Next SJBAS General Meeting - February 9^th

The next SJBAS meeting will be held on February 9th, at 7:00 p.m. at the Center for Southwest Studies Lyceum, Fort Lewis College. Bob Silbernagel will discuss his new book, Troubled Trails, which casts new light on the history of the Meeker Affair. When US Cavalry troops rode onto the Ute Indian Reservation in NW Colorado on September 29, 1879, they triggered a chain of events that cost the Utes their homeland. A deadly battle at Milk Creek resulted in the killing of all men at the Indian agency headed by Nathan Meeker, and the hostage of three women and two children, held for 23 days. The Utes didn't seek a fight with the whites, most of whom they viewed as friends. Powerful whites in Colorado, however, wanted the Utes expelled. The "Meeker Affair" became the opportunity to achieve that. Using details from historical interview transcripts and newspaper articles, Silbernagel reveals the personalities of the major characters -- both Indian and non-Indian, telling the story from many perspectives.