(Sources: Peace Buttons and War Resisters League Calendar)
November 29
A U.S. Army cavalry regiment under Col. J. M. Chivington (a Methodist pastor), acting on orders from Colorado’s Governor, John Evans, and ignoring a white surrender flag, attacked sleeping Cheyenne and Arapaho Indians, killing nearly 500, in what became known as the Sand Creek Massacre.
The Indians had been ordered away from Fort Lyon four days before, with the promise that they would be safe. Virtually all of the victims, mostly women and children, were tortured and scalped; women’s genitals were cut out and stuck on poles. Nine of 900 cavalrymen were killed. A local newspaper called this “a brilliant feat of arms,” and stated the soldiers had “covered themselves with glory.” At first, Chivington was widely praised for his “victory” at the Battle of Sand Creek, and he and his troops were honored with a parade in Denver. However, rumors of drunken soldiers butchering unarmed women and children began to circulate, and Congress ordered a formal investigation of the Sand Creek Massacre. Chivington was eventually threatened with court martial by the U.S. Army, but as he had already left his military post, no criminal charges were ever filed against him.
Deanna Dee-Dee Taylor 