A sad little bit of history from a harsher time

In the tiny hamlet of Fort Klamath, Oregon there lie the remnants of the US Cavalry fort that give the community, high on an alpine plateau, its name There isn't much left of the old fort these days, although there remains a superb museum, with an even more superb curator who will be happy to wax poetically and interestingly about the history of the place. I reveled in chatting with him and found him immensely knowledgeable.



One of the most intriguing facets of the remainder of the fort, which stems back to the 1860s, is found in four lonely looking white grave markers. Grave markers containing the remains of four individuals with such enchanting names as Captain Jack, Boston Charley, and two others which escape me at the moment. Their remains lie there because the foursome was executed by the army. And, the foursome were Modoc Indians.



The Modocs were a tiny tribe, some 400 strong, who were not only at war with the US, but were also at war with, and hated more than they even did the army, the much larger Klamath tribe. The American government in order to settle the Modoc matter for once and for all decided it would be better to give the Modoc lands over to the Klamath people. This was a very ill-considered move and caused their chief, the aforementioned Captain Jack (his 'white guy' name, needless to say) to take matters into his own hands, and the hands of his tiny tribe.



What happened was this:



On the morning of April 11, the commissioners, General Canby, Alfred B. Meacham, Rev. E. Thomas, and L. S. Dyer, with Frank and Toby Riddle as interpreters, met with Boston Charley Bogus Charley, Captain Jack (pictured), John Schonchin, Black Jim, and Hooker Jim. After some talk, during which it became evident that the Modoc were armed, General Canby informed Captain Jack that the commission could not meet his terms until orders came from Washington. In an angry mood John Schonchin demanded Hot Creek for a reservation. Captain Jack got up and walked away a few steps. Two Modocs, Brancho (Barncho) and Slolux, armed with rifles, ran forward from where they had been hiding among the rocks. Captain Jack turned giving the signal to fire. The first shot from Captain Jack's revolver killed General Canby. Reverend Thomas fell mortally wounded. Meacham fell seriously wounded. Dyer and Riddle escaped by running. Had not Toby Riddle cried out, "The soldiers are coming!", Meacham would no doubt have been killed.All efforts for peace ended when the Modocs carried out their plans to kill the commissioner. A cross marks the place where General Canby and Reverend Thomas fell victims to the Modoc.



General Canby, it is worth noting, was the only standing general to die during the Indian Wars in the US. And, in carrying out such an attack, Captain Jack and at least three of his warriors effectively signed their death notification, and they were summarily expedited.



Ultimately matters were sorted out, and it is to the army's credit, and to the credit of the fort's commander, that they demanded that the four Modocs should be accorded full military funerals, and be buried within the confines of the fort as a mark of respect for noble adversaries.



And that is a tiny precis of the tale of Captain Jack, somebody I'd not met before but was happy to make his acquaintance in the little hamlet of Fort Klamath, high in the Cascades of southern Oregon.