Marias Massacre 1870
Recorded location from Wikidata; battle sites are often approximate.
Key facts
| Date | 23 January 1870 | Wikidata |
|---|---|---|
| Year | 1870 | Wikidata P585 (point in time) |
| Era | 19th century (1800–1913) | derived from year |
| Location | United States | Natural Earth (modern borders) |
| Continent | North America | Natural Earth |
| Coordinates | 48.3947, -111.6553 | Wikidata P625 |
About the battle
The Marias Massacre (also known as the Baker Massacre or the Piegan Massacre) was a massacre of Piegan Blackfeet Native peoples committed by United States Army forces under Major Eugene Mortimer Baker as part of the Indian Wars. The massacre occurred on January 23, 1870, in Montana Territory. Approximately 200 Native people were killed, most of whom were women, children, and older men.
As part of a campaign to suppress Mountain Chief's band of Piegan Blackfeet, the U.S. Army attacked a different band led by Chief Heavy Runner, to whom the United States government had previously promised their protection. This resulted in public outrage and a long-term shift towards a "Peace Policy" by the Federal Government, as advocated by President Ulysses S. Grant. Grant kept the Bureau of Indian Affairs as a division of the Department of the Interior although the War Department was trying to regain control. He then appointed men recommended by various religious clergy—including Quakers and Methodists—as Indian agents, in hopes that they would be free of the corruption he had previously found in the department.
Text adapted from the Wikipedia article Marias Massacre (revision 1380087635), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Changes: excerpted from the article lead section; formatting and citations removed. No text added.
Nearby battles
- Battle of the Belly River 1870 · 169 km
- Battle of Bear Paw 1877 · 181 km
- Battle of the Big Hole 1877 · 341 km
- Battle of Canyon Creek 1877 · 363 km
Browse more: battles in United States · North America · 19th century battles