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SEPTEMBER 15, 2000

Letters detailing the horrors inflicted on a peaceful group of Cheyenne and Arapaho men, women, and children at Sand Creek in Colorado were presented by Senator Ben Nighthorse Campbell during a Senate hearing on Thursday.

The letters were written by two US Army officers who witnessed the massacre. They have been hailed as some of the most important evidence regarding the 1846 massacre, which was ordered by the Army.

Campbell, who is leading an effort to turn the massacre site into a national historic site cried as he read the letters during a hearing before the the National Parks, Historic Preservation, and Recreation subcommittee, part of the Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources.

Some of Campbell's own ancestors were massacred at the site. He called the event "about the worst atrocity I've ever heard of."

The letters are graphic in their description of events which occurred on November 29, 1864, when about 500 were massacred. The two writers had refused their orders to kill the group.

"Bucks, women and children, were scalped, fingers cut off to get the rings on them," says one letter.

"The massacre lasted six or eight hours, and a good many Indians escaped. I tell you Ned it was hard to see little children on their knees have their brains beat out by men professing to be civilized," states another. "One squaw was wounded and a fellow took a hatchet to finish her, she held her arms up to defend her, and he cut one arm off, and held the other with one hand and dashed the hatchet through her brain."

The letters were discovered earlier this month in a Colorado home. They were presented to Campbell on Wednesday.

Read the Letters:
Sand Creek Letter 1 (December 19, 1864)
Sand Creek Letter 2 (December 14, 1864)

Related Stories:
Runners commemorate Sand Creek (Indian U. 08/03)
Campbell wants massacre memorial (Indian U. 7/28)

Relevant Links:
The Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources -www.senate.gov/~energy
The National Park Service, Sand Creek Massacre Project Study - www.nps.gov/planning/sand/about.htm
The Sand Creek Massacre Site - www.kiowacountycolo.com/sand.htm
Senator Campbell - www.senate.gov/~campbell