Where is it?
Washita Battlefield National Historic Site lies along the banks of the Washita River in southwestern Oklahoma. The site is also part of the Black Kettle National Grassland which is managed by the National Forest Service. Twelve miles north of the park is the Black Kettle Recreation Area featuring:
- Tent camping sites (no reservations/no fee)
- Hiking and interpretive trails
- Picnic Area
- Lake with boat ramp
- Fishing
- Wildlife viewing
Cheyenne, Oklahoma is the nearest town and is located 23 miles north of I-40 and Sayre, Oklahoma via US Highway 283.
For additional information, here is a link to the park’s website: Washita Battlefield
We visited this park in early March, and while the temperatures were in the mid-60s, so were the winds. At least it felt that way. The gusts were so high, we couldn’t hold the camera still. We had to keep reminding ourselves that we were in Oklahoma where the “wind comes sweepin’ down the plain”. Despite the blustery gusts, we thoroughly enjoyed our visit surrounded by the peaceful setting and gorgeous landscape. Our photos don’t do justice to the park’s golden and red tinged grasses, russet bluffs, and gently rolling hills.
Significance of the Site
Southern Cheyenne leader Chief Black Kettle and approximately 250 of his tribespeople were encamped for the winter in a village here on the banks of the Washita River. More than 5,000 other Cheyenne, Arapaho and Kiowa were also peacefully encamped in villages farther down the river. Following hostile attacks by bands of Cheyenne on white settlers in Kansas, renowned Civil War general, Philip Sheridan, ordered a retaliatory attack, and his (likely unwarranted) target was Black Kettle’s village. On November 27, 1868, Lieutenant Colonel George A. Custer led 800 soldiers of the 7th Cavalry in the surprise early morning raid, killing scores of village’s occupants including women and children. The assault would become known as the Battle of the Washita.
Casualties of the Battle
Upon hearing of the attack, warriors from the larger villages downstream had rushed to aid Black Kettle and his people. Their help was probably too little and too late, and sadly, both Black Kettle and his wife, Medicine Woman Later were killed in the battle. The death toll remains sketchy, but approximately 103 Cheyenne and 22 US Army personnel perished, along with the Cheyenne’s herd of ponies. Survivors of the battle included fifty-three Cheyenne women and children who were captured and taken to Fort Hays in Kansas. Custer’s soldiers were instructed to destroy all evidence of the village, therefore all fifty-one of the Cheyenne’s lodges were burned and most of their ponies were slaughtered. When all was said and done, nothing remained of the village except the bones of 800 ponies, which were finally removed from the site in 1935.
Custer’s Destiny
In an ironic twist of fate, Lieutenant Colonel George A. Custer met his demise almost eight years later in June 1876 during the Battle of the Little Bighorn in Montana. The US Army (7th Cavalry) suffered defeat against a band of thousands of Native American warriors composed mostly of Northern Cheyenne and Lakota Sioux. Little Bighorn is considered the most significant battle of the Great Sioux War, which was a series of conflicts and unkept agreements between Native American tribes and the US government. Perhaps most famously, the Battle of the Little Bighorn is remembered as Custer’s Last Stand.
Why Visit This National Park Site?
Washita Battlefield tells just one story of the many adversities the native peoples suffered, especially as our country expanded westward into their homelands. Though we tend to turn our sympathies more toward Black Kettle and his people, the park does an excellent job of explaining what happened from each side’s point of view. Besides, we’re never too old or too young to learn, and where better to learn something than at a free national park. Plan to spend at least an hour in the visitor center because there is a film and a museum that are interesting as well as educational. From the visitor center, drive about a quarter mile to the village site and then walk the 1.5-mile interpretive trail to learn more about what took place on that fateful day in 1868.
Thank you so much for joining us on our quick trip to Washita Battlefield National Historic Site.
Looking for more history? Check out these historic sites:
Fort Union National Monument
Eisenhower National Historic Site
Marsh-Billings-Rockefeller National Historic Site
Travel safe, travel smart, and we will see you down the road.
Mike and Kellye
As always, we strive to be as accurate with our information as possible. If we made a mistake, it was unintentional. (Hey, we’re only human!) We only recommend our own tried and true vendors and venues. Our suggestions are for places that we’ve heard good things about but haven’t visited personally, and our opinions are our own.
©2022
As always, your reviews are wonderful!! We will be going to OK next spring for a marathon. We will have to try to stop by and check this out!
Thanks so much!
Passed by it on the way out, ran out of time between destinations to stop.
Well maybe you can go back sometime. It is an interesting stop.
Cool, I told my TJ I would have a do-over of the same trip out west I just did two years ago sometime in the next few years. I want her to see all I did, and I may add this to the itinerary. 🙂
Thanks for the history lesson and photos! Will pass this along to my friend in New Mexico who might be interested to visit there.
Thanks for the history lesson and photos. Will pass this along to my friend who was just in OK with her husband to see if she wants to go.
Thank you for this post. I think we have an obligation to learn our history and visit sites such as these. It is a way to learn, hopefully a way to be more aware of what is right and to do better in the future, and a way to honor those who died. I would definitely visit this National Historic Site.
Thanks for this review. It is good to know that some of the history of these places is preserved. The wars against Native Americans was overlooked in my American History classes.
Mine too, and it’s a shame.
Thanks for filling in some considerable gaps on a battle I knew by name but not in detail. The same with Custer, I once delved into Little Bighorn but was unaware of his earlier escapades. Love that photograph of him! I’m sure being there, imagining the scenes that unfolded across this dramatic landscape, must have been quite the experience. The wind however sounds crazy, it seems you guys had quite the battle of your own.
Thank you Leighton! It is interesting that we learned very little of this in school. Now, many years later, we finally get the history lesson. Perhaps a few political lessons too.
What a neat sight to visit! I haven’t heard of this spot and can’t imagine those winds!!
Love your little snippets of American history, always such a good read
Thanks so much, guys!
Interesting read about an overlooked part of our history. I like that you said the visitor center really tries to tell the story from both sides to give a better understanding. I always love learning more of the history from these historic sites 🙂
Thanks, Meg!
Very nice park, desolate and with golden and red colors of landscape. Great you also stress on the history of this place. Great outing and thanks for sharing 🙂
Thank you, Vignesh!
I never enjoyed history when I had it in school but I love to learn about it through historical sites like this. Thanks for sharing!
A very sad tale indeed Kellye
We are hearing so much now of all the atrocities inflicted on indigenous people all over the world. Shame there is no historical evidence left
I had no idea about this interesting history – thank you for educating me!
Big sky views. Little or no sight pollution. It’s a rare thing.
Amazing how the similar this area looks to Southern Alberta. This was not the finest hour in dealings between settlers and First Nations. It is good to remember the events truthfully and hope that future generations will not repeat the mistakes. Might does not always mean Right. Thanks for sharing Kellye. Allan