws of death to save their comrades.

🎧 Listen now to "Buffalo Soldiers: The Meeker Incident" on your favorite podcast platform.

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