Qualla: Battle of the Tongue River https://qualla.com/battle-of-the-tongue-river en-us © 2026 Bendyline Mon, 20 Jul 2026 10:21:04 GMT Qualla serial false Qualla support@bendyline.com yes https://qualla.com/_m/9/x/g/z/battle-of-the-tongue-river-wp/tongueriverbattlefieldbyphilko.jpg Qualla: Battle of the Tongue River https://qualla.com/battle-of-the-tongue-river Battle of the Tongue River: Introduction https://qualla.com/battle-of-the-tongue-river/ Photo credit Public domain. Jim Bridger saw the smoke first. On August 28, 1865, the legendary mountain man spotted a thin column rising from an Arapaho village 35 miles west of the U.S. Army's position. By 8 a.m. the next morning, Brigadier General Patrick Edward Connor's soldiers would charge into that village with howitzer cannon and complete surprise, beginning a battle that covered 70 miles and 36 hours, and left deep scars on the Powder River Country that remain preserved in the Wyoming landscape today.

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Image: Public domain

]]> Tue, 27 Jan 2026 00:00:00 GMT https://qualla.com/_m/9/x/g/z/battle-of-the-tongue-river-wp/9xgz-battle-of-the-tongue-river-intro.mp3 0:06 1 full Battle of the Tongue River: Orders from the Missouri https://qualla.com/battle-of-the-tongue-river/ Photo credit Phil Konstantin, CC BY-SA 3.0. The Powder River Expedition of 1865 grew from frustration. Cheyenne, Sioux, and Arapaho warriors had been raiding overland mail routes, wagon trains, and military posts along the Oregon and Overland trails. Major General Grenville M. Dodge, commanding the Department of the Missou...

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Image: Phil Konstantin | CC BY-SA 3.0

]]> Tue, 27 Jan 2026 00:00:00 GMT https://qualla.com/_m/9/x/g/z/battle-of-the-tongue-river-wp/9xgz-battle-of-the-tongue-river-orders-from-the-missouri.mp3 0:06 2 full Battle of the Tongue River: A Village Caught Unprepared https://qualla.com/battle-of-the-tongue-river/ Photo credit Phil Konstantin, CC BY-SA 3.0. Connor moved fast once his scouts located the village. He assembled 200 of his most mobile soldiers, two mountain howitzers, and 70 allied scouts, then marched through the night with Bridger guiding. The village, led by chiefs Black Bear and Medicine Man, held about 500 people, b...

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Image: Phil Konstantin | CC BY-SA 3.0

]]> Tue, 27 Jan 2026 00:00:00 GMT https://qualla.com/_m/9/x/g/z/battle-of-the-tongue-river-wp/9xgz-battle-of-the-tongue-river-a-village-caught-unprepared.mp3 0:06 3 full Battle of the Tongue River: Pursuit and Counterattack https://qualla.com/battle-of-the-tongue-river/ Photo credit Phil Konstantin, CC BY-SA 3.0. Connor and 30 men, including 15 Pawnee scouts, pursued the retreating Arapaho while most soldiers remained to loot and burn the village. The chase proved costly. The Arapaho counterattacked, and Connor's horses gave out. He retreated to the burning village, where his men had capt...

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Image: Phil Konstantin | CC BY-SA 3.0

]]> Tue, 27 Jan 2026 00:00:00 GMT https://qualla.com/_m/9/x/g/z/battle-of-the-tongue-river-wp/9xgz-battle-of-the-tongue-river-pursuit-and-counterattack.mp3 0:06 4 full Battle of the Tongue River: The Toll and Its Aftermath https://qualla.com/battle-of-the-tongue-river/ Photo credit Phil Konstantin, CC BY-SA 3.0. Connor claimed 63 Arapaho warriors killed, though many casualties occurred among women and children. On the Army's side, Private Little Bird of the Omaha Scouts died, and Acting Sergeant Charles M. Latham of the Signal Corps was mortally wounded. Six men were wounded, including S...

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Image: Phil Konstantin | CC BY-SA 3.0

]]> Tue, 27 Jan 2026 00:00:00 GMT https://qualla.com/_m/9/x/g/z/battle-of-the-tongue-river-wp/9xgz-battle-of-the-tongue-river-the-toll-and-its-aftermath.mp3 0:06 5 full Battle of the Tongue River: What Remains https://qualla.com/battle-of-the-tongue-river/ Photo credit Phil Konstantin, CC BY-SA 3.0. A portion of the battlefield is preserved today at Connor Battlefield State Historic Site in Ranchester, Wyoming, listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The grass grows over the site where tipis once stood, where howitzer shells fell, where women and children fled up...

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Image: Phil Konstantin | CC BY-SA 3.0

]]> Tue, 27 Jan 2026 00:00:00 GMT https://qualla.com/_m/9/x/g/z/battle-of-the-tongue-river-wp/9xgz-battle-of-the-tongue-river-what-remains.mp3 0:06 6 full