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NICKERSON AND PARTY HAD A NARROW ESCAPE FROM BEING KILLEDMimth' I*.u it {Kit in Fremont county Mt'.ith of i snider. where the willows sre giowiug with little to indicate that fifty years ago it was a thriving • •■mmunity| one of the first of Wyoming '» gold camps and an importaut town in the affairs of the new territory of Wyoming. The willows and pin* trees that have sprung up and grown tall now are ou the sites of former busing plane*, shacks and saloons ami other buildings that made up the celebrated gold mining town of the days of half a century ago.Hack a tho*- days captain H. 0. Nickers. . • *».. a well known justiceof the pea. ■ here, and one of the oldest citizen• of the state, was one of t. ■ many si-eking fortunes in gold. II - ex|«erieitres in those days aiv in-: resting because he is alive to tell them hinucli, and the faets contained in this article were gathered from conversations with him. They are accurate.It was onI'Vtobor 12, 1872. that two inin.Ts. Ton* iargan siul Bobby Smith, from Miners’ Delight failed to arrive home. Their non-appearance caused the belief *hat they had been killed by Indians during a raid and there was much apprehension in the mining community fo*- fear that the absence of the men indicated that the Indiani were preparing for another raid.Captain Nickerson formed a _ party which he headed to search for the two missing men. The party consisted of John Hartley, George McKay. BdwarJ Blanchard. William Kinnear. Joe Truckev. Val Brandt. John Grant. John Robinson. James Knapp and Chris Banlcv. All these men but Captain Nickerson and Chris Rsnley have passed away. Rnnley is now living in Oregon.Tliis party took to the mountains to took for the missing men when a sentinel connected wttti the -soldier* at' Camp Stambaugh sighted them. The sentinel mistook the searchers for Indians and gavel the alarm.Soon the entire garrison, under the command of Colonel James A. Brisbin, »-a* under arms and they promptly .•urroutided Captain Nickerson and his party, believing them to be Indians lient on further depivdntions. There had been mony outrages committed bv the Indian* and the desire was great among the soldiers nnd oitiaens to punish them. The soldier.* were certain the Niekorson party were Indians and they took good eare that there should be no escape.Captain Nickcrjon at once realized the predicament ho was in-and commenced to devise means for getting word to the soldiers rtb to his identity. Escape seemed impossible. Ono company of infantry under Captain McArthur. afterwards a major general, was deployed to the left of the Niek-lt;-r*ou party. A company of cavalry under Lieutenant Norwood, had made to the rear of the searching party and a battery in charge of the hospital steward had taken a position to the right. Oitiaens. scouts and em|do.vees in charge of Lieutenant F. U. Robinson were pressing hard in front. The searcher* were completely surrounded.Realizing that something must be done promptly if their lives were to tc saved. Captain Nickerson worked his way out into plain view. He dropped his gun. held both hand-i high in the air and started to walk rapidly toward* the nearest of the troops. But the troops thought it was -ome kind of a ruse on the part of the treacherous Indians and commenced rapid fire. Captain Nickerson was compelled to work back to the party as rapidly as possible.Then it was decided to make a break to the nearest brueh heap which they did. Thor? they remained until the troops came near enough to be conversed with. In tbia way their identity 4iee»me known to the attacking forces and the lives of the ,»earchers for the lost miner.* were saved.This is one of the interesting incidents in the hlatory of the pioneer. During those dart the whites had littleor uo confidence in the Indiana. Their rvm.iiit peaceful were so often brokvr. and they Were guilty of so many tricks in the wan a. ^.’nde with the white men that it was not sale to honor their flags of truce. Soim* times menus of this kind wvre used only to throw the soldiers off guard and work mi advantage to the Indians. These conditions were well known tlt; Captain Nickcs»n and his men and for awhile their jmsitiou was a dangerous one. It looked a.* though they might all be killed or wounded by their own friends. That they escaped was little short of a miracle.There are many unrecorded events in i the early history of Sweetwater and Fremont counties. During those days men were making history without knowing it and - many incidents that pn*sod off without a thought then ai • important Heins of history today. Captain Nickerson's knowledge of these affairs is valuable. While lie is in good physical condition and able to recall them readily they should be reduced to history. With this in view the 1’ost Iiiin been publishing n- many of these stories as possible and it is hop-vd that for the benefit of coming generations they will he preserved and-eventua'ly find their place, in the historv of the countv and ‘tnte.GO ON STRIKE(By A»»ooli«t«n1 Press. HUNVEU. Nov. is -All the Colorado Fuel rnd Iron company's mines in the Fremout county district, are tied up by a sympathetic strike of the miners. on account of the thirty per cent reduction put in operation in Huerfano and Lasnuimus county district, according to rii announcement at the headquarters of the company No coal diggers reported at foal Creek, Hoe.k-vale, Fremont or Emerald mines in Femont county today. Yesterday 4-10 men were on the job. The company is repotted to have gained 1 IS* men over yesterday in the five mines of the Trinidad district, and the situuton in the Walseuburg districts unchanged.ANOTHER MARY'S LAMBLander High School Boy Comes Across With a New Version.The ‘‘chunkiest’’ boy in Lander Vocational High school has an inspiration almoi-t every day, but ono day during tlie week an exceptional inspiration. ono that would have brought down the house had it been worked on the vaudeville circuit.His inspiration had to do with Mary’s little lamb and this is the way he got rid of it:Mary had a little lamb.But now the lamb is dead.But Mary brings it to school each day Between two slices of broed.When this was unloaded, the young gentleman was given no credit,, but was informed that he might stay in school that afternoon for an hour after school was dismissed. Such ii life.COURT AFFAIRS.Three Sentenced and Divorce Granted in Grist of Other Business.Yesterday s\ divorce was granted at the Fremont county court house Charles Bummers from his wife, Irene Elizabeth Bummers.Frank May, John Stoll nnd Henry Walker, three Dubois young men who' entered pleas of guilty, to a charge j of having misbranded cattle, were sen-Jtenced to the reformatory school at Worland for Intermediate terms.
Newspaper Details
Lander Evening Post
Lander, Wyoming, US
Fri, Nov 18, 1921
Page 1
Full Page
Clipped by
Amelia B.
NA, 28 May 2024
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