Bluff War

Background

In the early 20th century, several bands of Ute and Paiute Indians occupied the rugged desert north of the San Juan River in southeastern Utah. Chief Posey's band numbered about 100 people, and Old Polk's band about 85. They were among the last Native Americans in the continental United States to live freely outside a reservation.

Their hunting and gathering way of life faced pressure from Mormon cattle ranchers and Navajo sheep-herders moving into the area. The U.S. Army, which had kept peace, withdrew in the 1890s. Anglos took the best land and water sources, and Utes often stole livestock or begged for food.

By 1910, San Juan County's non-Indian population was 2,377 and growing, while the Native population numbered a few hundred. In May 1914, two Utes reported finding the body of Juan Chacon, a Hispanic shepherd. Five witnesses implicated Tse-ne-gat, age 27. The superintendent asked him to come in, but he did not.

In September, a deputy U.S. Marshal confronted Tse-ne-gat in Bluff but did not arrest him, fearing violence. In October, Tse-ne-gat and his father Polk met traders John and Louisa Wade Wetherill; Tse-ne-gat claimed innocence. The Wetherills believed him and advised him to tell his story, but warned of arrest, Tse-ne-gat went into hiding.

Battle of Cottonwood Gulch

On the early morning of 20 February 1915, a posse of 26 cowboys led by Nebeker surrounded Polk's camp, where Tse-ne-gat was present. The posse advanced without warning or attempting to serve a warrant. The Indians opened fire, and in the first minutes one posse member was killed.

Chief Posey came to aid Polk, killed another posse member, and trapped five on a hilltop; they escaped and left. Other posse members went to Bluff for breakfast, and Polk moved to the hills overlooking the town. From there, the Utes and Paiutes could have shot at townspeople but refrained. One unarmed Ute was killed by the posse, and a father and his six-year-old daughter were wounded.

Utes living in Bluff not part of Polk's or Posey's bands fled in fear. A group of 106 friendly Utes came to Bluff to avoid being identified with the warring bands. Navajo policemen tried to escort Utes to the Colorado reservation, but they refused and threatened to join Polk.

Nebeker requested reinforcements from Grayson (Blanding) and Monticello; 46 armed men arrived. Twenty Navajo policemen joined on February 25. Newspapers portrayed Bluff as surrounded. Nebeker sent Mancos Jim to demand surrender, which Polk refused.

Indian agent Lorenzo Creel arrived and persuaded 60 Utes to go to the reservation for safety. Creel called Nebeker's posse 'a bunch of greenhorns' and recommended bringing in the U.S. Army. On March 1, Nebeker said his posse of over 70 faced 50 Utes and Paiutes, with 15 to 20 combatants; another 165 Indians in the area were peaceful.

Surrender and trial

General Hugh L. Scott was ordered by Washington to leave his post in Virginia City and head to Bluff to bring the conflict to a close. Before he arrived, a group of Native Americans, among them Old Polk, the father of Tse-ne-gat, went to the Navajo trading post run by John and Louisa Wade Wetherill in Kayenta and requested their help as go-betweens. John Wetherill then went with one of the Indians to meet Scott and arrange talks with Polk and Posey. On March 11, 1915, Scott set out from Bluff with Wetherill, several Navajos, and his staff, all carrying no weapons, to meet the leaders at Mexican Hat.

Scott later wrote that they got to Bluff on March 10 and found out the Indians had moved to the Navajo Mountains, about 125 miles to the southwest. After a day in Bluff, they continued to Mexican Hat. Friendly Navajos went ahead to inform Polk’s group that Scott was coming. A Paiute named Jim Boy was sent to alert the Paiutes.

Some approached Scott’s camp, but nobody dared come inside until the third day. Then Posey and four others arrived. They spoke through a Navajo interpreter. Scott’s party butchered a cow and fed them a good meal, their first in weeks, and gave out blankets.

Posey and his men were unarmed, though Scott suspected they had stashed weapons close by. The next day, Polk and Hatch, also known as Tse-ne-gat, came with about 25 others. Scott told them he doubted they wanted their children hunted and killed across the mountains, and asked what they wished to do. After discussing among themselves, they said they would follow whatever Scott wanted.