Regulars in the Redwoods: The U. S. Army in Northern California 1852-1861

by William F. Strobridge

Overview

The clash between settlers and Indians during California's early statehood has been marred by myth and stereotype. This new work, based on original research, explores how animosities became a battle for land and sustenance as competition for prosperity heightened. California's tumultuous era between discovery of gold and the Civil War brought an abrupt admittance to statehood in 1850 and the replacement of military government standards with new political aims. Little was left for Indian sustenance. Amid the flux, between California citizens and California Indians, was the Regular Army.

Careful study of original source material by the author illuminates the complicated role of the Regulars in frontier history. This detailed account of the Regular Army's attempts to maintain peace replaces the inadequate portrayal of the "Indian fighting Army" during a neglected period in California military history.

Governor McDougal's plea for protection of American citizens from Indian hostilities was answered with the Regular Army. Commanders soon discovered that settlers were far from defenseless. Regulars in the Redwoods chronicles the transformation of forts originally constructed for coastal defense into centers for improving Indian relations and curbing violence.

So-called volunteer armies complicated the Regular Army's task of heightening rivalries between Indians and American citizens. A complete account of Regular commanders' attempt to end the attacks and counter-attacks is the thread of this studious text.

As reservation killings became near daily occurrences near the end of the decade, underfed Indians escaped. Reservations often were misused to achieve California officials' goals, providing little refuge for indigenous peoples. This, the first discussion in book form of Regular army complaints against ineffectual and delinquent agents, shows how strained relations between Army officers and Indian officials raised another barrier to the Army's containment of violence.

Renegade white antagonists, assassins, and murderers were not held accountable for their crimes. The Army's lack of legal authority complicated its management of forces spread thin across northern California and Oregon. Additionally, an account of settlers false report of Indian hostility and the continuing challenge to track Indian thieves before mob parties could organize is related.

Crook, Wright, Buchanan, Judah, Johnson, and other commanders are shown keeping a high profile in their campaign for peace. Officers displayed military strength and established relations with Indian leaders to ward off indiscriminant use of fire power and prevent antagonism. Forts Reading, Humboldt, Jones, Crook, and Ter-waw became the hubs of mitigating expeditions in all directions.

Army life in northern California often drove enlisted men to desert ranks in search of a more stable civilian life. This is also the history of Regulars who went months without pay, adequate heat, suitable food, and sufficient tent structures. Short-handed, sent marching across the state, and later dissuaded by the possibility of fighting those they believed to have been wronged, soldiers deserted.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780870622144
Publisher:	University of Oklahoma Press
Publication date:	09/01/1994
Series:	Frontier Military Series , #17
Pages:	283
Product dimensions:	6.30(w) x 9.50(h) x 1.00(d)

About the Author

William F. Strobridge has taught history at Georgetown University; served as Chief, Historical Services Division, U.S. Army Center of Military History; and served with the 3rd Infantry Division in the Korean War and 4th Infantry Division in Vietnam. Some of his contributions have appeared in Journal of the West, Ohio History, and Military History and Collectors. He has been research associate preparing corporate history at a major Pacific Coast corporation since 1981.

Editorial Reviews

A different view of the US Army from the Indian killers of pay of the soldiers is also described. Available from The Arthur H. Clark Co., PO Box 14707, Spokane, WA 99214. popular myth. Draws on primary documents to show how the army was charged with keeping peace between land-hungry whites and the indigenous people they were taking it from. Officers went out of their way to establish peaceful relations with the Indians, and spent a great deal of their time keeping irregulars and vigilantes from attacking innocent Indians. They constantly complained that civilian authorities and government agents refused to keep whites in check. The harsh conditions and meager Annotation c. Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)

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