Biographical Notes
Nelson Appleton Miles
In the fall of 1875 Miles was ordered to Cimmaron, New Mexico, to deal with some trouble among the Apache and Ute tribes living on reservations in the area, but he regarded this duty as a sideshow to the real problem of the Sioux in the north. He once again asked for a command that would permit him to prove his ability vis-a-vis hostile Indians. In June 1876 Custer and his men were defeated and killed at the Battle of the Little Big Horn by Sitting Bull and Crazy Horse. The army was stunned by the news and a large force was quickly assembled by General Sheridan to respond. Miles commanded five companies of the Fifth Infantry out of Fort Leavenworth as part of that effort. He joined Generals Terry and Crook on the Rosebud and, much to his displeasure, was made part of Colonel Gibbon's brigade. The campaign did not make any important contact with hostile Indians and most returned to barracks in the fall. Crook prepared a winter campaign to pursue Crazy Horse in the Black Hills. Miles was reinforced and ordered to build a cantonment so that he could remain in the Yellowstone area through the winter.
In October 1876, Miles made contact with Sitting Bull and after two days of negotiations a fire fight developed. After reengaging on the second morning of the battle the Sioux retreated. Miles pursued and caught up with the Indians at the Yellowstone River. Following more negotiations a large number of Indians agreed to return to the reservation, but Sitting Bull refused and fled. Miles complained later that Sitting Bull would not have been able to get away if he had led cavalry instead of infantry. In November Miles resupplied his force and took out after Sitting Bull. In December 1876, units of Mile's force led by Lieutenant Frank Baldwin, caught up with Sitting Bull and was able to drive him from camp. Baldwin was unable to capture or kill any of Sitting Bull's band but he did destroy most of their supplies. In January 1877 Miles caught up with Crazy Horse at Wolf Mountain and drove him from the field, but shortly thereafter his force was reduced because of a cut in funds appropriated by Congress for the military. He was forced to go into winter quarters. In the spring of 1877 most of the Sioux and Cheyenne that were still off of the reservation accepted terms for surrender. Crazy Horse surrendered but Sitting Bull and a relatively small band of Sioux did not.
Miles pursued Sitting Bull until he crossed into Canada in May 1877. Miles force was augmented with units of the Seventh Cavalry led by Colonel S.D. Sturgis. That year the Nez Perce Indians were driven from their homeland in Oregon and Idaho. Led by Chief Joseph they fought a series of battles with army units under the command of general O.O. Howard and fled through Idaho toward the Yellowstone area. They hoped to join Sitting Bull in Canada. Miles sent Sturgis and the Seventh to block their flight, but Chief Joseph managed to slip past him. In September 1877, Miles led a mixed force of cavalry and infantry that caught up with the Nez Perce just short of the Canadian border. A four day battle ensued during which Chief Joseph sent word to Sitting Bull requesting his assistance. Sitting Bull chose not to involve himself and Chief Joseph was forced to surrender. Miles argued forcefully that Sitting Bull represented a rallying point for all dissatisfied Indians living in the western United States. He wanted to be permitted to attack the fugitive Sioux in Canada, but his superiors did not agree with him.
In 1880 Miles was promoted to brigdier general and given command of the Department of the Columbia. He remained in that position until 1885 when he was transferred to command the Department of the Missouri with headquarters in Fort Leavenworth, Kansas. Sherman had retired from the army and Philip Sheridan had replaced him as General-in-Chief. In the summer of 1885 Sheridan and Miles toured the Indian Territory together. In April 1886 Miles was again transferred - this time to command the Department of Arizona relieving George Crook. In this position he was subordinate once again to O.O. Howard who commanded the Division of the Pacific. The most famous of the Apaches still off of the reservation were Mangus, Natchez and Geronimo and they, together with a small number of followers, operated on both sides of the Mexican border. Miles organized a force led by Captain Henry W. Lawton of the Fourth Cavalry to pursue the hostile Apaches into Mexico and he used other troops to constantly pursue them whenever and wherever they surfaced north of the border. A succession of small skirmishes characterized the campaign and gradually wore the hostile Indians down so that Natchez and Geronimo surrendered on September 4, 1886.
At the time of Geronimo's surrender, Grover Cleveland was President. He and Miles had a serious disagreement about the conditions under which Geronimo had surrendered. Cleveland wanted the prisoner turned over to civilian authorities to be tried for his many past crimes. Miles felt that Geronimo should be treated as a prisoner of war and not turned over to civilians who were certain to lynch him. Miles eventually won the argument, but also incurred the President's considerable displeasure. At the end of October Miles captured Mangus, the last of the Apache holdouts. The Department of Arizona was expanded to include part of southern California. Miles moved his headquarters to Los Angeles. In December 1887 the citizens of Tucson held a celebration in honor of General and Mrs. Miles. In 1888 a group of citizens in San Francisco suggested that he run for president. This touched off a round of public attacks on him that did not advance his prospects in either the political or military realms. He was skipped over for promotion once again in favor of General Crook, but was assigned to command the Division of the Pacific without the rank of major general. His headquarters were in San Francisco. On March 21, 1888, Major General Crook died of a heart attack.
