I have grown up in the town of Salina, Kansas my entire life. One of the biggest landmarks in my area is a large hill in the center of town known as “Indian Rock.” As a kid, I used to always climb the hill and go sledding there. Eventually, however, I learned that the site was a stage for a battle between indian tribes in 1857. In the early 1800s, the area now known as Salina was home to several large indian tribes such as the Cheyenne, Arapaho, Kansa and Osage. However, as time went on, the expansion of whtie settlements forced tribes such as the Pattawatomie, Kaw and Delaware to move west, encroaching on the hunting grounds shared by the tribes already located in present day Salina. It was only a matter of time before fighting would occur.
By the mid-1800s, there was nearly constant fighting between the Cheyenne and Pattawatomie tribes, leading white settlers in the area to abandon their trading posts and frontier homes. It was not long before the tribes from the east formed an alliance to take on those from the west that had done the same. In 1857, fighting was so fierce that the eastern tribes were forced to retreat, taking shelter on the side of a large hill to regroup. That hill was what is now known as Indian Rock. After being able to shield themselves from the fighting and reorganize themselves, the eastern tribes decided to make their final stand on top of Indian Rock. Thanks to being able to fight upon the hill and shield themselves from warring attackers, the momentum of the fighting switched to the eastern tribes as those from the west began to suffer heavy losses.
Thanks to reinforcements from the Kaw, the eastern alliance was armed with rifles while their enemies only had bows and arrows. While the western alliance of tribes had to charge the hill time and again, the eastern fighters stood on top and fired down at the enemy. This positioning eventually allowed them to kill the Cheyenne’s leader, Big Chief. This was a devastating blow to the western bands of Indians who retreated shortly afterward. As a result, the Pattawatomie, Kaw and Delaware tribes were able to enjoy the land amongst themselves and the western tribes never attacked them again.
Few residents of Salina know the significance of Indian Rock and the importance the battle that took place there had on their town. The founder of Salina, Colonel William A. Phillips, was aware of the heated conflict amongst the different tribes in the area and was keen to avoid any threat to his future settlement. As a result, he originally wanted to found Salina in the area of Manhattan. However, after hearing about the results of the Battle of Indian Rock, he decided to venture further west to survey the land there. The friendly eastern tribes of Indians assured him that there would be no futher trouble with other tribes and as a result, Colonel Phillips decided to found his settlement, which he called Salina, right next to Indian Rock.
David Johnson
http://www.salina-ks.gov/content/126/193/1634/1471/2266.aspx
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October 9, 2009 at 1:14 pm
Tracy Fernandez
My Dad grew up in Salina, Kansas and we have visited there a few times. He told me of this hill the “indian rock”, because he said as kids, Salina was not a fun place to live because it was very flat, and most hills were man made. This is very interesting because I had no clue that there were disputes there. It is kind of nice to hear that they won and were able to keep their land. Are there places in Salina today that represent the Indian culture and this battle such as museums?
-Tracy Fernandez
October 9, 2009 at 3:15 pm
jtku89
This is an excellent point and one that is not heard of very often. Any time two different cultures are mixed together, it is only natural to assume that there will be some tension. It’s not really a big topic in American history of different fights between tribes due to the forced coexistence due to white government officials. Excellent concept and idea to bring forward. I’d be curious to know how often occurrences like this happened across the country
John Thornton
October 9, 2009 at 3:18 pm
Molly McCoy
Very cool blog. Native Americans are such a huge part of the history of our state their figurative fingerprints are all around us, and Indian Rock is just another example of this.
Isn’t it great to be from Kansas, though? Where a city’s most notable landmark is an Indian Rock, or a the world’s largest ball of twine, or the largest hand-dug well? Who needs the Eiffel Tower when you’ve got a giant ball of twine….
-molly mccoy
October 9, 2009 at 5:19 pm
Taylor Curry
Wow that is very interesting. Some of my family is from Salina and some of them still live there. I have been to visit and i had no idea about the history of the rock. Next time I go I will be sure to stop by and speak with my family about it. It does seem sad though that multiple Indian tribes fought there, I wish that would not have happened. Americans seemed to not only have crowded the Indians, but they also added to the hatred between tribes. Great Post!
Taylor Curry
May 1, 2014 at 7:10 pm
Marti Talbott
David and anyone else who might be able to help.
I am the author of the Marblestone Mansion Series and want to have one of my characters live in Salina, KS during the winter of 1909-1910. What I’m interested in, is a description of what the town was like then. I’ve read what I can find on the internet and have seen some of the old photos, but I could use more help. If you are interested, you can contact me at martitalbott dot com Thanks.
November 4, 2018 at 10:54 am
Deborah Gibson Lee
Thank you for the information. I lived in Salina during my teen years and only knew the hill as “make out hill”. That hill now has my utmost respect! Amazing, noteworthy history!