Battle of Mud Lake

The Battle of Mud Lake, also known as the "Skirmish at Mud Lake",[3] occurred on 14 March 1865 during the Snake War in northwest Nevada Territory, near present-day Winnemucca Lake, Nevada, during the closing months of the concurrent American Civil War.

Battle of Mud Lake
Part of the Indian Wars, Snake War
Date 14 March 1865 Location Mud Lake, Nevada Result U.S. victory
Belligerents
United States	Smoke Creek Paiute[1]
Commanders and leaders
Almond B. Wells[1]	Unknown
Strength
29 troopers of 1st Battalion Nevada Volunteer Cavalry 2 civilian guides[1]	~30
Casualties and losses
"several wounded"[2]	29 killed[2]

Fifty men from the 1st Nevada Volunteer Cavalry Battalion under Captain Almond D. Wells rode out towards Pyramid Lake in response to cattle theft in the area. Michno writes that upon arrival the troopers were informed by Chief Winnemucca that a band of Smoke Creek Paiutes were the likely thieves.[1] However, Sarah Winnemucca wrote that her father, Chief Winnemucca, and all the young men were at Carson Sink on a hunting expedition at the time.[4] Stewart states that Sarah Winnemucca and her father were in Dayton, NV at the time of the attack and that her father read about the attack in the newspaper. [5]

Wells took 29 of his command and two civilian guides toward Mud Lake (now Winnemucca Lake) where the camp was located. Wells intended to arrest the thieves and wrote that the Paiutes began firing once the cavalry approached.[1] Wells surrounded the camp and the natives attempted to escape.[2] The troops killed 29 Native Americans while only one was reported to have escaped. Several of the troopers were wounded in the fight.[2]

Wells reported that Chief Winnemucca expressed he was pleased with Wells' victory believing it would teach the thieving bands a lesson.[1][3] However, Sarah Winnemucca wrote "I had one baby brother killed there. My sister jumped on father's best horse and ran away. As she ran the soldiers ran after her but thanks be to the Good Father in the Spirit land my dear sister got away. This almost killed my poor papa."[4]

Sessions Wheeler recounts newspaper coverage of the skirmish in detail[6] and includes citations to newspaper articles around the time of the skirmish that state that 14 to 15 scalps were taken. Wheeler also quotes Major Charles McDermit as stating that 32 were killed and "all but two were men." (McDermit himself was killed later that year) Wheeler quotes reports from the Virginia City Daily Union that quotes Chief Winnemucca as stating that among the dead were 16 to 18 women and children. Winnemucca said that the men who stole the cattle were not in camp at the time.[6]

Notes

1. Michno, Gregory (2003). Encyclopedia of Indian Wars: Western Battles and Skirmishes, 1850–1890. Missoula: Mountain Press Publishing Company. pp. 168–169. ISBN 978-0-87842-468-9. Retrieved 2014-01-13.
2. The Union Army: Cyclopedia of battles. Federal Publishing Company. 1908. p. 621. Retrieved 2014-01-13.
3. Wells, Almond B. (1897). ""March 12–19, 1865, Expeditions from Fort Churchill to Pyramid and Walker's Lakes Nev with skirmish 14th at Mud Lake and affair 16th near Walker's Lake Nev". Congressional Serial Set. U.S. Government Printing Office. pp. 400–401. Retrieved 2014-01-13.
4. Hopkins, Sarah Winnemucca (1883). Life Among the Piutes: Their Wrongs and Claims. G.P Putnam's Sons. p. 77. Retrieved 2014-01-14.
5. Stewart, Omer C. (1983). "Book review of Canfield: Sarah Winnemucca of the Northern Paiutes". Journal of California and Great Basin Anthropology. 5 (2): 269.
6. Sessions S. Wheeler (1971). The Nevada Desert. Caxton Press. pp. 62–73. ISBN 978-0-87004-205-8. Retrieved 2014-01-13.